Business cost reduction specialists focusing on telecommunications, energy and water services
Mobile Data - a guide to HSDPA and other acronyms…
19 June 2007
Mobile internet access is being touted as the next "Big Thing" by the mobile network operators.
After the fiasco that was/is WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) or "Wait And Pay" as it is sometimes more aptly called, many potential mobile data users could be forgiven for taking a slightly jaundiced view of this sort of hype. However, this time the networks seem to have come up with a solution where performance matches the PR spin.
HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) is currently the fastest mobile internet service readily available in the UK. It provides a high speed connection to the internet for users on the move, either using a compatible mobile phone, a laptop data card, one of the new generation of USB modems or a suitable handheld PDA type device. Sometime referred to as 3.5G, it can currently provide mobile broadband speeds of up to 1.8Mbps, which, when you consider that 2 or 3 years ago most businesses were restricted to 512Kbps internet downlink speeds at their head office, is quite impressive. When compared to the 56Kbps speed provided by GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), which has been the mobile data system in use for the last few years, HSDPA brings speeds that are capable of enabling truly usable mobile solutions for all sorts of organisations.
Mobile data can now mean much more than simply email-on-the-move. At SmithBellerby we use HSDPA in conjunction with a VPN (Virtual Private Network - yet more acronyms…) to provide mobile workers using laptops with fast access to client's files stored on servers at our data centre. Our analysts are able to work from home, or from anywhere else in the world where either 3G or HSDPA access exists, at the most convenient time for themselves and the business. This improves staff retention, and helps to ensure that the business can attract exactly the right calibre of new employee. Most importantly, it also means that if a laptop is lost or stolen no client data is compromised, because none is actually stored on the laptop - the laptop is simply a "data telephone" to access centralised files.
Whilst the highest speed services are at present centred on metropolitan areas, HSDPA networks are growing rapidly and will provide coverage for the majority of the populated areas of the UK within a year. Many existing mobile networks are already capable of providing Internet access downlink speeds of 3.6Mbps, 7.2Mbps and 14.4Mbps, whilst upgrading networks to give speeds approaching 42Mbps is already being planned. At these access speeds almost anything that you can currently do in the office will be possible on the move.
Pricing for high speed mobile data varies dramatically, with operators charging by the megabyte (pay-as-you-go), charging for a bundle of data per month, or "unlimited" usage for a flat monthly fee (usually capped by a fair use policy). In a recent comparison that we made for a public sector client, we found that the spread of charges from the four main UK networks ranged from a very reasonable £1.92 per gigabyte per month to an astounding £2.00 per megabyte i.e more than a thousand times more expensive!
All the mobile networks undoubtedly see mobile data and mobile Internet access as their next major opportunity to increase revenue to help pay for their hugely expensive 3G network licences. Careful selection of mobile data tariff for each user based on sensible prediction of actual usage, and then ongoing monitoring and adjustment of the tariffs, can generate significant savings for organisations wanting to deploy mobile data and enjoy the very definite benefits delivered by HSDPA. For more information please contact Steve Bellerby on +44 (0) 1952 825820.