The Evolution of the Mobile Networks
Sometimes it seems that as soon as a mobile device is purchased, technology develops and that leaves the purchaser wondering if the product they’ve bought is borderline obsolete before it even leaves its packaging. Technology has evolved spectacularly in the last few decades and the rapid pace of advancement has led to increasingly shorter obsolescence cycles.
We started with an analogue cellular network, which was first used in Japan in 1979. AMPS, the Advanced Mobile Phone System, was developed in the U.S.A. and rolled out internationally, but it was unencrypted and susceptible to scanner users eavesdropping and it utilised a great amount of the wireless spectrum.
The 1G mobile network technology was first established in the U.S.A. in March 1983. It took ten years to commercially reach all areas, the device took ten hours to charge and the talk time was approximately thirty-five minutes before recharge was necessary. Demand for the product was massive, despite this, with waiting lists in the thousands.
By 1990, we had 2G and G.S.M. (Global System for Mobile Communications) and these were digital, rather than analogue. The hand held devices were smaller and lighter than their predecessors because battery technology and the distances between the mobile phones and the signal bases were decreasing with mass provision. It was with the 2G technology that SMS’s arrived and media content could be accessed.
The first full internet service originated in Japan in 1999 and 3G was developed as the demand for internet access grew in the early 2000’s. The higher speed video and music streaming capable W.C.D.M.A (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) and G.P.R.S. (General Packet Radio Service) technology which used packet switching or grouping data in to blocks rather than the circuit switching method of two nodes connecting to each other for data transfers, came in to common usage. H.S.P.D.A. (High Speed Packet Download Access) offered even higher speeds, therefore enhancing 3G performance.
By 2009, 4G mobile network was in development. It was up to ten times faster than 3G, which to accommodate larger data downloads was vital. 4G employs IP network access and packet switching. In effect, it treats voice calls like data streaming. LTE, Long Term Evolution, increased capacity and speeds and LTE Advanced gave more technological advantages to 4G users.
Where next? We have 4G mobile network, but this will have been superseded by 5G by 2020. It will be faster than 4G, expected to meet speeds of 1 gigabyte per second in offices, and offer improved coverage and signalling. It will have lifeline services in times of natural disaster and will use broadcast services. And, by 2020, we can reasonably suppose that 6G will be in development, we can only wonder what miraculous performance levels that will promise to the ever demanding, technology driven consumer.
Li-Fi, the new wireless connectivity that uses flickering LED’s to transfer data one hundred times faster than Wi-Fi, is becoming available commercially. Almost anything that we can dream of is possible; remember that, just thirty years ago, we’d have thought that watching television on our mobile phones was fanciful.