On Thu, 2003-01-09 at 18:07, Jeff wrote: > >SMS stands for Short Message Service and currently is only supported > >on GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) cell phone networks. > > This is not true. While the usage of SMS may be more prevalent in Europe and > especially Asia, I have had SMS on my TDMA ( AT&T) mobile phone since 1999. > I believe it is also available on CDMA networks. Of course (being a New > Yorker), I don't have the patience to use it. In the time it takes me to > address and type a cryptic message, I could make three phone calls and have > dinner...! Indeed. It's also available on the AT&T Canada TDMA (IS-136) network here. It's partially true that it's always been available on CDMA networks. I've been using it for years there too. The issue though has been that while two way SMS has always been in the CDMA spec, virtually no carrier offered it. It's always been receive only, and often only to a special email address assigned to the phone. So it's been useful for automated information updates, and one-way communication, but that's about it. Then there was for a time, a stop-gap measure on CDMA handsets, whereby you could reply to a text message but it had to be done via the WAP browser on your phone. Not a slick way to try and reply to a text message. More recently this has changed. My current CDMA handset is now MO-SMS enabled (Mobile Originate). The usage of the feature is now more like a GSM user would be familiar with. All I need to know is the phone number of the phone I want to send a message to. And I can now *reply* to any text message. Further, in Canada all the providers have linked their SMS gateways together. So I can send SMS to any phone in Canada be it on a CDMA, GSM, or TDMA (IS-136) network. GSM phones still have greater world-wide off-network SMS abilities though. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Fri Jan 10 2003 - 08:56:30 PST
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