Technical glossary :
3G : Third Generation - the next generation of wireless technology beyond personal communications services. The World Administrative Radio Conference assigned 230 megahertz of spectrum at 2 GHz for multimedia 3G networks. These networks must be able to transmit wireless data at 144 kilobits per second at mobile user speeds, 384 KBPS at pedestrian user speeds and 2 megabits per second in fixed locations.
3GPP : The group that was set up to produce globally applicable Technical Specifications and Technical Reports for a 3rd Generation Mobile System based on evolved GSM core networks. It produced the standards for W-CDMA (UMTS). Later the scope of the organisation was widened to include the maintenance and development of the GSM Technical Specifications and Reports.
802.11 or Wi-Fi : denotes a set of Wireless LAN standards developed by working group 11 of the IEEE LAN/MAN Standards Committee (IEEE 802).
802.16 or WiMAX : WiMAX, an acronym that stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, is a certification mark for products that pass conformity and interoperability tests for the IEEE 802.16 standards. IEEE 802.16 is working group number 16 of IEEE 802, specialising in point-to-multipoint broadband wireless access.
Bandwidth : In computer networks, bandwidth is often used as a synonym for data transfer rate - the amount of data that can be carried from one point to another in a given time period (usually a second). This kind of bandwidth is usually expressed in bits (of data) per second (bps). Occasionally, it’s expressed as bytes per second (Bps). A modem that works at 57,600 bps has twice the bandwidth of a modem that works at 28,800 bps.
Broadband : Broadband refers to a type of network connection that supports a very high bit rate, as opposed to “narrowband,” which supports a lower bit rate. The higher the bit rate, which is a measure of speed of transmission of bits per second (bps), the faster the transmission will occur in a given period of time. Deliverd via DSL or cable service, bandwidth: >128 Kilo Bits per second (KBPS)
CDMA : Code Division Multiple Access: a digital wireless telephony transmission technique.
1. CDMA allows multiple frequencies to be used simultaneously (Spread Spectrum). The CDMA idea was originally developed for military use over 30 years ago.
2. The CDMA standards used for second-generation mobile telephony are the IS-95 standards championed by QUALCOMM.
CDMA2000 : CDMA2000 is a 3G mobile telecommunications standard that uses CDMA, a modulation scheme for digital radio, to send voice, data and signalling data (such as a dialled telephone number) between mobile telephones and cell sites.
DECT : DECT or Digital Enhanced (former European) Cordless Telecommunications is an ETSI standard for digital portable phones, commonly used for domestic or corporate use. DECT can also be used for wireless data transfers
DVB-H : DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting – Handheld) is a standard specified by the DVB Organization specifically for the broadcasting of TV-like content and data to handheld devices, such as mobile phones.
DVB-H is based closely on DVB-T, the standard for broadcast digital TV in most of Europe.
GPRS : General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) is a mobile data service available to users of GSM mobile phones. It is often described as “2.5G”, that is, a technology between the second (2G) and third (3G) generations of mobile telephony. It provides moderate speed data transfer, by using unused TDMA channels in the GSM network.
GPS : The Global Positioning System, usually called GPS (the US military refers to it as NAVSTAR GPS), is a satellite navigation system used for determining one’s precise location and providing a highly accurate time reference almost anywhere on Earth or in Earth orbit. It uses an intermediate circular orbit (ICO) satellite constellation of at least 24 satellites.
GSM : Global System for Mobile Communication. Originally developed as a pan-European standard for digital mobile telephony, GSM has become the world’s most widely used mobile system. It is used on the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz frequencies in Europe, Asia and Australia, and the MHz 1900 frequency in North America and Latin America. Originally it defined as a pan-European open standard for a digital cellular telephone network to support voice, data, text messaging and cross-border roaming. GSM is now one of the world’s main 2G digital wireless standards.
IMAP : The Internet Message Access Protocol (commonly known as IMAP, and previously called Interactive Mail Access Protocol) is an application layer Internet protocol used for accessing email on a remote server from a local client. IMAP and POP3 (Post Office Protocol version 3) are the two most prevalent Internet standard protocols for email retrieval.
IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) : IMS is a general-purpose, open industry standard for voice and multimedia communications over packet-based IP networks. It is a core network technology that can serve as a low-level foundation for technologies like Voice over IP (VoIP), Push-To-Talk (PTT), Push-To-View, Video Calling, and Video Sharing. IMS is based primarily on SIP (session initiation protocol).
IP PBX : The Internet Protocol Private Branch eXchange (IP PBX) is telephone switching equipment that resides in a private business instead of the telephone company. An IP PBX delivers employees dial-tone, the ability to conference, transfer, and dial other employees by extension number as well as many other features. Voice transmissions are sent via data packets over a data network instead of the traditional phone network.
MMS : One of the breakthrough applications on GPRS is multimedia messaging service (MMS), which provides the customer the ability to communicate not just in voice or text but also in full colour images. Now one can communicate emotions; with photographs, voice clips and text to your near and dear ones. Just in case the receiver does not have an MMS handset, the photograph can be accessed from a dedicated website designed.
MPEG : Moving Pictures Experts Group.
1. An ISO (International Standards Organization) group that sets standards for compressing and storing video, audio, and animation in digital form.
2. The standards set by this group. PEG is a lossy compression method.MPEG-1 is a standard for CD-ROM video and audio.MPEG-2 is a standard for full-screen, broadcast quality video.MPEG-4 is a standard for video telephony.
PDA : Personal digital assistants (PDAs or palmtops) are handheld devices that were originally designed as personal organizers, but became much more versatile over the years. A basic PDA usually includes a clock, date book, address book, task list, memo pad and a simple calculator. One major advantage of using PDAs is their ability to synchronize data with desktop and notebook computers.
Palm OS : Palm OS is an operating system made by PalmSource, Inc. for personal digital assistants (PDAs) manufactured by various licensees. In May 2005, PalmSource sold the rights to the Palm name to PalmOne. As of May 2005, the new name for Palm OS (and PalmSource) has not been announced.
Pocket PC : A Pocket PC is a computer in a handheld size that runs a variation of the operating system Windows CE. It has many capabilities of modern desktop PCs. Currently there are thousands of applications for Pocket PC, many free. Some of these devices, running Microsoft Windows Mobile 2005 Phone Edition, also include mobile phone features. Pocket PCs can also be used with many other add-ons like GPS receivers or barcode readers.
SIM : Subscriber Identity Module. The SIM card is the smart card inserted inside all GSM phones. It identifies the user account to the network, handles authentication and provides data storage for basic user data and network information. It may also contain some applications that run on a compatible phone.
TDMA : Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) is a technology for shared medium (usually radio) networks. It allows several users to share the same frequency by dividing it into different time slots. The users transmit in rapid succession, one after the other, each using their own timeslot. This allows multiple users to share the same transmission medium (e.g. radio frequency) whilst using only the part of its bandwidth they require.
UMA : Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) provides access to cellular mobile voice and data services over unlicensed spectrum technologies, including Bluetooth and Wi-Fi (802.11).
VoIP (Voice-over-IP) : Voice-over-IP is a telephony term describing the facilities for managing the delivery of voice using IP. It involves sending voice information in some digital form in discrete packets rather than in the traditional circuit-oriented format of the PSTN. One advantage of VoIP is toll bypass–that is, avoiding the tolls charged for ordinary telephone service. Many organizations use VoIP internally over WAN links to reduce telephony service costs.
VPN : A virtual private network (VPN) is a private data network that makes use of the public telecommunication infrastructure, maintaining privacy through the use of a tunneling protocol and security procedures. The idea of the VPN is to give the company the same capabilities at much lower cost by using the shared public infrastructure rather than a private one.
WAP : Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) is an open international standard for applications that use wireless communication, for example Internet access from a mobile phone. WAP was designed to provide services equivalent to a Web browser with some mobile-specific additions, being specifically designed to address the limitations of very small portable devices.
WCDMA : Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) is a type of 3G cellular network. WCDMA is the technology behind UMTS (a.k.a. 3GSM) and is allied with the 2G GSM standard. WCDMA supports very high-speed multimedia services such as full-motion video, Internet access and video conferencing.
WLAN : A wireless LAN or WLAN is a wireless local area network that uses radio waves as its carrier: the last link with the users is wireless, to give a network connection to all users in the surrounding area. Areas may range from a single room to an entire campus. The backbone network usually uses cables, with one or more wireless access points connecting the wireless users to the wired network.
aahh.. quite a big list !! By the way friends if you think i have missed something here just drop me a mail and i could update this article...