P800 and the 3G future

Despite the press, and stuff, 3G will NOT be a major part of cellphones until at least 2005 I reckon.

The bandwidth isn't high enough at the moment for the things that have been promised, the handsets aren't available, or overly priced. Its just not going to happen.

However Hutchinson 3G are allegedly launching in March this year... (3/3/03 - get it?)

www.three.co.uk

But its just not going to happen. Buy a P800. When its life is over, you can get a 3G handset. Or something.

UMTS guys are really struggeling since they can't really get it to work as advertised. The UMTS network is only good when you are very very colse to a cell. In average distrance current bandwidth is less than GPRS. So 2005-2006 seems realistic before the bugs are ironed out.

best

Kaz

I find it so weird that telcos are pushing 3G when they haven't even maximized GPRS yet.

Just wondering, are current single, dual, and tri band GSM phones still compatible with UMTS or WCDMA networks? If not...it would be very stupid of telcos to think EVERY GSM subscriber will need, or even want 3G.

Most (I said most, not all) people don't even use GPRS!

GPRS at it's best is already good enough. Current DL speeds allow streaming video already! And GPRS isn't even maximized!

Sure, it would be nice to have 1.5Mbps UL/DL speeds on my mobile. Video/Audio conferencing...etc..etc.. but kinda pointless if I'm the only one who has it...it would even be worse if UMTS/WCDMA handsets cannot send or receive MMS from current GSM users.

So, how backwards compatible is UMTS/WCDMA to current GSM handsets/networks?

While it is true that GPRS is only starting to be used to any great extent now, the operators have to look at the future. They have to look at what people will want in five years time. Already a 64k 3G bearer provides twice the download speed when compared to GPRS and at least one operator has a 384k bearer but is hampered by a lack of handsets.

Regarding the P800, although I use 3G at work every day, I still want a P800 handset. The reasons are:

[list]The features available on the handset
Cost (I could not afford to use 3G at current prices)
Availability (I live in rural Wiltshire where we cannot even get ADSL so 3G is not going to arrive soon)[/list:u]

xpto256 should but the P800 now. The chances are he/she will want to change handset before 3G is widely available.

[quote="xpto256"]I'm just wondering, if next year are released the 3G terminals, isn't a bit to risky to by know the P800?
Because I imagine thta some of the 3G terminals will have all the functions of the P800 (and more) but will be able to use all the features of the 3G network.[/quote]
So you should wait for 4G or 5G or the next... 😉
[quote="xpto256"]Does anyone knows if the P800 will be able to upgrade to use the 3G features?[/quote]
No. So much of it is in hardware side.

I know that 3G will come around sooner or later... I'm just wondering if UMTS/WCDMA or whatever 3G will be, is backwards compatible with current GSM?

I think telcos are jumping the gun here... remember that timing is everything... being first doesn't mean you'll survive... remember what happened to the great Iridium! They were the first to offer satellite technology... but in the end, the players that came after, Globalstar & Aces, ended up doing better.

Launching technology no one wants just yet is a bit foolish. Even in 2 years, to assume that everyone will want highspeed internet access (or be willing to pay for it anyway) on their handset is just weird.

Most people don't even use MMS or Email while on the go. And even if they do, would they be willing to pay PER KB?? Remember that heavy internet users would most likely opt for WLAN instead which is already a standard and offers up to 10Mbps...and access is cheap.

I won't pay per KB/MB of data just to see my boss on the phone! Unless telcos can match regular GSM rates, I don't see many people switching to 3G. IMHO anyway.

[quote="jplacson"]I know that 3G will come around sooner or later... I'm just wondering if UMTS/WCDMA or whatever 3G will be, is backwards compatible with current GSM?[/quote]

If you mean, does a GSM phone work on a UMTS then the answer is no. What you will see is that most 3G phones in this country will be hybrid in that they will be compatible with both the GSM/GPRS network and the 3G network. The first such phones are the Nokia 6650 and Motorola A830, although neither is Symbian based.

[quote="jplacson"]I won't pay per KB/MB of data just to see my boss on the phone! Unless telcos can match regular GSM rates, I don't see many people switching to 3G. IMHO anyway.[/quote]

Initially, you are correct but in the same way that very few people switched to GPRS until services came along (such as picture messaging) that justified switching. Apparently, 30000 people have already signed up for the offering from 3, which is not bad since it has not even been launched.

3G (UMTS) has been up and running over here on the Isle of Man for a good while now (getting on for a year, from memory) and it really is a huge damp squib. The cost is enourmous and there just isn't enough content.

Content is the main factor for any technology like this. The 3G handsets supplied by Manx Telecom are cheap, plasticy rubbish and can only access WAP so it's basically only usefull as a mobile broadband modem for your laptop. Which is fine, but how often do you need to download huge files over the Internet whilst on the move.

So, given that it's ben up and running a year and there is still no useful content and still no handsets with functionality over and above what is already available for GSM\GPRS, I think the P800 is a safe bet for now. 3G has a lot of maturing to do before it even catches up with 2G, it will be a long time before it surpasses it.

How are the prices?

[quote="MaleBuffy"]How are the prices?[/quote]

Off the top of my head (don't have the info with me at the moment) it's about �20 (USD30) a month for a basic subscription, but you only get a Meg or two with that. You can buy packages up front but they don't work out any cheaper than paying for what you've used at the end of each month. It's about �1 (USD1.50) a Meg on top of your subscription. Phone calls are then charged at normal rates.

It can all add up frighteningly quickly. Especially as I didn't used to have to pay for data calls.