PUSH TO TALK

Often described as a "walkie-talkie" service using mobile phones, Push to talk over Cellular (PoC) is a service that makes one-on-one and group conversations possible over a cellular network. Press the button once and everyone can hear you talk - release the button and hear others talking back to you.

The benefits of Push to Talk

• Direct speech connection is spontaneous and convenient
• Share information and experiences instantly, at any time
• Get and stay in touch with a group of people - whether they're pre-set, impromptu, or open chat groups
• Expanded range and roaming options over two-way radio 

How it works

Phones with the PTT feature have a dedicated PTT button that is used to start a session. A session can involve from two to several participants. Only one person can talk at a time.

BENEFITS

Faster than dialing or speed dialing, all you need to do to talk to one or more persons over PTT is select the person or group and press one button.

 Group communication

PTT can be described as a "voice chat" as opposed to a phone call. Using PTT you can create different groups of up to 25 people or more based on your various hobbies, colleagues, family, and sports teams.

• Connect with all available members of a pre-established group with one press of a button
• Join a group on the fly
• View the availability status of group members directly on your phone
• Invite members of an impromptu group for a session even if they are currently in another PTT conversation

One-to-One communication

Direct person-to-person call - talk to that important person whenever you need by just selecting that person from your phonebook and pressing just one button.

• View the availability of contacts before you call
• Conversations are more private than traditional two-way radio - can't be picked up by other phones in the area.

 Using PTT

To start a Push to talk conversation, you simply select a contact (in either phone number or special PoC address format) or a group from your list or the list of a friend. Then press and hold the special PTT button. When you hear a tone, you can start to talk. When you’re done, you release the button and wait for a response.

It sounds similar to walkie-talkies because it is. Both use "half-duplex mode," which means that only one person can talk at a time, and then only by pressing a button. The speaker is transmitting packets of data to the listeners, who cannot stream data while they are receiving it. The difference is that walkie-talkies operate over radio frequencies while PTT conversations are sent over cellular networks, giving increased range and roaming capabilities.

Push to Talk VS. Two-Way Radio

Features of PTT that are not offered in two-way radio communication include auto-answer, in which the caller is immediately connected to the recipient (as opposed to a phone call which the recipient must first answer before talking); invitation messages that work like voicemail alerts for users already involved in one PTT session to join another as soon as they are free; and conversation "managers" that determine who can talk at a certain time. Group calling can be conducted within set groups already established or created just before the session by sending invitations, or among individual PTT participants coming together in a "chat room" that can be either open or restricted.

Networks and Delay

It’s important to note that this definition deals specifically with Push to talk over Cellular (also known as PoC), which operates over GPRS networks specifically. This means that you could start a conversation, chat with a friend for five minutes, then say nothing for 20 minutes, and then chat again for another five minutes without re-initiating the session. The “talk bursts” are delivered in packets rather than in a continuous stream like a regular telephone call.

PTT sessions over GPRS networks generally have faster session set-up times than PTT sessions over CSD networks, which means they generally use radio resources more efficiently and therefore usually cost less. However instant communication is never guaranteed and delays can occur depending on your operator agreement and that of your conversation partner(s), anywhere from 0 to 6 seconds.

Wi-Fi(wireless fidelity)

Wireless and fast: Wi-Fi is available on almost all higher end phones today, and gives you a connection to the Internet at 11 Mbps or faster.

What you can do with WLAN (Wi-Fi)

Many hotels, airports, cafes, offices, and convention centers offer Wi-Fi connections, sometimes for a fee and sometimes free of charge. Finding fast Internet access on the go is easier - and you'll be using your own machine with your own much-needed files.

• Browse the Internet or send files
• Wi-Fi has a typical range of 50-100 meters
• Connect to your office or personal email account
• Synchronize your phone and office calendar
• Connect to the office intranet
• Send/receive word, sheet or ppt files
• Make use of advanced conference call technologies that require a network connection
• Play online games
• Chat using instant messaging on your phone
• Update your contacts' Presence status
• No hotspot? Connect to the Internet using GPRS/EDGE or WCDMA 

How WLAN works

To use WLAN, you need a handset that supports the technology and you need to be in an area with an active Wi-Fi network (called a "hotspot"). Depending on the security settings for the network, you might need to enter a passcode to connect.

WLAN stands for Wireless Local Area Network. Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) refers to a specific range of WLAN networks, namely IEEE802.11, which today are the most commonly used WLAN networks.

WLAN stands for Wireless Local Area Network. Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) refers to a specific range of WLAN networks, namely IEEE802.11, which today are the most commonly used WLAN networks. A product that supports Wi-Fi has passed compatibility and quality tests set by the Wi-Fi Alliance. The terms WLAN and Wi-Fi are used almost interchangeably nowadays, simply because the most common WLANs fit the Wi-Fi standard.

Like Bluetooth, GPRS, EDGE, WCDMA, and GSM, WLAN uses radio waves to transfer information.

Connect to a hotspot

A hotspot is your source for a WLAN connection. Basically, it's a box containing an 802.11 radio that's hardwired to the Internet. Connecting to a hotspot can be free, or you may have to pay for access. In the most basic situation, all you have to do is be within range of the hotspot and you can automatically connect to the Internet. With some hotspots, you may have to enter an access code first.

The difference between all those 802.11 versions

The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) sets global standards for various technologies, and it uses numbers to distinguish between technology types. There are a few standard versions of WLAN that can be used by the same Nokia products:

802.11b: this is the first, simplest, and cheapest version of WLAN. It connects using an unlicensed radio signal operating at 2.4GHz, and its top transfer speed is 11 Mbps.

802.11g: this also uses the 2.4GHz frequency band but uses a new coding technology. Version 802.11g has a max speed of 54 Mbps.

802.11a: this version operates at a frequency of 5GHz. It uses the same improved coding technology as 802.11g and has a maximum speed of 54 Mbps.

 

MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service)

MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging Service, a technology that allows you to create, send, and receive text messages that also include an image, audio, and/or video clip. MMS messages are sent from one mobile phone to another, or to an email address.

What's in it for me?

Multimedia messaging enriches your mobile messages in much the same way as inserting photos or changing fonts and colors does in email - it's both useful and expressive.

MMS messages are sometimes considered equivalent to so-called "picture messaging," popularized by the recent imaging phones boom, but other uses of the technology do exist.

How does it work?

You don't need to have an imaging phone to send and receive MMS messages, just an MMS-enabled mobile phone, an operator agreement that supports the service, and the correct settings on your handset. Of course, an imaging phone gives you the option of creating and passing on your original images.

An MMS message is a multimedia presentation in a single entry, unlike an email with attachments, making it easier to create and simpler to deliver than an email with attachments. MMS is a scalable technology, which means it's suitable for most types of mobile phones. And MMS is compatible with fixed email addresses, so it is possible to criss-cross back and forth over the mobile-PC border.

Show what you mean

• Document that dent in your fender, house for sale, ideal location, or celebrity sighting and pass it on
• Send and receive multimedia messages while abroad with MMS roaming
• Set preferences to, for example, receive business messages only during the day and personal messages only after office hours
• Use images, clips or text as content - the fewer the images, the more room for text.
• Got a moblog? There are applications available that let you post an MMS directly to a website  

Ready-made digital content and services

• Download applications such as photo editors, templates, previewers, multi-page MMS enablers, and graphics
• Subscribe to image- or video-based services that send weather reports, sports highlights, financial information, jokes, and more, straight to your phone 

Get personal

• Edit your images and clips before you send them
• Create your own full-color wallpaper for your phone display from MMS images
• Design mobile business cards, greeting cards, and invitations to send via MMS 

Frequently Asked Questions: MMS.       1. What is MMS? MMS, short for Multimedia Messaging Service, is a messaging technology that lets you send still images, video, and voice or audio clips in addition to the familiar text content of SMS. MMS is very similar to short message service (SMS), in that it provides automatic, immediate delivery of self-created content from phone to phone as well as from phone to email and vice versa. 2. Is MMS a wireless application protocol (WAP) browser application? MMS does not use WAP browsers in any way. The MMS application is a messaging application, whereas WAP is used for browsing applications. 3. Is MMS a Nokia proprietary service or a standardized service? MMS is an open standard, standardized by the WAP Forum and 3GPP. The 3GPP specification defines the network architecture and general functions. The WAP Forum specification defines message encapsulation and application protocols. Existing transport protocols are used for delivery of messages.   4. Does MMS require changes in the network? MMS is primarily targeted at phone-to-phone communication. The possibility will always exist that the message cannot be delivered due to the receiving phone being switched off, having an empty battery, or poor network coverage. A new network element, the multimedia messaging service center (MMSC) has been created for storing undelivered MMS messages until the receiving phones can be reached. In addition, the MMSC enables delivery of services and network interconnection to e-mail. Nokia and several other manufacturers produce MMSCs. 5. What content types does MMS support? The following supported media types are recommended: JPEG, GIF, text, AMR voice, video H263, and some other formats. To achieve interoperability, Nokia and some other manufacturers have agreed upon an MMS Conformance Document that lists the minimum set of content types to be supported by an MMS phone. However, the MMS standards do not mandate any specific content format(s). Instead, an MMS is encapsulated in a standard way, so that the recipient's phone can identify those content formats it does not support, and handle them in a controlled way. This is also the solution used for content interoperability on the Internet. 6. How big can an MMS message be? The standard does not specify a maximum size for an MMS. This is done to ensure future interoperability and to avoid limitations similar to the 160-character limit with SMS. The message size also depends on operators, who may set a standardized message size for billing purposes. The Nokia standard, in the first phase, is a maximum of 100 kB.   7. How fast is an MMS transmission? The MMS transmission is dependent on both the message size and the bearer used. Sending a larger video clip will take longer than a simple image-plus-text. However, since the recipient is rarely aware of the ongoing transmission before the whole message has been delivered, he or she will usually perceive no delay at all. 8. Can you send an MMS to a Nokia phone that doesn't have the MMS feature? Yes, if that phone supports SMS and the operator offers this service. Nokia non-multimedia terminal support identifies the recipient's phone as a non-MMS phone, and the message is stored on a Web page instead of being sent to the phone. An SMS is then sent to the non-MMS phone with the address to the web page where the message can be retrieved. Check with your operator to see if they offer this service. 9. Can you send an MMS to a phone with a black-and-white display? A substantial part of MMS content is color images. So a color display is better to enjoy the full MMS experience. Yet, any MMS-enabled phone can, in theory, receive an MMS. There are several ways to present color images using dithering on black-and-white displays and, to a limited extent, a representation of the color image can be made on a black-and-white display.

WCDMA (Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access)

Third-generation mobile telephony or 3G networks such as WCDMA (Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access) and UMTS (Universal Mobile Telephone System) allow for faster data transfer than GPRS and EDGE, and also let you talk while you transfer data.

Advantages of WCDMA

WCDMA technology gives you a faster data connection in mobile networks: currently up to 384 kbps.. In future generations of WCDMA technology, this may increase up to even 10 Mbps.

You can do all of the usual activities: send SMS or MMS messages, download games and ringing tones, synchronize your phone with your PC calendar or corporate intranet, and browse the Internet. WCDMA is also fast enough for video streaming.

With GPRS or EDGE phones, you can't do these things while talking. WCDMA is based on a different technology that lets you hold simultaneous voice and data connections, so you can send images and check your email while you're on the phone.

Like GPRS and EDGE, you're billed for data transferred, not for time connected, so you can be connected just about all the time.

Please check the availability of the 3G service with your network operator and/or service provider.

How WCDMA works

Wideband Code-Division Multiple Access is a relatively new technology for accessing radio channels (where data is exchanged) with mobile devices.

How it workks

For a quick explanation, let's first look at a familiar radio scenario. FM radio stations are all assigned frequencies (like 95.6, 102.1, and so on). Stations can have the same frequency as long as there is sufficient distance between them. Have you ever been driving along, listening to your FM radio, when two stations seem to be fighting for the same frequency and you hear both? This happens when you're driving through an area where two stations using the same (or close to the same) frequencies overlap slightly.

Codes help avoid confusion

Usually, cellular networks work in a similar way. When you call someone, you're assigned a channel for the duration of your call. When you send data over GPRS, your phone looks for an empty channel to use. With WCDMA, voice calls and data connections are each assigned codes, not specific frequency channels - hence the term "Code-Division Multiple Access." The device on the receiving end knows the proper code, and automatically filters out any data that isn't stamped with it. This method frees a lot of space on the network that otherwise wouldn't be available, and it adds security.

Wideband makes data flow faster

Imagine pouring water out of a bottle. If the bottleneck is narrow, you may have lots of water to pour but it's only going to go as fast as the narrow opening will let it. This is where the "Wideband" part of WCDMA comes in: it becomes more like pouring water out of a vase. It's not that the individual water molecules (or bits of data) move any faster, but much more can be transferred at any given time.

That's a very simplified look at the principles behind WCDMA.

What if WCDMA isn't covered?

If your phone uses WCDMA and you enter an area where the networks don't yet support it, the phone are designed to automatically switch to using GPRS or EDGE, whichever is available. This is built in to Nokia models - they're called multimode WCDMA/EDGE terminals.

EDGE (Enhance Data Rate for Global Evolution)

Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution (EDGE) enables data connections three times faster than GPRS within the same multislot class. Like GPRS, you're billed for the data you transfer, not for the time you spend connected.

The benefits of EDGE

EDGE opens up a lot of possibilities for connecting to data networks on your mobile phone, making it far less frustrating to stream video and download larger files.

How EDGE works

To use EDGE, you need a phone that supports it, a subscription from your network operator that supports EDGE, and the proper settings.

EDGE is based on General Packet Radio Service, which sends "packets" of data over a radio wave (on the GSM network). Packet switching works like a jigsaw puzzle: your data is split into many pieces, then sent over the network and reassembled at the other end. GPRS is just one of the ways to transport these jigsaw puzzles.

Benefits

What you can do with EDGE

• Connect to your office or personal email account - you can even set your phone to check for email automatically using data sync
• Browse the Internet on your phone
• Synchronize your phone and office calendar while you're out of town
• Download ringing tones, graphics, and games
• Play online games (one example of this is the N-Gage Arena)
• Send and receive MMS messages
• Use your phone as a modem, connecting your laptop to the Internet
• Subscribe to mobile services that bring you personalized information like sports updates, breaking news, horoscopes, share prices, the daily trip-hop-country single...
• Use Java applications that require a network connection
• Chat using instant messaging on your phone
• Update your friends' Presence status

EDGE (based on GPRS) is better than a GSM connection for data that's transferred in larger "chunks." And unlike voice calls and dial-up Internet connections, you pay for how much you transfer, not for how long you're connected. You can have an active connection all the time if you like, which is nice if you need to synchronize periodically with a network or if you're expecting an important email. If you need to make or answer a phone call, your EDGE connection is automatically disconnected for the duration of the call.

How it works

When you talk on a mobile phone, a continuous connection to a channel is reserved for you on the GSM network, which means nobody else can use that channel. With EDGE, you can still have a continuous connection, but you only use the channel when you're sending data.

So, you might be connected to a channel all the time, but you only actually use it when you're sending data. One channel can be shared by many people. This is why you're billed for data transferred, not for time.

EDGE is significantly faster than than CSD (Circuit Switched Data, sometimes just called GSM Data). However, you may find transfers slower than maximum speed during peak hours in busy cell networks, because voice connections usually take precedence. As with GPRS, the data transfer rate also depends on your multislot class (see the GPRS section for details).

Pulses and bits

EDGE uses a slightly different technology than GPRS called 8PSK, or 8-Phase Shift Keying. Here's a very simplified explanation: data is sent over GPRS and EDGE in pulses. With GPRS, a pulse can carry 1 bit of data, but with EDGE, one pulse carries 3 bits. So it's not that the data actually moves faster, it's that more can be moved at any given time.

What if EDGE isn't covered?

In areas where an EDGE network is not available, connections will fall back on GPRS as a default

BLUE TOOTH

Bluetooth is a technology for wireless communication between devices. It's based on a low-cost short-range radio link.

Why Bluetooth is good for you

Every decorator knows that cables and wires are unsightly and confusing. Bluetooth connections allow wireless communication between devices within a range of about 30 feet (10 meters). Unlike infrared, you don't have to point devices directly at each other, or even have both devices in the same room. Bluetooth can initiate connections automatically with paired devices, so you don't even have to think about it. And no, you don't have to pay for a Bluetooth connection, no matter how much data you transfer.

How it works

When two devices share information, there are a few things that have to be worked out: firstly, how they will physically connect - through how many wires? Or none at all? - and then, what are the agreed commands that will make sense to both devices (the protocol)? Bluetooth is an industry standard that solves both of these issues cheaply, and using very little battery power

Benefits

• Need to check your email or a web page on your laptop? Start a GPRS connection to the Internet with your phone, then connect your phone and PC using Bluetooth. Your laptop is now online
• Synchronize your calendar and contacts wirelessly

Entertainment

Wireless multiplayer gaming (check out the N-Gage™ game deck)

• With a Bluetooth-enabled headset, you can listen to MP3s or FM radio on your phone without wires getting in the way - and the music stops automatically if you get an incoming call

Audio

Use a headset supporting Bluetooth and lose the wires

• Nokia wireless headsets also allow you to handle calls from the earpiece (answer/reject and end calls, adjust volume, last number redial, and so on)

Car

Less clutter in your car

• Get in your car and your phone and Blutooth enabled Nokia car kit automatically initiate a network using Bluetooth technology

Imaging

• Send pictures to another phone or PC
• Print images directly from your phone

Since Bluetooth chips are tiny and consume very little power, we're now seeing the widespread deployment of Bluetooth throughout mobile phones and other digital devices. The popularity of Bluetooth technology then encourages developers and manufacturers to produce new products supporting Bluetooth, so who knows what you'll be using it for in the future!

How secure is Bluetooth? How fast can I transfer data?

A Nokia phone supporting Bluetooth contains a tiny, inexpensive radio chip, which is designed to send data over a specific radio frequency to another Bluetooth chip. The receiver chip, whether it's in a PC, phone, or other device, then transmits the data to the receiving device. The chips are easy to make and the entire process is very low on power consumption, so it's no surprise that Bluetooth has become a wireless industry standard.

Bluetooth communicates over radio waves on a frequency of about 2.45 gigahertz. This is the same band used by many industrial and medical devices as well as some household ones, such as garage door openers and baby monitors.

Electronic conversations

When two devices running Bluetooth come into range of each other, a little electronic conversation happens. They decide whether or not the devices need to share data and if they do, they form a little network - usually you don't have to do anything. This is what happens when you use a Bluetooth-enabled Nokia headset or car kit.

When you send data from one phone to another, however, it's a bit different. The person on the receiving end has to accept the transfer, and there may be a password involved. These measures are for privacy and security reasons.

Voice, data, and audio

It's not just little packets of data that can be sent between two Bluetooth devices. Bluetooth also supports voice and audio connections (it is a radio wave, after all).

Avoiding interference

So in one room of your house you have a stereo system that uses Bluetooth technology instead of cables, a new cordless phone model, a baby monitor, your phone, and a PC. Why don't they interfere with each other?

This is one of the neater things about the Bluetooth design. When we said it operates over a frequency of 2.45 GHz, we actually meant from about 2.40 to 2.48 gigahertz. In this range there are 79 radio frequency channels, and a Bluetooth device skips randomly between these 79 channels 1600 times per second! When two or more devices are connected, they jump around in sync. If two different "conversations" land on the same RF channel at the same time, the interference time is so short that it doesn't cause any problems.

 

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Frequently Asked Questions: General Questions

1.      Who makes/owns Bluetooth?
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) isn't a company per se - it's a community of more than 2500 companies, including Nokia. Nokia designs and builds Bluetooth capability into its products, but they are then tested and qualified by standards set by the SIG. When you buy a product that uses Bluetooth technology, you're not buying it from a company or manufacturer called "Bluetooth."

2. Why is it called Bluetooth?
Here's one for trivia buffs: in 10th century Denmark, the Viking king Harald Blatand (literally Bluetooth) united Norway and Denmark into a single kingdom. Apparently he got that name from his penchant for blueberries.

3. How fast is data transferred?
The maximum rate is currently 723 kbps. While this is already fast enough to complete most data transfers within a few seconds, it's not the limit. Developers hope to double or triple the speed in subsequent releases of Bluetooth technology.



4. Can I control more than one device at a time?
Yes. With Bluetooth you can have point-to-point communication between two device, or point-to-multipoint communication, with a master and several slaves (when one device controls another, it's called a "master", and the devices it controls are "slaves"). In a Bluetooth network (a very small local network sometimes called a "piconet"), one master can have up to seven slaves - but keep in mind that the total transfer speed will be divided up between them because all traffic goes through master device (think of the master as traffic control central). You could, for example, be talking on the phone using a wireless headset and sending an image to your printer at the same time.

5. What's the difference between Bluetooth and Infrared?
The main difference is that Bluetooth operates using radio waves, and infrared uses very fast pulses of light. With infrared, both devices' sensors must be in each others' line of sight (you've experienced this if you've ever tried to use your DVD remote control and there's someone standing in the way). Bluetooth isn't limited to this; it even works between walls. Infrared also only works between two devices at a time.

6. What's the difference between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi?
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are complementary technologies. While Wi-Fi is wireless Ethernet, extending or replacing wired networks for dozens of computing devices, Bluetooth is designed to replace cables between a few devices within a 10-meter range, providing data, voice, and audio connections. Bluetooth is also ideal for battery-powered devices as it is low on power consumption.

 

Frequently Asked Questions: Bluetooth and Security

1.      What is bluejacking?
Bluejacking involves one user sending a business card anonymously to another user in range; it does NOT involve any changes to your phone's data. Usually the business card consists of some message or joke, and bluejackers are just looking for a reaction from the recipient. To discourage bluejackers, simply refuse the business card, or to avoid it altogether, set your phone to non-discoverable mode.

2. What is bluesnarfing?
Bluesnarfing involves a skilled hacker gaining access to data on a mobile phone, including the phonebook and associated images, calendar, and IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity), without the user's knowledge or consent. This requires specialized equipment and know-how, and also that the attacking and target device are within 10 meters of each other (without using very high-end equipment). If your device is in non-discoverable mode, it becomes significantly more difficult for a would-be hacker.

3. What is bluebugging?
Bluebugging involves a skilled person accessing a mobile phone's commands without the owner's consent or knowledge. This would allow the hacker to make calls or send messages, read and write contacts and calendar, eavesdrop on phone conversations, and connect to the Internet. Again, the hacker must be within a 10-meter range. Bluebugging and bluesnarfing are different, and devices that may be vulnerable to one are not necessarily vulnerable to both.


4. How worried should I be? What can I do to protect my data?
Because of the equipment, knowledge, software, and physical proximity involved, the risk is actually very low that the average phone user would be bluesnarfed.

To minimize the risk, you can set your phone to non-discoverable mode when not using Bluetooth. Never pair with an unknown device: if you receive an invitation to pair with another device and are asked to enter a PIN code but you are not sure why you would need to pair, do not pair.

For the greatest security, simply turn Bluetooth off in your phone when you're not using it.