Ericsson Previews High-End, High-Speed Phone
R520M applies upcoming GPRS standard, plus Bluetooth and PDA functions.Tom Spring, PCWorld.com
NEW YORK-- Ericsson is setting the stage for faster wireless Internet access with a preview of its mobile R520M phone, which supports the upcoming General Packet Radio Service wireless standard.
This high-end phone, expected to cost as much as $600, will be sold by AT&T Wireless and supports wireless data rates as fast as 56 kilobits per second. Ericsson expects the R520M to be available in select markets in April when AT&T Wireless rolls out its GPRS service.
Ericsson is showcasing its R520M mobile phone here at the Internet World Wireless and is one of several firms including Samsung, Sendo, and Nokia building phones that support the upcoming GPRS standard. Boosters of GPRS hope it will do what broadband did for dial-up Internet access. It offers faster wireless access to the Internet and opens the door for new data-intensive wireless applications.
Carriers AT&T Wireless, Cingular, and VoiceStream are now testing the GPRS wireless standard for transmitting data. So far, AT&T Wireless is the only carrier that has announced a rollout of services. GSM, the predecessor to GPRS, competes with Code Division Multiple Access technology in the cellular world.
R520M's Features
Along with supporting speeds up to 56 kbps, the R520M ships with wireless Bluetooth connectivity, has a six-line grayscale screen, voice recognition, and a full-function personal digital assistant. The Bluetooth functions let you connect the Ericsson phone wirelessly to another Bluetooth device such as a notebook or a handheld computer.
Limited voice recognition functions let you to speak a selected phrase to activate the mobile phone's auto-voice dialing. The R520M ships with Ericsson's proprietary operating system and has a lithium ion battery with 150 hours of standby time.
The Killer App: Speed
Most significant about the R520M is not its features but its speed. AT&T Wireless is one of several companies betting that GPRS wireless access will become the predominant wireless standard in the U.S. The network technology is already in wide use in Europe. AT&T Wireless says over 40 percent its network will be GPRS compliant by the end of this year, but it does not promise a complete rollout sooner than the end of 2002.
For now, Sprint PCS and wireless leader Verizon are rallying behind the competing CDMA standard and are field-testing an advanced version of CDMA called 1XRTT. This standard is expected to bring wireless data speeds up to 144 kbps to Sprint PCS customers. Sprint expects to roll out its higher-speed wireless network in the summer of 2002. Currently Sprint PCS speeds are limited to 14 kbps.
Meanwhile, few consumers are biting on the wireless bait. Slow speeds, a dearth of wireless applications, and the confusing nature of wireless protocols continue to stall widespread adoption of wireless data networks. But wireless services are betting existing cell phone customers will eventually want to ditch their existing handsets and buy new, expensive ones.