Overview of GSM, D-AMPS and CDMA Technologies

Hannu Hietavirta Nokia de Venezuela 05. January 1999

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 1

Summary GSM vs. CDMA

CDMA network require very careful network planning. To achieve same quality, GSM network planning is much simpler. Also maintaining the network quality in GSM network is easier and much more cost efficient If not very carefully planed/maintained, soft handover (CDMA) will eat CDMA capacity in dense urban areas. Between 30-80 % of all conversations can be in soft-handover state Cell breathing will complicate the network planning. Under variable network load conditions, cell breathing may resultin quality degardation Dual mode AMPS-CDMA networks does not support handover from CDMA to AMPS. This will have an impact on service quality if CDMA coverage print is smaller than AMPS one. CDMA is vulnerable to interference from inter-modulation products like AMPS (especially in the 800 MHz band) Filtering of wide band audio, e.g. hearing aid interference. Filtering CDMA interference out is much more complicated and expensive

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 2

Summary of GSM vs. CDMA cont.

CDMA terminals more expensive, heavier and battery life is shorter. Both talk time and stand by time are much shorter that in GSM. Due to volumes, competition and wide variety of choice, GSM terminals will stay ahead GSM has more advanced set of services; data, fax, SMS, smart messaging GSM has advantage in terms of volumes; Firstly the cost of infrastructure is lower due to open standard and real competition. Secondly, the volumes of GSM will attract 3rd party application developers to build applications on top of GSM. This is furhter enforced by the strong liasion of GSM and 3rd generation WCDMA system. IS-95 is lacking a growht path into 3rd generation mobile system. The investment to IS-95 may be without protection for the future - or the future will be build on proprietary low volume solutions Due to large module size in CDMA infra make the implementation of Mirco cells currently impractical

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 3

Summary GSM vs. D-AMPS

GSM has more advanced set of services; data, fax, SMS, smart messaging. GSM has a robust data platform. GSM networks and terminals have a lead of more than two year in data services. Therefore, considering any deployment timing for data services, GSM currently has a significant advantage GSM is likelty to maintain the lead in data services the next 5 years GSM has advantage in terms of volumes. The volume of GSM will attract 3rd party application developers to build applications on top of GSM The core network IS-41 is a closed standard. Thus, any change in vendor or access technology will require a complete overlay network (e.g. Telcel implementing Mobitex) Price per subscriber for D-AMPS and GSM is similar, while CDMA is more expensive The implementation differences of IS-41 for D-AMPS and CDMA are very small. Thus Movilnet and Telcel have similar service capabilities

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 4

Voice Quality

Quality of the information (speech or data) is the result of several factors. Error free transmission over the fading radio channel and a speech coder, which produces natural sounding speech and is tolerant of digital channel error, are the most important factors. Both TDMA and IS-95 have implement significant error protection. Extra bits are used for error protection and bit interleaving is employed to prevent long sequences of erroneous bits. All technologies do this well, but no technology is significantly better than any other In general, due to the rapid and continuing advance in speech coder technology, the latest speech coder design is better than the earlier versions. When IS-95 was first demonstrated using a coder designed in 1990, it had better quality than digital speech coders used in competitive systems, which had been designed in 1986 and 1984 respectively. Both IS-136 and GSM have recently deployed the enhanced full rate codec (EFR). With this development the speech quality within all systems is now coming to rival to that of the fixed voice network speech quality. In the long term, one can expect each system to be upgraded to the latest and best available speech coder, so that this should not be viewed as a long-term distinguishing feature of either technology (TDMA vs. CDMA).

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 5

Network Quality
Drive test results from San Diego (week 40/1998):
Network CDMA1800 GSM1900 CDMA800 AMPS Operator Sprint PCS Bacific Bell Air Touch SW Bell Call Attemps 384 366 384 282 Attemps OK 91,4 98,6 96,9 90,1 Releases OK 94,9 97 89,2 89,8 Calls OK 86,7 95,6 86,6 80,9

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 6

Volumes in GSM, D-AMPS and CDMA

300

Old estimate
250

GSM
Global Cellular Subscribers
IS-136 IS-95 GSM
200

New estimate

200 180 160 140 Millions 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
0 50 100 150

IS-95
Existing Aug 1997 Existing Nov 1997 CDG est. "early 21st century" Existing Jun 1997 Existing Nov 1997 GSM Mou est. end of 1999 GSM MoU est. end of 2003

December: Mobile penetration in Finland hit the 60 % mark. Now, mobile penetration is higher than fixed line penetration (per person)

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 7

Roaming, Network + Handsets

Roaming can be achieved via two methods: same technology (e.g. GSM) multi-mode handsets GSM is designed for automatic international roaming. The introduction of CAMEL
will furhter enhance the automatic use of IN services when roaming fourth variant, Iridium, will provide the required fill in in rural areas

The 900, 1800 and 1900 GSM bands have a very wide geographical footprint. The The D-AMPS camp (UWCC) has a clear focus to facilitate international roaming
and solve the current problems. Difficult issue is IS-41 proprietary services. Intercarrier deals are currently beeing used to facilitate seamler service roaming. The implementatio of WIN will facilitate service roaming networks Chile ?)

Commercial products exist that can facilitate roaming between IS-41 and GSM Digitel roaming will initially depend on Swisscom roaming agreements ( USA ?,

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 8

Roaming, Network and Handsets cont.

GSM MoU has requested volumes of tri-band GSM handsets (900, 1800, 1900) AMPS-IS-136-GSM handsets are expected to come to market very soon as well (3Q/99, ETSI SMG#27 Tdoc 779/98) The merger of different TDMA technologies in one handset does not pose any fundamental engineering problmes Nokia does not have plans to produce a GSM-CDMA dual mode handset

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 9

Nokia and Wireless Data

Robusts data connections are achieved due to two standard mechanisms:
Radio Link Protocol (RLP). This is an acknowledgement protocol that facilitates
retransmission of errored data. This increases throughput by limiting any retransmisson to the radio portion of the call reducing the number of end to end retransmissions. kbit/s, but 13.2 kbit/s of that total capacity is used for error protection code to ensure accurate transmission of the 9.6 kbit/s data across the fading radio channel. Respectively 8.4 kbit/s is used for error protection of 14.4 kbit/s data transmission

Additional data over the air interface. The gross bit rate of a full rate channel is 22.8

Examples of Nokia Wireless data applications/develoments:

Minimise data call set times, eg digital modems and TCP/IP access from the switch to
remove modem handshaking (30secs -> 5secs)

Detect terminal capability and filter information accordingly eg if the terminal is a Nokia
Communicator, do not send graphics unless requested.

Make a circuit switched application acknowledgement based to support breaks

connection. Eg if a mail message is 90% downloaded and the radio connection fails, reconnection within a timeout period will mean that only the additional 10% needs to be transmitted (Nokia Wireless Data Enhancer)

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 10

Circuit Switched and Packed Data

Circuit switched data

D-AMPS data gross rate is 9.6 kbit/s, effective max. 7.2 - 7.8 kbt/s Current GSM effective data speed in 9.6 - 14.4 kbit/s. Standardisation of higher data rates in D-AMPS is expected during 1998 (IS-136+). Normal lead time to products 12-18 months from standardisation CDMA data rates effectively 7.2 - 7.8kbit/s. Without any error correction 14.4 kbit/s is achievable today.Implementation of CDMA multi-code handset is more difficult than TDMA multi-slot one. GSM supports SMS now GSM supports up to 128 kbit/s using GPRS (year 2000) Commercially available D-AMPS mobiles will support mobile originated SMS during 1Q/99.

Packed data

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 11

Circuit Switched and Packed Data cont.

D-AMPS will implment GSM specified GPRS. UWCC has officially selected GPRS for
implmenting packed data functionality in D-AMPS. More info: www.uwcc.com

IS-95 handsets are targeted at having mobile originated SMS from 2H99 Difficulties with the assigning of codes are being investigated to facilitate packet data
within IS-95. Conceptually it has been proposed that one code will be specified as a packet radio control channel. All packet users in standby mode will listen to this channel as in the TDMA case. Notification of packets is achieved through header information on this channel. The system will then dedicate a single code or multiple codes for transmission 2000) and therefore have a lead over IS-95 in this respect. To deliver these applications over IS-95 will currently require a proprietary implementation.

GSM and IS-136 have standardised an open core IP network (GPRS, available early Development of an IP core network standard for IS-95 will resolve this, but to date no

standardisation work has begun. At present the IS-95 is yet to decide on packed core network

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 12

Mobile networks and Internet

With the growth of the Internet, or more importantly the understanding that the Internet
represents the future application environment, companies are frantically building competence and products in this area. With this refocused core competence, the mobile environment is a logical extension. With the mobile core network evolution to IP, applications can be easily created using core competencies. The potential of 500 million Internet users and up to 1 billion e-mail users by the year 2000, will provide the motivation

The enhanced capability of mobile technologies to support higher data rates are required

to leverage off this market, however this only has a second order stimulation effect. Mobile industry players, such as Nokia, are forming themselves into industry groups and joint ventures to promote application driven environments, examples of these are Symbian, Bluetooth and WAP. developing will be the catalyst for increasing activity in 3rd party application development. to develop applications on top of GSM and to interwork with GSM

As these are industry wide and open groups the protocols/applications they are

GSM is world largest mobile standard. It will attract a large number of 3rd party developer

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 13

Wireless Application Protocol

WAP defines an application framework and network protocols for future
wireless services by leveraging off the existing technologies from the mobile network and the Internet technologies. The initial aims of WAP are to:

Bring information content and advanced services from the Internet world to
wireless terminals.

Create a global wireless application protocol that will work across different
wireless network technologies.

In the longer term WAP will be extended to become a major service control

architecture that will provide a backbone for distributed applications to interwork to provide complex info-communication services. WAP is seen as one of the leading contenders for the flexible service control architecture for the 3rd Generation mobile services. Applications and content running on WAP can be carried over any mobile radio access medium cumulated, existing experience from SMS and data services and 3rd party applications already developed for SMS smart messaging and terminals like Nokia 8110i, Nokia 9000 Communicator and Nokia 6150
FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 14

Like the Internet model, WAP is independent of any mobile access technology. GSM community will be forerunner in WAP implementation, because of

NOKIA

Symbian

Symbian is a group formed by Nokia, Ericsson and Psion (recent additions to the group are Motorola, Phillips and software companies Oracle and JavaSoft) with the objective of creating user friendly wireless information devices, such as smart phones and communicators. Symbian is attempting to promote the interoperation of Wireless Information Devices (WID) with wireless networks, content services, messaging and enterprise wide solutions. Symbian has developed the EPOC 32-bit operating system and specifically scaled it for low-power, compact machines such as handheld PIMs and mobile communicators. Software developers can obtain the software developer kit (SDK) cheap, allowing them to develop applications on top of the EPOC OS. This will encourage and promote many software developers to participate in application development for end users via EPOC

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 15

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is another special interest group (SIG) aiming at making seamless voice and data transmission possible via wireless short-range radio. Bluetooth uses a short range radio link in the globally available 2.45Ghz ISM free band, to exchange information with wireless connectivity between mobile terminals, mobile PCs, handheld computers and other peripherals. This essentially eliminates the need for the purchase or carrying of a number of proprietary cables to allow connection of multiple communication devices, by instead providing a single multi-device port. The devices to be connected will not require line of sight and can maintain a connection when in motion, in the pocket or brief case. More information: www.bluetooth.com

NOKIA

FILENAME.PPT / 13.12.1997 / NN page: 16