Cellular

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What Does Cellular Mean?

Cellular refers to a network technology that facilitates mobile device communication over areas comprised of cells and transceivers, which are also known as base stations or cell sites. In a cellular network, the most widely used mobile transceivers are mobile phones, or cell phones.

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Techopedia Explains Cellular

Cellular technology allows mobile device users to perform a variety of tasks, including:

  • Placing calls
  • Message transmission via short message service (SMS) and multimedia message service (MMS)
  • Web browsing
  • Facebook updates

Cellular technology is used in most mobile devices, with few exceptions (such as satellite phones) and operates through Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) through Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and other encoding techniques.

A key cellular network feature is handoff (or handover), where uninterrupted communications services are provided to a cell phone user that moves between cell locations.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert
Margaret Rouse
Technology Expert

Margaret é uma premiada redatora e professora conhecida por sua habilidade de explicar assuntos técnicos complexos para um público empresarial não técnico. Nos últimos vinte anos, suas definições de TI foram publicadas pela Que em uma enciclopédia de termos tecnológicos e citadas em artigos do New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine e Discovery Magazine. Ela ingressou na Techopedia em 2011. A ideia de Margaret de um dia divertido é ajudar os profissionais de TI e de negócios a aprenderem a falar os idiomas altamente especializados uns dos outros.