Posted by gracyj
Can someone tell me the difference between UMTS and 3G. 3G is referred as 3rd Generation mobiles and so does UMTS refer to the 4th generation mobiles. Give a small description about both in simple words. What is new in UMTS which is not there in 3G?
Thank you in advance
[ This Message was edited by: gracyj on 2010-12-24 11:15 ]
Posted by jplacson
3G is 3rd generation mobile technology. UMTS is one of the technologies under 3G, just like WCDMA, and CDMA2000. 3G is just a way of grouping all the current tech together. None of them are 4G. Everything out now is still 3G.
Wimax, LTE are often branded as 4G but officially are not. They are still under 3G (3.9 but I personally think that's just lame marketing) currently no tech can officially be classified as 4G since the official standards have not been set yet. But for normal street talk, wimax and LTE are accepted as 4G.
Posted by t3chn1x
we might be confused of what's available comm-technology available in our country, though it has a lot of technicalities;
where 3G has WCDMA, HSDPA, HSUPA, HSPA+, WiMax / LTE (IEEE802.16)
where 4G has Mobile WiMAX (IEEE 802.16e), IEEE 802.16m or WirelessMAN-Advanced, iBurst and MBWA (IEEE 802.20) etc...
now these terms really confuses end users especially the branding where 4G is being used. what really vary is their maximum speed and LTE(long term evolution). both are capable except that 3G has a limited maximum speed where 4G exceeds on it, depending on either 3G/4G transmission systems.
Posted by laffen
And to add more confusion, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) which are setting the standards recently changed their mind about 3G vs 4G when they issued a press release on December 6th this year:
Following a detailed evaluation against stringent technical and operational criteria, ITU has determined that "LTE-Advanced" and "WirelessMAN-Advanced" should be accorded the official designation of IMT-Advanced. As the most advanced technologies currently defined for global wireless mobile broadband communications, IMT-Advanced is considered as "4G", although it is recognized that this term, while undefined, may also be applied to the forerunners of these technologies, LTE and WiMax, and to other evolved 3G technologies providing a substantial level of improvement in performance and capabilities with respect to the initial third generation systems now deployed. The detailed specifications of the IMT-Advanced technologies will be provided in a new ITU-R Recommendation expected in early 2012.
The definition of 4G used to be peak download speed at 100 Mbp/s. Now this has changed. Even more confusion when Nokia Siemens Networks Corporation soon will offer a 3G technology with speeds up to 650 Mbit/s.
Posted by freezone
waw thanks 4 all this infos
Posted by jplacson
@t3chn1x @laffen, I agree. Until they OFFICIALLY announce the first 4 G product with the final specs (not draft) I refuse to call any 'upcoming' standards 4G. It sounds too lame already. It's only 4G when the standard is finalized...not when it's "faster than 3G".
"Price is NOT worth. To value price, makes it worthless. To value worth, makes it priceless. Happy 1.1.11 everyone! - John Lacson"
[ This Message was edited by: jplacson on 2010-12-31 10:42 ]