Cell Phones Do Broadband.

MOBILE communication systems; CELL phone systems; UNIVERSAL Mobile Telecommunications System; COMPUTERS; TECHNOLOGY

The article assesses the accessibility and speed of the Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution network and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). We performed some informal tests using the Novatel Merlin U520 UMTS-based PC Card with a laptop, and using Motorola's A845 UMTS phone and the Nokia 6620 EDGE phone. The near-digital subscriber line speeds we saw impressed us, though transfer rates were still well below the maximum for each technology. You will notice faster surfing and data downloads than you get with general packet radio service. Pricing for data and video services varies by carrier, and the monthly costs can quickly run to $100 or more. For now, UMTS is available only in Dallas, Texas, Detroit, Michigan, Phoenix, Arizona, San Diego, California, San Francisco, California and Seattle, Washington from AT&T, while EDGE is available in more than 7500 U.S. cities from AT&T and Cingular. In 2005 a new network upgrade called High Speed Data Packet Access, which promises a maximum speed of 10 to 14 mbps.