Wireless communication services provide cell phone service, SMS, WAP and GPRS services to mobile phones. They support analog and digital telephone networks as well as satellite phones. Analog telephones translate audio signals into electronic pulses. Digital telephones translate voice communications into a binary format. Wireless communication services that support corded phones and older, analog cellular phones often use advanced mobile phone service (AMPS), a 1G standard which operates in the 800 to 900 MHz frequency band. Digital technologies for mobile telephones and cell phones include code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), global system for mobile communications (GSM), and digital enhanced cordless telecommunications (DECT). Short message service (SMS) is available on many digital GSM networks. Wireless application protocol (WAP), an open specification for mobile devices, allows users to communicate with satellite phones, pagers, and two-way radios. GSM wireless communication services may also provide general packet radio service (GPRS), which combines packet-switching protocols with flexible data transmission rates.

Selecting Wireless Communications Services

Selecting wireless communication services requires an analysis of vendor costs and capabilities. Most cellular providers offer calling plans which consist of a base rate for system access and a per-minute rate for usage. The base rate or access fee is a monthly charge for the ability to connect to the wireless network. During the first month of cellular service, the subscriber is charged a one-time access fee for configuring the wireless phone. Calls made outside the user’s home coverage area may be subject to roaming charges and other fees. Airtime, the total time that a mobile phone is connected and in use, consists of both peak and off-peak minutes. Peak periods occur when during high-volume usage. Off-peak periods occur when calling volume is low, such as during non-business hours. Wireless communication services also provide a variety of features. Examples include automatic call delivery, call forwarding, call waiting, caller ID, e-mail, follow-me roaming, memory dialing, monophonic or polyphonic ring tones, no answer transfer, no service indicator ,paging, radio frequency (RF) fingerprinting, voice mail, and voice-activated dialing.

Technologies Used

Wireless communication services use many different technologies to connect cell sites with cell phone users. Examples include Bluetooth®, broadband, multipoint multichannel distribution service (MMDS), personal communication services (PCS), wideband CDMA, and Wi-Fi. Bluetooth, a registered trademark of the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), supports wireless communications over short distances. Broadband is a high-bandwidth transmission medium which divides multiple signals into multiple, independent bandwidth channels. Each channel operates on a specific range of frequencies. MMDS is used to distribute cable television and other broadband signals via a single transmitter. PCS systems use the 1.9 GHz band of the radio spectrum. WCDMA is a based on code division multiple access (CDMA), but uses wider 5 MHz channels. Wireless communication services that use Wi-Fi, an abbreviation for wireless fidelity, operate at 2.4 GHz across wireless local area networks (WLAN).