Cell Phones Do Broadband

New phones and PC Cards take advantage of faster networks.

Nokia's 6620 EDGE phone (left) and Motorola's A845 UMTS cell phone support fast browsing.If waiting for e-mail to download onto your cell phone drives you nuts, try dialing in with one of the new devices available that tap into a speedier, next-generation network.

We looked at three products that use one of two new networks: the speedy Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution (EDGE) network or the even speedier Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) one. Both represent next-generation service from carriers with GSM/GPRS networks, including AT&T Wireless (which is now owned by Cingular), Cingular, and T-Mobile. But not all carriers offer the faster services in all locations.

We performed some informal tests using the Novatel Merlin U520 UMTS-based PC Card ($150 with a two-year service contract from AT&T Wireless) with a laptop, and using Motorola's A845 UMTS phone ($300 with a two-year plan from AT&T) and the Nokia 6620 EDGE phone ($400 with a two-year AT&T contract). The near-DSL speeds we saw impressed us (see chart), though transfer rates were still well below the maximum for each technology. You'll definitely notice faster surfing and data downloads than you get with GPRS service (which has a maximum speed of 50 kbps). And you'll be able to take advantage of new video services as well.

We tried each of the two phones with one such service, RealTV, which for $5 a month lets you stream prerecorded video clips of news and sports, for example. Clips were typically smooth on the Motorola but choppy on the Nokia. And on occasion RealTV failed to load at all, even when both phones indicated a good signal.

Pricing for data and video services varies by carrier, and the monthly costs can quickly run to $100 or more. But if you use your phone to surf the Web, you'll appreciate the faster speeds, especially with UMTS (which allows you to download data and make a phone call simultaneously). For now, UMTS is available only in Dallas, Detroit, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle from AT&T (Cingular has trials in Atlanta), while EDGE is available in more than 7500 U.S. cities from AT&T and Cingular (if you're not in an EDGE or UMTS coverage area, most devices will revert to the slower GPRS network). Next year, there's more: a new network upgrade called High Speed Data Packet Access, which promises a maximum speed of 10 to 14 mbps.

UMTS networks deliver DSL speeds for phone and PC Card users.

FOOTNOTES: 1Download only. 2Speed achieved outdoors; highest speed indoors was 66 kbps.

HOW WE TEST: We performed several informal upload and download tests at DSLreports.com with each device, both indoors and outdoors. We set up the phones as laptop modems for testing.

Grace Aquino