Q: What is 3G?
A: The abbreviation stands for third-generation telecommunications standards and technology for mobile networking, superseding 2G through higher data transfer speed. China has issued three 3G licenses based on CDMA2000, WCDMA and TD-SCDMA standards.
Q: What are 3G products?
A: They include mobile phones and data cards that can be plugged into the laptops for Internet access.
Q: Why should I use 3G?
A: Phone users can enjoy higher speeds and richer data services, including video calls, film downloads and multiplayer games on a handset platform. Laptop users can use 3G data cards for faster online surfing where Wi-Fi or broadband lines are not available.
Q: Which carriers sell 3G service here?
A: China Mobile operates a TD-SCDMA network. China Telecom will run a CDMA2000 network, and China Unicom will provide WCDMA services.
Q: When will 3G service be available?
A: China Mobile is already up and running. China Telecom said it would kick off service soon. But it said previously that it would finish network upgrades from 2G to 3G within three months in big cities. Insiders say China Telecom will start providing CDMA2000 services in major cities like Shanghai and Beijing in four to six months, while China Unicom will launch WCDMA later.
Q: How do I apply for 3G?
A: China Mobile users can buy a 3G phone (based on the the TD-SCDMA standard) and apply for a new 3G number starting with 188021 (021 is Shanghai's regional number). The carrier will start to accept applications around the Spring Festival, according to Shanghai Mobile's service hotline 10086.
If you don't want to change mobile numbers, you can buy a new 3G phone at the carrier's outlet now and plug in your SIM card; that is, if it's a China Mobile card.
China Telecom and China Unicom didn't disclose application details, but they both said their current users can upgrade to 3G in the future without changing numbers.
Q: Which 3G phones are available?
A: For TD-SCDMA, the choice of brands includes Dopod, Lenovo Mobile, ZTE and Huawei. Nokia and Samsung are developing TD-SCDMA phones, which are expected to debut by the end of this year.
For CDMA2000, LG, Samsung and Huawei provide various models for that standard overseas. Nokia, Motorola, ZTE and Dopod will provide the models for the Chinese market.
WCDMA offers the most choices of models. The Nokia N95 and iPhone 3G are popular WCDMA phones overseas. Nokia says it will launch the 3G version of phones in China as soon as "the service is available here."
Q: Can iPhone users enjoy 3G services in China?
A: No. For one thing, the necessary WCDMA service is not available yet. For another, Apple hasn't cooperated with any carriers in China.
Q: Who will buy 3G?
A: Tech-savvy consumers, information technology experts and fashion followers will probably be among the first batch of users.
Q: Is 3G expensive?
A: The answer is no if you use traditional services like voice callings and short messaging. For data services, China Mobile cut traffic costs up to 70 percent recently.
Video calls cost 0.60 yuan (9 US cents) a minute under China Mobile's service.
Q: Which 3G technology is better?
A: WCDMA is a comparatively mature technology as it has been adopted by many countries, including the United States, Europe and even in many emerging markets. Most handsets support the standard, and it provides users with a wide variety of phones.
CDMA2000 is also an international standard and is used in Japan, South Korea and the United States.
TD-SCDMA is a homegrown standard, and it's the earliest available 3G service in China.
Q: What about the speed of 3G?
A: The 3G data transmission capabilities should be able to deliver speeds up to 14.4 megabits per second for downloads, which would allow a user to download three songs in one second. Generally speaking, 3G is 200 times faster than 2G.
(Shanghai Daily January 8, 2009)
