China's First 3G Mobile Phone
China’s efforts to develop a high-speed telecoms technology that could compete with Western standards in the world’s biggest mobile market have taken a step forward with the first compatible phone. A Chinese university said yesterday it had developed a telephone for the home-grown standard known as TD-SCDMA, a milestone that could help decide when third-generation mobile licences are introduced in the country.
How and when the Chinese government issues 3G licences will help determine which equipment makers grab billions of dollars in contracts likely to be awarded by mobile phone companies. “The 3G mobile phone is not only the first in China, but also the first TD-SCDMA phone in the world,” said Zhen Jianhong, a professor at the university. Continue >>