The problem is that, when talking about the delivery of data over cellular networks, it is not so easy to sort through the maze of technical terms and acronyms. In particular, those interested in getting better data rates should become familiar with the two most popular high-speed services -- EDGE (Enhanced Data for Global Evolution) and EVDO (Evolution Data Optimized) -- as well as the even faster mobile offerings that lie just on the horizon.

And it is also important to know that neither EVDO nor EDGE truly qualifies as broadband. "High-speed broadband implies that you have a fairly high-speed uplink, which in wired systems runs at 256 Kbps on the upload and 1.5 Mbps down," said Phillip Redman, research vice president at Gartner. "In wireless today, we see actual download speeds in the 300 to 500 Kbps range, but all the uplink speeds are less than 100 Kbps."

Need for Speed

In addition, trying to compare the two most popular high-speed wireless technologies, EVDO with EDGE, is like trying to compare apples to oranges. "EVDO offers download speeds of 400 to 700 Kbps, while EDGE delivers 100 to 130 Kbps, so EVDO has the speed edge today," observed Shiv Bakhshi, director of wireless infrastructure at the research firm IDC. "The better comparison is between EVDO and HSDPA (high-speed downlink packet access), which gets you data download speeds of 700 to 900 Kbps."

Cingular currently is rolling out HSDPA in several cities around the U.S., but it won't be available nationwide for quite some time.

Lisa Pierce, a vice president in the telecom and networks research group at Forrester Research, said people should not get mired in the technical specs just yet. "Speed is an important issue, and, as is true for any wireless technology, we can talk about throughput, about downlink and uplink speeds, improvement through compression, and so on. But the first thing consumers should ask about is availability, then follow up by asking questions about speed and setup."

So far, most cellular customers tend to favor the data services of their current voice provider. "They have already made the decision that their current voice coverage is sufficient," Pierce said. "So if it's Cingular, then they are looking at EDGE, or if it's Verizon or Sprint, then they are looking at EVDO." (continued...)

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