jgkolt
Premium
join:2004-02-21
Lakewood, OH
clubs:
1 edit | gsm
I tend to agree with this snip it and the article. i wish the states was on one standard though (maybe GSM). I like my cdma phone but a sim card would be nice and an unlocked phone would also be just as nice. What technology do they use in japan and china? CDMA? What high speed network are they talking about that is faster than some us broadband lines here in the states?
--
www.LakeSemaJ.com |
|
karlmarx
join:2006-09-18
iraq
 ·Fairpoint Communic..
| The Europeans got it right
The fact that your phone isn't tied to a provider is a HUGE benefit to the consumer. And as a part of that, the providers don't lock you in. Of course, my experience in the UK taught me that most people do prepaid, so I'm not really sure what the monthly rates are. I do know my colleagues spend about 20 pounds a month for virtually unlimited minutes. You don't get deals like that in the US.
The problem in the US is that we didn't choose a good standard. GSM is a worldwide standard, and if the megacorps weren't so greedy here, we would have the benefits of the european system.
--
Stick it to the MAN. Support your local torrent sites. Proudly providing 100mb of upstream for all your TV, Movie, and MP3 needs. |
|
93254336
Weapons Of Masturbation
Premium
join:2001-10-20
| All I care about...
...is that the cellphone can be used reliably to make phone calls and won't break if it's dropped. It doesn't have to take photos, play music, videos or games, give me driving directions, bark like a dog, or dispense personal lubricant.
- Dan
--
"That which does not kill us makes us stranger."
|
|
n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY
 ·Optimum Online
1 edit | reply to jgkolt
Re: gsm
said by jgkolt  :I tend to agree with this snip it and the article. i wish the states was on one standard though (maybe GSM). I like my cdma phone but a sim card would be nice and an unlocked phone would also be just as nice. There is a such a card in the CDMA world. It is called an R-UIM (see »www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-ruim-card.htm) but no US carrier uses it and probably never will since it would require them giving up some of the control they currently have over their users. Plus at $25 to perform an ESN swap, they would also wind up losing a bit of revenue.
The #1 reason is have T-Mobile is because of the SIM card and the ability to swap it between various phones I have.
--
I support the right to keep and arm bears. |
|
jmn1207
Premium
join:2000-07-19
Reston, VA
 ·Verizon FIOS
| reply to 93254336
Re: All I care about...
said by 93254336 :...is that the cellphone can be used reliably to make phone calls and won't break if it's dropped. It doesn't have to take photos, play music, videos or games, give me driving directions, bark like a dog, or dispense personal lubricant. - Dan I agree, and I think there are many of us out there that just want a simple phone and not some razor-thin supercomputer that can belt out The Knack's "My Sharona" when the boss calls. These wireless carriers are trying to be too much by creating costly "value-added" services and options. They are just like politicians now. It takes an enormous amount of advertising to even have a chance to succeed in this market. The amount of money they spend to get noticed is outrageous. |
|
burgermeister
All Computers Are Junk
join:2000-10-23
Utica, MI
| reply to 93254336
I'm with you. All I need it to do is make and take calls. Interesting thin is that where I work, we're not even allowed to bring in a cell phone with a camera; it's hard to find phones without cameras.
At my last job, we weren't allowed to take cell phones with cameras into a lot of customer facilities either...
--
"I've learned that depression is merely anger without enthusiasm." |
|
Cabal
Premium
join:2007-01-21
Boston, MA
| reply to n2jtx
Re: gsm
said by n2jtx :said by jgkolt :I tend to agree with this snip it and the article. i wish the states was on one standard though (maybe GSM). I like my cdma phone but a sim card would be nice and an unlocked phone would also be just as nice. There is a such a card in the CDMA world. Hence the "but" in his statement.
--
Interested in open source engine management for your Subaru? |
|
jervin123
join:2005-04-14
Philadelphia, PA
| Different cultures, difernet uses
I think that since everyone is from a diffrent background that we have different uses, for instance last september a US network for the first time hit 5 billion text messeges in a month with the phillipines in 2003/2004 using 300-500 million texts a day. it just depends on the economy how people will be using their phones. |
|
tnewell
Premium
join:2001-02-12
Columbus, GA | reply to jgkolt
Re: gsm
Japan uses GSM 3G network. www.gsmworld.com I also believe that this is the high speed network they are talking about. |
|
Armaina
Not every saint is a fool
Premium
join:2002-11-06
Tempe, AZ
| reply to 93254336
Re: All I care about...
said by 93254336 :...is that the cellphone can be used reliably to make phone calls and won't break if it's dropped. It doesn't have to take photos, play music, videos or games, give me driving directions, bark like a dog, or dispense personal lubricant. - Dan Exactly. I hate the bells and whistles that now seem to come standard with any phone. I don't -need- a camera, or gps, or mp3 player, yet now I can hardly find a phone that doesn't have those features, and is also reliable
I am pleased with my simple LG but.. I really don't need all the features. |
|
anon555
@optonline.net | Korea
The technology that they are talking about in Korea is called WiBro providing 30-50 mbps. Its just a modified mobile WiMAX. |
|
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| reply to karlmarx
Re: The Europeans got it right
said by karlmarx :The fact that your phone isn't tied to a provider is a HUGE benefit to the consumer. Not always. You cannot take a Verizon phone to Cingular and vice versa. For most people I know, this isn't a big deal because by the time they need to upgrade a phone, their current phone is so beat up anyway that they have no desire to retain it.
said by karlmarx : And as a part of that, the providers don't lock you in. They don't lock you in here either. No carrier requires you to get a contract provided you are willing to pay full price for the phone like they do in Europe. For most people, contracts are not an issue at all, especially when they can get a phone for free.
said by karlmarx :The problem in the US is that we didn't choose a good standard. GSM is a worldwide standard, and if the megacorps weren't so greedy here, we would have the benefits of the european system. CDMA-based data standards are far superior to most GSM-based data solutions. Even current 3G GSM solutions are based in part on how CDMA does things currently. Furthermore, more countries now have cell phone providers which offer CDMA-based service in addition to GSM-based offerings.
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. |
|
Jwobot
join:2002-08-14
Sterling Heights, MI
·WOW Internet and C..
| Flip phones but no other phones for the deals!
It's hard to find those great phone deals they promote that are not a flip phone.  I can find 4 good package flip phones that Verizon is offering for free but I can't find a regular good package phone for free. Offer a mix of both and not just one! |
|
PseudoCrow
join:2001-11-26
Saint Louis, MO
| reply to jgkolt
Re: gsm
I just returned from China. Beijing and Shanghai are served by China Mobile, a GSM network. An unlocked tri-band phone works well with a prepaid China Mobile SIM; both can be had on E-bay here in the States. I was climbing the Great Wall when my phone rang and was so surprised that I dropped it (crunch). I replaced it with a phone from the China Mobile store - same deal; unlocked tri-band phone (Motorola V3; about $150).
Calls on the China SIM were much cheaper than using Verizon roaming - I'm not even sure Verizon would work over there. Calls to the States were about $.10 per minute. Plus I had a local Shanghai number so people could call me without incurring international charges at their end.
I was impressed - a nice reliable system that everyone uses. |
|
jervin123
join:2005-04-14
Philadelphia, PA | reply to pnh102
Re: The Europeans got it right
Also atleast us GSM/ 3GSM users don't have to pay royalties to Qualcom  open source phones are best. |
|
roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA
clubs:
| reply to pnh102
said by pnh102 :No carrier requires you to get a contract provided you are willing to pay full price for the phone like they do in Europe. Unfortunately, this is not true...no major US carrier (with the possible exception of Cingular, who I know used to do this IF you didn't mind losing free mobile-to-mobile) will sell new postpaid service without a contract even if you bring your own phone.
-SC
--
"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune |
|
roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA
clubs:
| reply to jervin123
said by jervin123 :Also atleast us GSM/ 3GSM users don't have to pay royalties to Qualcom Qualcomm still gets royalties from UMTS, just not as much as they do from CDMA2000.
-SC
--
"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune |
|
roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA
clubs:
| reply to Jwobot
Re: Flip phones but no other phones for the deals!
said by Jwobot :It's hard to find those great phone deals they promote that are not a flip phone. I can find 4 good package flip phones that Verizon is offering for free but I can't find a regular good package phone for free. Offer a mix of both and not just one! It's easier to find non-flip GSM phones than non-flip CDMA phones, mostly because non-flips are the preferred type of phone in most of the rest of the world.
-SC
--
"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune |
|
roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA
clubs:
| reply to karlmarx
Re: The Europeans got it right
said by karlmarx :my experience in the UK taught me that most people do prepaid In the US, something like 80% of wireless users are on postpaid with only 20% on prepaid, while in most of the rest of the world, prepaid users make up half or more of total subs. A lot of this is the fault of US carriers, who for the most part treat prepaid customers like third-class scum, charging much higher per-minute rates and offering little or nothing in the way of data features besides ringtones. Heck, Sprint doesn't even sell prepaid under its own brand and, aside from a short stint in Wal*Mart, never has!
-SC
--
"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune |
|
roamer1
sticking it out at you
join:2001-03-24
Atlanta, GA
clubs:
| reply to karlmarx
said by karlmarx :The problem in the US is that we didn't choose a good standard. GSM is a worldwide standard, and if the megacorps weren't so greedy here, we would have the benefits of the european system. Two of the four major US carriers are GSM... 
IMO, the major problems with the US wireless market aren't the fault of the hodgepodge of technologies the US has -- many Caribbean and Latin American countries, Israel, New Zealand, China, and quite a few other places have both GSM and CDMA, and in some cases even iDEN too. Weak regulation, the "control freak" mentality exhibited by some carriers (namely VZW), American technophobia, and the like are more likely to blame.
-SC
--
"Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. There might be a law against it by that time." -/usr/games/fortune |
|
