1xRTT - 1xRTT is a data transmission system used on CDMA networks that allows for connetion speeds of up to a theoretical limit of 144kbps in most implementations. ...

- 2.5G - 2.5G is a sometimes used term that refers to GPRS class wireless data connectivity ...

- 2.75G - 2.75G is a term occasionally used to refer to EDGE data connectivity, implying that is is faster than GPRS (sometimes called 2.5G), but slower than typical 3G networks...

- 2G - 2G is short for Second Generation, the name usually given to original GSM, CDMA, and TDMA networks...

- 3G - 3G, or Third Generation, is a somewhat generic term for network technologies that the ITU classifies as part of their IMT-2000 specification...

- 4G - 4G is the term used to refer to the next wave of as yet unknown mobile technologies that will be used to replace current 3G networks...

- 802.11b - IEEE standard 802.11b defines a Wireless LAN (WLAN) technology that is capable of achieving up to 11Mbps of bandwidth between two devices..

- 802.11g - IEEE standard 802.11g defines a Wireless LAN (WLAN) technology that is capable of achieving up to 54Mbps of bandwidth between two devices...


- A-GPS - Assisted GPS is a system commonly found in CDMA mobile phones in the US that offloads some of the processing requirements of a typical GPS receiver to a central server that can perform the calculation...

- A2DP - The Advanced Audio Distribution Profile is a Bluetooth profile that allows for the wireless transmission of stereo audio from an A2DP source (typically a phone or computer) to an A2DP receiver (a set ...

- active matrix - Active matrix LCD displays are known for their superior performance when compared with passive matrix LCD technologies. From the user's perspective, an active matrix display has higher contrast and b...

- Airtime - The amount of time a subscriber spends using his/her mobile phone...

- AMPS - North America's AMPS and its variants used elsewhere in the world are the antiquated analog cellular phone networks used before the advent of digital technologies such as GSM and CDMA. AMPS was first...

- AMR (Adaptive Multi-Rate) - AMR is a speech coder standard introduced by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a partnership project of various standards organizations, developed to preserve high speech quality under a ...

- Analog - The standard, pre-digital mobile phone technology in the norm until recently (e.g. 1G). It has lower call quality and is a major security risk. ...

- aperture - The aperture of a lens system is the opening between the actual lens elements, typically made of glass or plastic, and the camera's digital sensor that translates the light into image data. Aperture ...

- auto-focus - Autofocus refers to a camera lens' ability to adjust its configuration in order to focus properly on a subject regardless of whether it is near or far from the camera. Autofocus lenses generally prov...

- autofocus - Autofocus refers to a camera lens' ability to adjust its configuration in order to focus properly on a subject regardless of whether it is near or far from the camera. Autofocus lenses generally prov...

-AVRCP - The Audio/Video Remote Control Profile is a Bluetooth profile that allows Bluetooth devices to control media playback on remote devices. It is typically used with A2DP devices for next/previous track...

-bandwidth - The amount of data that can be sent over a given network connection. Used to describe the "speed" of a connection between two devices.br/br/ br/br/ ...

- Beaming - Method to transfer files from one device to another. See Bluetooth and Infrared....

- BenQ - BenQ is a Taiwanese electronics manufacturer that creates products ranging from DVD burners to monitors and digital cameras. The company also manufactures mobile phones for the Asian market, and had ...

- bit - A binary digit that stores a value of 0 or 1. 8 bits make up a byte.br/br/ Also known as: "bits" br/br/ ...

- Bit-rate - The speed at which bits are transmitted over the physical layer, also called signaling rate. This is different from throughput, which is an end measure of network speed. ...

- Blackberry - Produced by Research in Motion a Blackberry is a handheld wireless device providing e-mail, telephone, text messaging and web browsing and other wireless data access....

- Blog - A weblog, usually referred to as a 'blog' is like an online diary. A website, supporting a blog, displays the written entries to the journal in reverse chronological order. Blogs offer world news, p...

- Bluetooth - Bluetooth is a wireless technology developed by Ericsson that is designed to be a cable replacement. It operates on the 2.4GHz frequency band, like WiFi, and is officially known as IEEE standard 802....

- Bluetooth profile - In order for two (or more) Bluetooth devices to be able to work together to accomplish a given task, such as file sharing, they need to both support the appropriate profiles. The Bluetooth SIG has de...

- Bluetooth Special Interest Group - The Bluetooth Special Interest Group, or SIG, is the governing body that controls the official specifications of the Bluetooth wireless technology. This not-for-profit entity is comprised of over 700...

- BPS - Bits per second is a measure of data transmission speed; the number of pieces of information transmitted per second. ...

- byte - A unit of data that is made up of 8 bits. It can store a single numeric value that ranges from 0 to 255.br/br/ br/br/ ...


- Cameraphone - A mobile phone with a built-in camera. Usually the phone has MMS messaging functionality. ...

- carrier - Carrier is a term commonly used in the United States and Canada to refer to a company that provides voice or data services. Carriers can be companies that operate wirelessly or over traditional wired...

- Carrier Signal - A signal transmitted at a pre-determined frequency to act as a "carrier" for voice or data. The carrier signal is modulated by voice or data input so as to "carry" the information to its destination w...

- CCD - A CCD is a type of image sensor used in digital cameras. When speaking of low cost devices, CCD image sensors tend to provide better image quality than comparable CMOS models, though they require mor...

- CDMA - CDMA stands for code division multiple access, a form of multiplexing that is based on mathematics rather than time slicing (used by TDMA) or frequency hopping. The term is commonly used to refer to ...

- CE Mark - The CE Marking is the manufacturer's declaration, showing compliance with all applicable directives. Mandatory for most products sold in the EU. With the exception of some high-risk products, most pro...

- Cell - The basic geographical unit of a cellular communications system. Service coverage of a given area is based on an interlocking network of cells, each with a radio base station (transmitter/receiver) at...

- Cellular - Circuit-switched voice telephone communications via cellular radio channels. The service area is divided into many cells and in each there is a base station handling the communications in that particu...

- Character recognition - Converts hand-drawn symbols to digital format and then to alphanumeric characters. ...

- Chip - In the context of CDMA, a chip is distinct from a bit (binary digits transmitted over the RF link). Each bit is represented by many chips, and if a majority of the chips get through then the bit can b...

Chipset - A group of IC chips that are designed to work together and generally used and priced as a set. ...

- cHTML - cHTML, short for Compact HTML, is a subset of the normal HTML markup language that was developed for the i-mode phones offered by Japan's NTT DoCoMo.br/br/ Also known as: "C-HTML", "Compact HTML...

- CIF - A pixel resolution of 352 pixels by 288 pixels.br/br/ br/br/ ...

- Circuit Switched Cellular (CSC) - Offers wide coverage. Used for large data transfers. See also see Circuit Switched Data. ...

- CLI (Caller Line Identification) - A service that allows a customer to see the number of the caller before answering the call. ...

- CMOS - CMOS is a type of integrated circuit chip manufacturing process that can be used for many things, including digital camera image sensors. CMOS camera sensors are generally cheaper to manufacture than...

- color saturation - Color saturation refers to how vivid and intense a color is. For example, a display with poor color saturation will look washed out or faded. When a color's saturation level is reduced to 0, it beco...

- communicator - A communicator is a style of smartphone made popular by Nokia's 9000 series of handsets, such as the 9300 and the 9500. A communicator is generally regarded to be a clamshell device that has its hing...

- Conference call - Allows you to speak to more than one person at the same time. To use this service, it must be supported by your network and by your phone. You may also have to add this service to your subscription. ...

- contrast - Contrast, when used to refer to a display or a photograph, refers to the difference in brightness that exists between bright and dark colors. In a photograph with poor contrast, subjects that should ...

- CSD - CSD, or Circuit-Switched Data, was a system used on early GSM networks to provide data access to mobile devices by allowing them to place a data call. CSD was capable of uplink and downlink rates o...

- CSTN - Color super-twisted nematic (CSTN) is the type of passive matrix LCD used by many early color capable mobile devices, and is still used on some current and cheaper devices. CSTN displays are prone to...

- CTIA - The CTIA is an non-profit organization that supports the wireless industry in the United States. They loby the government on behalf of the industry as well as put on industry shows like the CTIA Wire...

depth of field - Depth of field refers to the range of distances before and beyond the lens' focal point that are still sharp. A wide angle lens offers more depth of field than does a telephoto lens when focused at t...

- Digital - The newest form of wireless communications that takes all voice transmissions and converts them to binary data, then reconstructs them into the original voice format at the receiving end. More secure ...

- digital zoom - Digital zoom is a software based method of approximating a telephoto lens on a camera. This is done through systems such as pixel doubling that merely make each pixel in an image larger to increase t...

- Direct Push - Direct Push is Microsoft's Push Email system for pushing email, contacts, appointments, and tasks to a mobile device in real time.br/br/ br/br/ ...

- DMB - DMB stands for Digital Multimedia Broadcasting and is a suite of systems used to send television and similar media programming over the air to mobile devices. S-DMB is a version that makes use of sat...

- Docking cradle - A device used to connect a handheld to a PC for synchronization and application downloads. The two are connected via the handheld's communication port using a serial or USB cable. The cradle often dou...

- downlink - The downlink part of a network connection on a mobile device is used to receive, or download, data to the mobile device from the remote server. The uplink connection is used to send data from the mob...

- Dropped Call - A wireless call that is unintentionally disconnected due to a system problem, lack of channel availability or dead spot in coverage. ...

- DSL - DSL is a group of networking technologies that allow for WAN connections over existing telephone network wires. Originally short for Digital Subscriber Loop, DSL is more commonly referred to today as...

- dual-band - Dual-band refers to a device's ability to function on two different frequency bands. Many CDMA devices sold in North America are dual-band capable. Dual-band CDMA devices tend to offer better roamin...

- dual-mode - Dual-mode devices are capable of supporting more than one network type. Examples of such are those that support both CDMA and AMPS, CDMA and GSM, or CDMA and iDEN.br/br/ br/br/ ...

- DVB-H - DVB-H is the European standard for digital broadcast television for mobile devices. It stands for Digital Video Broadcast - Handheld, and is a variant of the DVB-T ("Terrestrial) standard that was def...