Two basic technologies in mobile phones, CDMA and GSM represent a gap you

can't cross. They're the reason you can't use many AT&T phones on Verizon's
network and vice versa. But what does CDMA vs. GSM really mean for you?
CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) and GSM (Global System for Mobiles) are
shorthand for the two major radio systems used in cell phones. Both acronyms tend
to group together a bunch of technologies run by the same entities. In this story, I'll
try to explain who uses which technology and what the real differences are.
Which Carriers are CDMA? Which are GSM?
In the U.S., Sprint, Verizon and U.S. Cellular use CDMA. AT&T and T-Mobile use
GSM.
Most of the rest of the world uses GSM. The global spread of GSM came about
because in 1987, Europe mandated the technology by law, and because GSM
comes from an industry consortium. What we call CDMA, by and large, is owned by
chipmaker Qualcomm. This made it less expensive for third parties to build GSM
equipment.
There are several variants and options carriers can choose, like toppings on their
technological ice cream. In this story we'll focus on U.S. networks.
What CDMA vs. GSM Means to You
For call quality, the technology you use is much less important than the way your
carrier has built its network. There are good and bad CDMA and GSM networks, but
there are key differences between the technologies. Here's what you, as a
consumer, need to know.

It's much easier to swap phones on GSM networks, because GSM carriers put
customer information on a removable SIM card. Take the card out, put it in a
different phone, and the new phone now has your number. What's more, to be
considered GSM, a carrier must accept any GSM-compliant phone. So the GSM
carriers don't have total control of the phone you're using.
That's not the case with CDMA. In the U.S., CDMA carriers use network-based
white lists to verify their subscribers. That means you can only switch phones with
your carrier's permission, and a carrier doesn't have to accept any particular phone
onto its network. It could, but typically, U.S. carriers choose not to.
Many Sprint and Verizon phones now have SIM cards, but that isn't because of
CDMA. The SIM cards are generally there for Sprint's and Verizon's 4G LTE
networks, because the LTE standard also uses SIM cards. The phones may also
have SIM slots to support foreign GSM networks as "world phones." But those
carriers still use CDMA to authenticate their phones on their own home networks.
3G CDMA networks (known as "EV-DO" or "Evolution Data Optimized") also,
generally, can't make voice calls and transmit data at the same time. Once more,
that's an available option (known as "SV-DO" for "Simultaneous Voice and Data
Optimization"), but one that U.S. carriers haven't adopted for their networks and
phones.
On the other hand, all 3G GSM networks have simultaneous voice and data,
because it's a required part of the spec. (3G GSM is also actually a type of CDMA.
I'll explain that later.)
So why did so many U.S. carriers go with CDMA? Timing. When Verizon's
predecessors and Sprint switched from analog to digital in 1995 and 1996, CDMA
was the newest, hottest, fastest technology. It offered more capacity, better call
quality and more potential than the GSM of the day. GSM caught up, but by then
those carriers' paths were set.
It's possible to switch from CDMA to GSM. Bell and Telus in Canada have done it, to
get access to the wider variety of off-the-shelf GSM phones. But Verizon and Sprint
are big enough that they can get custom phones built for them, so they don't see the
need to waste money switching 3G technologies when they could be building out
their 4G networks.
The Technology Behind CDMA vs. GSM
CDMA and GSM are both multiple access technologies. They're ways for people
to cram multiple phone calls or Internet connections into one radio channel.
GSM came first. It's a "time division" system. Calls take turns. Your voice is
transformed into digital data, which is given a channel and a time slot, so three calls
on one channel look like this: 123123123123. On the other end, the receiver listens
only to the assigned time slot and pieces the call back together.
The pulsing of the time division signal created the notorious "GSM buzz," a buzzing
sound whenever you put a GSM phone near a speaker. That's mostly gone now,
because 3G GSM (as I explain later) isn't a time division technology.
CDMA required a bit more processing power. It's a "code division" system. Every
call's data is encoded with a unique key, then the calls are all transmitted at once; if

you have calls 1, 2, and 3 in a channel, the channel would just say 66666666. The
receivers each have the unique key to "divide" the combined signal into its individual
calls.
Code division turned out to be a more powerful and flexible technology, so "3G
GSM" is actually a CDMA technology, called WCDMA (wideband CDMA) or UMTS
(Universal Mobile Telephone System). WCDMA requires wider channels than older
CDMA systems, as the name implies, but it has more data capacity.
Since its inception, GSM has evolved faster than CDMA. As I mentioned above,
WCDMA is considered the 3G version of GSM technology. To further speed things
up, the 3GPP (the GSM governing body) released extensions called HSPA, which
have sped GSM networks up to as fast as 42Mbps, at least in theory.
Our CDMA networks, meanwhile, are stuck at 3.6Mbps. While faster CDMA
technologies exist, U.S. carriers chose not to install them and have instead turned
to 4G LTE to be more compatible with global standards.
The Future is LTE
The CDMA vs. GSM gap will close eventually as everyone moves to 4G LTE, but
that doesn't mean everyone's phones will be compatible. LTE, or "Long Term
Evolution," is the new globally accepted 4G wireless standard. All of the U.S.
carriers are turning it on. For more, see 3G vs. 4G: What's the Difference?
The problem is, they're turning it on in different frequency bands, with different 3G
backup systems, and even, in the case of the new Sprint Spark network, using an
LTE variant (TD-LTE) that doesn't work with any other U.S. carrier's phones. There
are very few phones that support all of the carriers' LTE bands.
Verizon has said it aims to start selling LTE-only phones in 2015, but for now, those
will require special Verizon software to make voice calls, so that move won't make it
any easier to switch carriers with your phone. Even without CDMA, the CDMA
philosophy of carrier control of your phone will remain intact.
A growing number of phones support all of these standards, but it can be hard to tell
which ones. The iPhone 6 , the iPhone 6 Plus and the Google Nexus 6 are the most
flexible. iPhone 6 and 6 Plus units from AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon can all be used
on all three carriers, but they lack Sprint's special LTE bands. Sprint iPhones have
all the bands, but Sprint has strict unlocking policies. Nexus 6 phones will
technically work on all four carriers, but Sprint only allows phones purchased from
Google or Sprint on its network.
HTC One (M8) and Samsung Galaxy S5 phones from Verizon will work somewhat
on AT&T's and T-Mobile's networks, albeit with limited coverage because while they
have CDMA, GSM and LTE, they don't have all the frequency bands AT&T and TMobile use. Variants of those same models sold by AT&T and T-Mobile won't work
on Verizon at all, because they lack the CDMA radio needed for Verizon. It's a mess.
So what does all of this mean for you? If you want to switch phones often, use your
phone in Europe, or use imported phones, just go with GSM. Otherwise, pick your
carrier based on coverage and call quality in your area and assume you'll probably
need a new phone if you switch carriers. Our Readers' Choice andFastest Mobile
Networks awards are a great place to start.

For average consumers, '3G' and '4G' are two of the most mysterious terms
in the mobile technology dictionary, but they're used relentlessly to sell
phones and tablets. If you're shopping for a new phone, the answer isn't
clear-cut, and you shouldn't always go for the higher number. Our primer
will help explain which technology to pick.
3G
and
4G
Explained
First things first, the "G" stands for a generation of mobile technology,
installed in phones and on cellular networks. Each "G" generally requires
you to get a new phone, and for networks to make expensive upgrades.
The first two were analog cell phones (1G) and digital phones (2G). Then it
got complicated.
Third-generation mobile networks, or 3G, came to the U.S. in 2003. With
minimum consistent Internet speeds of 144Kbps, 3G was supposed to bring
"mobile broadband." There are now so many varieties of 3G, though, that a
"3G" connection can get you Internet speeds anywhere from 400Kbps to
more than ten times that.
New generations usually bring new base technologies, more network
capacity for more data per user, and the potential for better voice quality,
too.
4G phones are supposed to be even faster, but that's not always the case.
There are so many technologies called "4G," and so many ways to
implement them, that the term is almost meaningless. The International
Telecommunications Union, a standards body, tried to issue requirements
to call a network 4G but they were ignored by carriers, and eventually the
ITU backed down. 4G technologies include HSPA+ 21/42, the now obsolete
WiMAX, and LTE (although some consider LTE the only true 4G of that
bunch and some people say none of them are fast enough to qualify.)
There's a big difference between 4G LTE and other technologies called
"4G" though, and it's most visible in upload speeds. If you upload a lot of
data - posting photos or videos, for instance - you'll find LTE's upload
speeds are far better than those on HSPA.
There are many different ways to implement LTE, too, so you can't assume
all LTE speeds are the same. Carriers with more available radio spectrum
for LTE can typically run faster networks than carriers with less spectrum,
for instance.
This confusion is why we run our annual Fastest Mobile Networks story,
which tests 3G and 4G networks in 30 cities nationwide. In this year's tests,
we generally found that on speed alone Verizon's 4G LTE network was the

fastest, followed by T-Mobile LTE, AT&T LTE, T-Mobile HSPA+, Sprint LTE,
AT&T HSPA, Verizon 3G and finally Sprint 3G.
Would you like to know more about LTE, the global standard for 4G? Read
our primer, What Is LTE? over at ExtremeTech.
When
to
Go
For
4G
In 2015, almost everyone should have a 4G phone. Verizon now has
nationwide 4G LTE coverage. T-Mobile and MetroPCS have nationwide
HSPA+ 42 and growing LTE networks. AT&T has broad LTE coverage.
Sprint is still building out LTE, but by next year the carrier aims to be
comprehensive.
If you like to surf the Web and especially stream video, 4G can be heaven.
If you connect a laptop to your mobile link, 4G makes a huge difference. In
general, anything involving transferring large amounts of data gets a big
boost from 4G. Watch out for the data limits on your service plan, though;
it's easy to use up a lot of data very quickly with 4G.
If you have a 3G phone and you've been frustrated with slow data, 4G may
be the solution. 4G won't solve any dropped call problems, though, as all
calls will be made over older networks until carriers switch to voice-overLTE during the next few years.
Finally, if you want to future-proof yourself, get a 4G phone. 4G coverage is
only going to get better, and that's where the carriers are spending most of
their money right now. You can assume that all 4G phones also support
your carrier's 3G and 2G networks as well.
Should
You
Even
Consider
There are a few reasons you might still settle for a 3G phone.

3G?

If your phone is mostly for voice use, you have no need for 4G data. Save
money and save battery life by choosing a device without the high-speed
network.
If you live in an area that doesn't have 4G coverage, there's no advantage
to a 4G phone. In fact, you'll have serious battery life problems if you buy
an LTE phone and don't disable 4G LTE, as the radio's search for a nonexistent signal will drain your battery quickly.
If you're strapped for cash and buying a phone off contract, you may have
to settle for 3G to save money. In that case, make sure to get the fastest
3G phone possible. On Verizon and Sprint, you want to check that it

supports "EVDO Rev A." On T-Mobile and AT&T, you want the highest class
of HSPA+ possible: if not 42 or 21, then 14.4.