Sending text messages, technically identified as Short Message System (SMS), but typically acknowledged as “texting”, is a simple, effortless, and convenient manner to keep in touch among mobiles. In addition to being a very good way for people to keep in touch, text messages can be a practical way for software applications to exchange simple messages, and even setup commands, between mobile devices. text messages does not require a direct connection between mobile phones; the communications infrastructure for the process is already in position, and it functions across most cellular networks. One facet of text messaging that makes it particularly sensible for mobile software applications is that it uses cell phone fixed identity, the phone number. This feature provide a distinct benefit over other technologies that rely on IP addresses because a mobile phone IP address will vary depending on current network.
Short Message Service (SMS) is a communication service component of the GSM mobile communication system. It relies on standardized communications rules that allow the exchange of short text messages between mobiles. SMS texting is the most commonly used data application on earth, boasting about 2.4 billion active users, or three quarters of all cell phone subscribers.
SMS text messaging as used on modern mobiles was initially defined as part of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) series of protocols in 1985 as a manner of transferring texts of up to 160 characters, between GSM mobile handsets. Since the mid-eighties service support has extended to comprise other mobile technologies such as ANSI CDMA networks and Digital AMPS, as well as satellite and landline networks. The largest number of SMS messages are mobile-to-mobile text messages, though the standard supports other kinds of broadcast messaging as well. Computer to mobile device SMS text messaging capabilities are also growing rapidly.
Global System for Mobile Communications was initially called Groupe Spécial Mobile. It is the most accepted standard for mobile telephone systems on earth. The GSM Association, the promoting trade organization of mobile phone carriers and manufacturers, estimates that close to 80% of the world mobile market uses the standard. GSM is enjoyed by over 3 billion people across more than 212 countries and territories. Its ubiquity enables international roaming agreements between mobile phone carriers, offering subscribers the benefit of their mobile devices in many parts of the world. GSM differs from its forerunner technologies demonstrated by the fact that both signaling and speech channels are digital. Thus GSM is considered a second generation (2G) mobile phone system. This also facilitates the extensive deployment of data communication programs.
The ubiquity of GSM implementation has been a benefit for consumers that are given the ability to roam and switch carriers without needing to replace their mobiles, and also to network providers, who can choose equipment from many equipment suppliers. GSM is credited with pioneering low-cost implementation of SMS texting, which is now supported on other mobile phone standards.
General packet radio service (GPRS) is a packet oriented mobile data service available to users of the 2G and 3G GSM. In 2G systems. GPRS data communication is usually charged per megabyte of traffictransferred, while data transfer using traditional circuit switching is charged per minute of connection time, regardless of whether or not the user actually is using it or if it is idle. GPRS is a best-effort packet switched service, as opposed to circuit switching, that has guaranteed quality of service during the connection for non-mobile users.
2G cellular systems combined with GPRS are frequently described as 2.5G. 2.5G is a technology bridge between the second (2G) and third (3G) generations of mobile phone telephony. It provides moderate-speed data transfer, by using unused time division multiple access (TDMA) channels. Initially there was some thought to broaden GPRS to cover other standards, however these networks are converting to the GSM standard. GPRS is integrated into GSM Release 97 and newer releases.
GPRS was developed as a GSM response to the earlier CDPD and i-mode packet switched cellular technologies. Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) was a wide-area mobile data service which used unused bandwidth normally used by AMPS mobile phones. It was dropped in conjunction with the retirement of the parent AMPS service.
CDPD was developed in the early 1990’s, and was seen as a future technology. However, it had competition from then current slower but cheaper Mobitex and DataTac systems. CDPD never gained widespread acceptance before newer, faster standards such as GPRS gained general acceptance and became dominant.
For consumers CDPD had very limited appeal. AT&T Wireless initially offered the technology in the United States under the brandname PocketNet, one of the very first consumer wireless web service offers. Cingular Wireless later offered CDPD under the Wireless Internet brand (as opposed to Wireless Internet Express, Cingular Wireless GPRS/EDGE data). AT&T Wireless PocketNet was generally considered a failure. However, CDPD was used by some enterprise and government networks. It was particularly popular as a first-generation wireless data solution for telemetry devices (machine to machine communications) and for public safety mobile data terminals.
Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) (also called Enhanced GPRS (EGPRS), or IMT Single Carrier (IMT-SC), and Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution) is a backward-compatible digital cell phone technology that allows better data transmission rates on top of standard GSM. EDGE is considered a 3G radio technology. EDGE provides more than three-fold increase in both the capacity and performance of GSM/GPRS networks by using advanced techniques of coding and transmitting data, that deliver higher bit-rates per radio channel. EDGE delivers broadband performance and supports high bandwidth data applications such as Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS).
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