iPhone FAQ : Networks & Carriers
- Is it a GSM or CDMA phone?
- iPhone is a quad-band GSM phone, and should work in any GSM network in the world.
- Are GSM and CDMA interoperable?
- No, not only do they use different radio frequencies, the protocols are not compatible. A GSM phone cannot be used on a CDMA network, and vice versa.
- Will there be a CDMA version of iPhone?
- Apple has said they plan to make iPhones for non-US markets including Asia; this implies either a CDMA version for Japan and other markets which have standardized on CDMA, or plans for a 3G iPhone for these markets.
- What carriers does it work with?
- In the US, iPhone is available exclusively for service with AT&T Wireless (formerly Cingular). AT&T has an exclusive contract with Apple until 2012. Apple has not announced any carriers in Canada, Europe or Asia.
InformationWeek reports: The Financial Times reported this week that Telefonica's O2 had nailed down the award in the U.K. while other reports circulated that T-Mobile was the front runner in Germany. France Telecom's Orange was said to be in the lead to market the iPhone in France. No formal announcements have been made as of Friday, but the awards announcements were said to be imminent. (source: European Service Providers Vie For iPhone Bragging Rights, June 6, 2007 - Can I get an unlocked iPhone that works with any GSM provider?
- No.
- Is iPhone a "3G" phone?
- No, it is considered a "2.5G" phone, using AT&T's EDGE/GSM network.
- What data network does iPhone use?
- iPhone uses AT&T's "EDGE" network (the first but slowest next-generation high speed data network in the US), but uses WiFi where available.
- Will the iPhone be able to connect to an HSDPA (3G) network in the future?
- We don't think so. Because 3G networks use different radio hardware, it is unlikely that the first iPhone can be upgraded in software, and more likely that updated hardware would be released. (AT&T's 3G coverage currently is very, very sparse outside of several major metropolitan areas.)
- What is the data speed?
- In our testing, we mostly saw around 160 Kbit/sec in suburban areas. We've also seen rates as high as 192 Kbit/sec in the central Greater Boston area. We have been pleasantly surprised
Carriers usually claim 70 to 135 Kbit/sec, with potential bursts up to 200 Kbit/sec. (There are ten classes of EDGE devices; the fastest can attain 236 Kbit/sec under ideal conditions. It is not known what class iPhone is.)
iPhone supports 802.11b/g WiFi networks, which theoretically can provide up to 54 Mbit/sec. - So how long does it take a web page to load via the EDGE network?
- Depends upon the web page. The iPhoneTopic home page is approximately 100 Kbytes of data (or 800 Kbits), and takes about four to five seconds to load in our testing. The New York Times home page loads a whopping 500 Kbytes of data, and requires almost half a minute to load completely! (And much longer if the signal is weak.)
(Some sites compress their page data before sending it to the web browser, which can substantially decrease load times for mobile devices. For example, Digg transmits about 325 Kbytes of data, compressed down to about 150 Kbytes. Although such compression increases load on the server, it can substantially improve the user experience on low bandwidth devices such as smartphones.) - Can I use subscription WiFi services such as T-Mobile hotspots at Starbucks?
- We can't see why not, although we haven't tested it ourselves.
- Does iPhone support WiFi security?
- iPhone supports WEP, WPA and WPA2.
- Can you make a voice call over WiFi like the new T-Mobile phone?
- No.
- Does iPhone support tethered mode, for supplying a data connection to a laptop?
- No.
- Can I pick my own phone number?
- Not that we're aware of, though an AT&T store representative may be able to assist or provide a choice of a few available numbers.
- How is AT&T's network coverage?
- AT&T provides a nationwide coverage map. (3G coverage information is available if you zoom in to "city" level.).
