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There are many types of cell phone deals available on the market. At the basic level they can be divided into two types?pre-paid cell phone deals and post-paid ones. Of the two, pre-paid cell phone deals are the more popular for a variety of reasons.

The inherent disadvantage of a post-paid connection is that it requires one to sign a year long contract that also carries with it a lot of fees and charges. It is for this reason that post-paid connections are not very popular with a lot of people.

On the other hand, with pre-paid cell phone deals, one does not need a credit check. There is also no deposit that is required to be paid since it is pre-paid phone usage. There are also no monthly rental fees or service fees. Also no termination fee is charged if one wants to change the provider or not use a cell phone at all. The most important advantage of a pre-paid cell phone, however, is that one is always in control of the amount one spends on calls; this is not possible on a post-paid connection. Pre-paid clearly means that one can only use the phone according to the amount that has been paid.

However, one also needs to remember that in order to meet their expenditure, cell phone companies recover this amount by charging more on calls and short message service. Also, one can run out of cash at a very crucial time, and there might not be a facility to recharge the amount anywhere nearby. There are often time periods on the credit limit, which means that if the amount is not used within that specified time, it expires and results in a loss for the person.

Hence, for an overall analysis one needs to remember that prepaid connections are good for conditions where one does not have to make too many calls and the phone is for the primary reason of receiving calls rather than making them.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:20 AM  0 Comments

Business cellular phone services provide cellular phones to employees and staffs of companies to keep them in touch with each other and with office. These services allow free sharing of time between members, which cuts down the phone bills of individual employees. In the long run, business cellular phone services can save a lot of money as they will have discount over call rates and hand set costs. Business cell phone services are used extensively by companies that have large number employees using company paid phones. There are different business cellular phone plans for large companies, medium companies and small businesses.

Business cellular phone services use advanced features such as e-mail, caller ID, calendar, voice mail, address book, Bluetooth technology, 3-way conferencing, call waiting, and Internet access. Most services provide unlimited long distance calls for a limited price. Many business cellular phone services provide latest information including stock prices, economic information or other information vital to the daily success of the business.

The advantages of business cellular phone services include low long-distance communication and network expenses, increase in employee productivity, growth in communications with customers, suppliers and partners, reduction in travel costs, flexible call management capabilities, 24/7 customer service, low cost international plans, and remote access from any where. Purchasing a lot of phones together will often give tremendous discounts in hand sets. Most services also offer phone replacing once in every two or three years and additional mobile lines as business grows at cheapest rates.

Finding a business cellular phone service is quite simple. Internet is an excellent information resource for all sorts of business cellular phone services. Look for plans that offer low flat fee for additional minutes. If the business field needs lot of traveling, then look for a service that offers cheap roaming charge. Make sure that the service contracts contain all services that you want. Remember that most services charge additional fees for data plans, sending e-mails and surfing the web.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:18 AM  0 Comments

There are many cell phone deals available in the market. One needs to have a proper and thorough understanding of these deals to take a proper advantage of them for their own needs.

The first thing is to understand the kind of deals. There are mainly two types; one is where an individual has to sign a year-long contract with a cell phone carrier for the service. What this entails is that after taking the connection one has a cell phone connection that operates on credit basis. This means that at the end of the month, a bill is sent to the user that he or she has to keep paying for the services to continue. Such a phone connection comes with cheaper call and SMS charges. Such a cell phone deal is ideal for people who travel a lot and use a lot of phone and SMS facility. However, for those who do not use their cell phone too often, this may end up being a bit expensive.

This is because there are a lot of fees involved with such phones. There is a monthly rental fees and deposit required to pay to the cell phone company. Also one signs a contract for a year or so which guarantees then that you will use the service of the provider for that period of time. If you choose to terminate the contract, you are charged a particular termination fees. This may thus end up being quite expensive for someone.

Hence if one is uncertain, one best go in for a prepaid connection. Understanding cell phone deals for a prepaid connection is very easy. Both the process for getting a connection as well as termination are also quite easy.

First of all there is no credit check on prepaid phone connection. Then there are also no deposits, monthly rental fees or termination fees if one decides not to use the phone. Also, since prepaid connections work on the basis of money that is paid upfront, one is in control of one's spending on phone calls.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:17 AM  0 Comments

There are many cell phone deals available on the market today. Each deal is different, and it is very important for someone choosing a cell phone connection to understand them so that they can get the best deal. One needs to compare cell phone deals before he or she goes in for a connection.

The most important thing to compare in these deals is obviously the cost of the calls and other charges like the charge for short message service (SMS). Usually, prepaid cell phone deals are more expensive in this matter, since it does not involve a minimum time period guarantee and other fees may be involved with it.

However, for those who sign a contract with companies for payments that are made monthly, there are a lot of fees and charges to be paid and, thus, increase the monthly bill. However, this is a good option for them since these deals come with a lesser per minute usage charge and a lesser charge of SMS. Such deals are best for those people who use their cell phones extensively.

However, even for these deals, one needs to compare the prices of various things like monthly rental fees, termination fees, and service fees.

One also needs to find out if a variety of cell phone deals are available with them. One may have the idea of using a mobile phone for various other things like SMS and taking pictures. One then needs to know the companies and the deals that are offered by various cell phone companies on the connection that you take from them.

There are other facilities that are available from cell phone companies like family plans, children plans, and even corporate plans. Many companies have closed-user group facilities where calls made to the user group are charged at a lesser price. One thus needs to compare one's needs and requirements while making comparisons to find the best cell phone deals.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:17 AM  0 Comments

If one has to go in for a cell phone plan that is based on billing systems, one has to undergo a lot of scrutiny. Since this is more or less like a credit that the cell phone company is offering its user, the credit history of the individual is checked to find out whether the person has a good history of paying credit. It becomes very difficult for someone who has a bad credit history to get a good cell phone deal for himself.

The option for such people who have bad or no credit history or those that do not want their credit histories to be checked is to go in for prepaid connection. This is one of the best ways of beginning to use a cell phone and understanding the nuances of both the cell phone usage and the cost pattern of one's usage.

There are no credit checks required with most cell phone companies that give prepaid connection. One can just pay for the upfront money to get the phone and connection and one can get the minutes loaded into one's phone and one is ready to go mobile.

Besides this, the other advantage of a prepaid connection is that there is also no deposit that is required on such a phone. There are also no monthly rentals required to be paid for using the prepaid services of a cell phone company. If someday one decides not to use the services of a cell phone company, one can choose to forgo the mobile connection and no termination fees will be charged from the user.

Apart from this, since one can use the phone only till such time that it has credit on it, one cannot excessively use the phone and cause one's costs to go up exponentially. Thus one's budget on making calls is in control and one can make amends to the same depending on how much one has already spent on the phone.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:16 AM  0 Comments

On your next visit to Spain, whether on business or pleasure, take with yourself a pre-paid SIM card for Spain. It will save you tons of money in terms of your communication bills. You will not require going through any contract or paying any month end bills. This pre-paid SIM card is the most economical and convenient way to keep in touch with your people, whether in Spain, UK or back home. The most amazing part is that you are not charged for incoming calls, regardless where they generate from. You get a local Spanish number and you pay for your calls as the locals do. No more of that roaming charges slapped on top of your calls.

While you take your mobile to Spain, make sure that it would work with their network. You need a GSM handset and it is very likely that even if you have a GSM phone, it will not work in Spain. The GSM phone that you have has a different frequency band and does not comply with the one operating in Spain. In order to be certain that the mobile handset that you are taking with you, works in Spain, it is always better to avail a handset which has quad band capability. Such a phone will work all over the world. First of all, the GSM phone in USA and Canada works on 850MHz and 1900MHZ bands which is different from the frequency bands in Europe, with a result that North America is set apart from the rest of the world. This is the reason why, even if you have a GSM handset it will not work in Spain. To understand the matter better, let me explain the different types of GSM handsets available and the frequencies they operate on. The GSM mobile phones use frequencies within four different frequency bands:

 850 MHz (824.2 - 848.8 MHz Tx; 869.2 - 893.8 MHz Rx)
 900 MHz (880-2 - 914.8 MHz Tx; 925.2 - 959.8 MHz Rx)
 1800 MHz (1710.2 - 1784.8 MHz Tx; 1805.2 - 1879.8 MH Rx)
 1900 MHz (1850.2 - 1909.8 MHz Tx; 1930.2 - 1989.8 MHz Rx)

A quad band handset works on all the frequencies mentioned above. With such a phone, you have no worries at all. It will work all over the world. Spain uses GSM 900/1800 for all their mobile communication, way out from what is used back home. A tri band mobile phone supports three different major frequency bands. Tri-band phones in America support 800/850, 1800 and 1900 MHz frequency bands. These cover entire GSM network in America and atleast one network in most of the countries in Europe, Africa and Asia. To enable you to have a worry free visit to Spain, it is better to carry a quad band GSM handset, supporting all the major GSM frequencies of the world.

Staying on the subject of mobile handsets, it is necessary that the handset you carry is a SIM unlocked phone. That is to say that, the phone will operate on any SIM card from any service provider. When you sign on a contract with a service provider, where you usually pay the bills at the end of the month, the contract is generally for a period. This guarantees that you shall stay with that particular service provider through-out that period. Usually in this case, the mobile phone is given to you free of any charges. In order that you may not use any other SIM card with that phone, the phone comes in a SIM locked state.

If you are not a frequent traveler, it is always wise to rent such a SIM unlocked mobile handset from the same place where you buy your SIM card for Spain. Regarding the SIM card for Spain, the SIM comes with a credit of talk time included with the price. This credit allows you to make calls up-to the limit for which you have paid upfront for the credit. In order to top up that credit, you can buy re-charge vouchers at any shop in Spain. These vouchers come in different denominations, depending upon how much call credit that you wish to buy. This means that you go on pre-paying for your call credits upfront, with an option to buy more credits as and when required.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:00 AM  1 Comments

Have you noticed the frequency of new mobile phone shops opening in your local high street lately? Have you also noticed the number of deals offered by these outlets?

No two outlets seem to offer the same deals. And the deals offered by these outlets are often better than those offered by the phone companies themselves.

Carrying a mobile phone has become an essential and acceptable part of our culture now. In fact, it sounds for some one not carrying a phone, especially of they are under 50.

The mobile phone companies are increasingly becoming aware of catering to the varied tastes of all ages - from teenagers to grand dads, and ever one in between. Companies are introducing all sorts of phone models as well as price plans to entice the consumers based upon what people want. This is called segmentation of the customer base.

Lets consider for a moment the age groups that these companies have to cater for. Phones used by young customers are unlikeliest candidates for people at pensionable ages. Younger people like features in their phones while older customers are interested in the functionality and practicality of their cell phones.

Similarly younger customers are keen to send texts and chat with their friends and peers while older customers want the phone to have a brief conversation when there is no other alternative.

Mobile phone companies have to cater for the requirements for ALL these customers. That is why they have so many phone models. And that is also why there are so many price plan options.

Last time I checked, there were more than 20,000 combinations of phone models and price plan deals in UK alone. This is mainly generated by 5 main mobile phone companies which they sell either directly or via their partners in high street or on the web.

If you are an average mobile phone user then how easy it is to wad through all these deals and choose the one that fits in with your life style and pocket? It is not easy. There has to be an easy way.

There is. Site called TopMobiles4u can compare almost all mobile phones and associated deals offered by virtually every major operator and player in UK. All these 20,000 deals are quickly compared in less than 10 seconds. The site does not sell any thing - it just offers comparison service.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:00 AM  0 Comments

Are you one of the millions of folks across the country that has gotten incredibly attached to their cell phone? The phone is comfortable both in your hand and on your ear; you’ve gotten accustomed to all of the functions; even if blindfolded, you could still dial anyone you ever needed to. Plus, you’ve spent a small fortune on faceplates and other accessories and doodads, all for this one phone. Everything would be great except for the fact that you have less than favorable views regarding your wireless service provider. In order to switch cell phone service, you’ll need to get a new phone.

Gone are the days when you’d have to put up with inadequate service just to keep your phone. Mobile phone unlocking is the latest craze sweeping the nation, enabling you to keep your phone and hook it up to any service you’d like. This service simply “unlocks” your current service’s hold on your phone.

It works like this: Every mobile phone has a serial number to identify it, known as the IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) by the cell phone industry. This number connects a mobile phone to a server, as well a phone to a subscriber- so it’s connecting you, the subscriber to a phone and service at the same time. Many mobile phones have a removable card called a SIM (Subscriber Information Module) that connects the phone to owner, too. When you buy a cell phone and sign the contract, the server puts a lock on the SIM so the phone will only work with them and no other service.

All that, and you paid for the phone.

Of course, there is a fee for unlocking your phone, so it’s important that you figure out if it’s worth it to get our mobile phone unlocked, or if you should just buy a new phone. To help you with your quest, here are 3 questions to ask yourself:

1. How much did you pay for your phone and how much is your mobile phone worth? If you paid a lot for your mobile phone, you might not be ready to give it up just yet. If your phone was one of the free, bottom of the barrel models and you don’t care for it, a new phone purchase might just be in your future.

2. Have you had any problems with your mobile phone? Maybe you’ve had battery issues ever since the phone trial period ended. Maybe you don’t like your current phone, but the fit within the nightstand drawer is your all-time favorite. If you like your phone, mobile phone unlocking is the only way to keep and reuse it.

3. What are your future plans for your phone after your contract expires, if any? Remember, having your mobile phone unlocked does not get you out of any contract between you and a cell service. See your signed contract for details.

# posted by Medical Information : 3:59 AM  0 Comments

A reverse cell phone search allows you to determine the identity of a caller based solely on their mobile phone number. Aside from the name that is listed with the cell phone number, a reverse mobile phone search can also provide additional information like the address and other contact details of the individual.

A reverse search can serve as a safety precaution for those instances wherein you receive anonymous phone calls that seem threatening or harassing to you. Once you learn the identity of the person making the phone calls, you can file a police report or file a request with your phone company to block calls from that specific person or cell phone number.

A reverse cell phone search is also a good option to take to make a quick check about somebody’s identity. For instance, if a business contact provides his cell phone number, a reverse search can confirm if this contact is indeed legitimate or not.

A reverse cell phone search can also be used as an excellent technique in tracking down certain people. For instance, you can look for someone who has been avoiding your calls because they owe you money. Even family or relatives who have been estranged from each other for a long time can be reunited through a reverse cellphone search.

For the most part, conducting a reverse search is more of a challenge compared to a reverse landline search. Most landline numbers are registered in a directory but cell phone numbers are usually kept confidential. In some cases, you may have to hire the services of a private detective for a reverse cell phone search if you keep on meeting dead ends.

But before paying exorbitant fees for private detectives, make sure you have exhausted all the available resources. Databases for a reverse cell phone search have become a common sight on the Internet, since a large quantity of information can be stored at a remote server, accessed anytime and gone through at rapid speeds. There are even reverse searches with the added feature of asking for an area code together with a prefix to automatically determine which mobile phone carrier is providing the service for the user.

Some online directories also allow you to obtain copies of telephone transcripts and federal phone records aside from the usual data obtained from such searches. Another advantage of conducting a reverse cell phone search online is that you are not restricted by geographical boundaries. There are websites that offer reverse cell phone searches that provide data even for international numbers. Because all the information is retrievable online, the information can be transferred and received without any delays.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:34 AM  0 Comments

With wireless telecommunication technology at its peak, different mobile phone models of various technological capability starts to flood the market. From the analog mobile phones which has only the voice call and phone book directory functions, today’s models of mobile phones is now Internet-compatible and can be used as an alarm clock, personal planner, television, and movie screen all in one.

Furthermore, different features of mobile phones can now be customized such as the font of the phone’s main menu and submenu as well as wallpapers, games, and other mobile application. One of which is the ringtones which is a very common feature of a mobile phone of any brands and models, whether old or new. It serves as an alarm for any incoming voice calls or voice messages that your mobile phone receives. From the classic ringer sound of your ringtones, it is now available within different types like real audio quality and others.

It is also one of the mobile phone applications that are frequently downloaded both on the Internet and in the wireless telecommunication companies’ database. Such companies are capitalizing the popularity of ringtones to the public especially to young generation of mobile phone owners to gain revenues and letting the public know that they have the hottest and newest set of ringtones stored in their database that suits the system requirements of different mobile phone models. One of these wireless telecommunication companies is the Alltel.

About Alltel

Alltel is the acronym for Allied Telephone Company which is one of the telecommunication players in the United States with its main business office situated at Riverdale, Arkansas. They provide various telecommunication services which includes the wireless technology in 36 states of the country. With over 15 million subscribers early of 2006, it is the largest regional mobile phone company in the United States and the fifth largest in nationwide operation.

Alltel is aware of the needs of mobile phone users both in the regional as well as on the national level. That is why in conjunction with the trend charges when it comes to various mobile phone models together with its applications, they are also constantly upgrading their systems and services to keep up with the changing trend.

Alltel’s Ringtone Application

Alltel offers their very own ringtone application for their subscribers which can be downloaded straight to their mobile phones. They have four major categories of ringtone application which are discussed on the preceding items:

• Sony Music Box- it offers you the hottest music ringtone that is hitting the mobile charts. You can choose from different actual recordings that are done by your favorite music artists. The music tones offered in this category ranges from retro and classic-type to the modern genres of today’s music.

• Ringster- it includes various new-generation ringtones, most commonly hip-hop and rock type of ringtones.

• Real Tone Jukebox- it offers different real tones that you can use in personalizing your mobile phones. Alltel’s database offers over 2,000 real tones from today’s hottest artists.

• Modtones DJ- various ringtones from this category can convert your mobile phone into a house-rocking hit machine.

Be an Alltel mobile phone subscriber and show others what you have got through wide selection of ringtone application stored in their database.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:33 AM  0 Comments

For those people who love their cat and are worried about their home security while they are away there is now a new technology on the horizon, which enables a cell phone with video feature and Internet wireless links to view exactly what is going on in the home.

Your home is hooked up with motion detectors as part of the security system and IP cameras if one of the cameras pick something up it will either dial your cell phone or record it and you could watch it on your cell phone later. If you are a parent who works late and your children come home from school then when they come to the house and open the door the camera will take a picture of them and ring your cell phone with a video and you will know they are safe.

Some property management companies can set up their business properties with water and heat sensors also and if there is a flood event or fire, it will alert them immediately so that things can be taking care of right away to prevent further damage. Right now, the cell phone bandwidth for video is limited and the resolution is not so good. But, the video captured by the IP camera is good and later you can look at the full resolution of the video when you get home.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:33 AM  0 Comments

Third Generation or 3G Wireless was introduced in 2002 in Europe, America, Japan and other parts of the World simultaneously. It is yet to get more that 5% of the market share of the worldwide mobile market. In Japan it has a mere 5% penetration in spite of the hype that has been built on 3G.For another two years it is not going to provide global coverage. Even in most developed countries it is still not offered Nationally, wherever 3G coverage is given it is not purely 3G. Coverage. The mobile switches between different technologies like 2G/2.5G in various regions of a country. It is now more than 4 years since 3G was offered, why has 3G not come up as promised? To analyze the deployment and failure of 3G so far let us understand what factors are inhibiting the adoption of 3G in a big way and why 3G has not been able to stand ground till now and that too even when people have started talking about 4G implementation in 2010.

The wireless landscape in 2006 - There are several competing wireless infrastructures like 2G,GPRS, WLANs, 3G and other evolving technologies, which will later become a part of 4G Wireless. - There are both large WLAN operators and 1000s of local hot-spot operators and WLAN clearinghouses offering global roaming access. WLANs are built into Laptops and hand-helds - Mobile operators are operating in extreme price pressure but are still dominant in handling end user relation (billing, roaming, seamless mobility etc.) - A continuous suite of terminals from voice-only ear-phones, handsets, handhelds, & lap-tops etc. are flooding the Market

State of Pure 3G operators in 2006 - Insignificant user base - No trusted Brand - No complete network - Dependent on unfavorable deals with incumbent GSM operators

History of 3G The term 3G was coined at academic conferences around 1990. Then 3G meant everything beyond GSM One 3G vision was mobility by wireless plus personal phone-numbers, following the Individual globally at closest fixed line. Later the "1G", "2G", "3G" and even "4G" terminology was captured by equipment vendors in the mid 90s for selling UMTS to the market and regulators.

On arrival had to target the Users who were Already GSM customers (phone number, voice mail, trusted Brand etc.),High-end users already using GPRS,Users Expected the 151 country global coverage of GSM and at least national GPRS coverage.

3G Arrival

On arrival 3G was hidden from users in a 2G/3G offer,3G only offered service in cities. 3G was hidden from the users in a branded GSM/GPRS/3G combination offer. To offer 2G/3G service, pure 3G operators had to strike unfavorable deals for network access with 2G operators, Handsets are GSM/GPRS/3G hence very expensive and complex. Incumbent operators target existing user base with 2G®2.5G®3G migration offers. Pure 3G operators tried to strike deals with 2G operators to offer geographical coverage but 3G operators were unable to secure deals for access to the 2G networks. Pure 3G became seen as a step down from GSM.Both 3G and 2G/2.5G are standards .Standardization freezes performance at a certain technological level and performance jumps when a new standard is fixed which also demands a total infrastructure changeover. The performance jump of 3G Standard against 2G/2.5G Standard does not warrant a total infrastructure change.

The Rule-of-thumb New infrastructure must offer at least 10 times better performance to replace old large installed base (This rule-of-thumb comes from Andrew Groove at Intel in his book "Only The Paranoid Survive" and has not been properly verified)

- 3G performance jump is not large enough to justify infrastructure replacement - 3G offers only 3-4 times better spectral efficiency than 2.5G - 3G bandwidth only 2-10 times better than 2.5G - GPRS gives better geographical coverage than 3G - 3G offers better bandwidth but coverage is more important for the consumers - 3G networks not even close to offering the coverage of GPRS - GPRS, a software upgrade on the GSM networks will probably always offer better global coverage than 3G. - WLANs offer better bandwidth than 3G - WLANs are already here with a large installed base on many company lap-tops - It is possible to cover hot-spots and city centers at low cost for WLAN Service Providers - WLAN base stations cost very less - WLAN equipment market is already being adopted at a large scale GPRS together with WLAN is a better solution for mobility in terms of technology and features and can be implemented at fraction of the cost of a 3G Upgrade unless we have national and global coverage built in 3G Wireless Systems, Pure 3G operators will not survive.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:32 AM  0 Comments

Different models for cell phones are seen everywhere and the need to have ringtones is a necessity for most cell phone owners. People can personalize their ringtones with the use of different file formats depending on the capacity of their phones.

Some ringtone formats are in MP3 format while some are only polyphonic. Getting ringing tones is never hard because you can have it for free. You can download free ringtone and have several ringtones stored in your cell phone. Have as many as you want as long as you can download free ringtone through the network of in the computer.

You can get a lot of choices when it comes to ringing tones. You will never have a hard time because your search can be found at the tip of your fingers and with the click of the mouse. You might wonder how you can get a good search to download free ringtone.

The Internet is always the pretty good choice and everyone will definitely advice it. But first, you need to know the compatibility of your phone to the file formats. You need to find out what kind of file formats can be played and stored in your phone, or else, it will be useless.

You should also find out if the browser is compatible to your phone and the URL. When you can access the page, it only means that it is compatible and you can now start to download free ringtone in your cell phone. Save the ringtone and make sure that it is on the right location.

When you have downloaded it successfully, you can start looking out for your favorite song. When you have found a good ringing tone, all you have to do is simply click and save it to the right path in your cell phone. Too handy isn’t it? It’s a good thing that ringing tones can be downloaded for free.

However, fresh ringing tones are not offered for free but in the next few months, you can easily have it without paying anything. If you want to download free ringtone, you need to specify your search so that you will get exact results. Also, be careful in choosing the site that you will choose because some websites will claim that they offer free downloads when it fact, they charge at a minimal cost.

With over the hundreds and thousands of sites that offer free downloads, you can always find a good search. Some of the websites are spam sites, which can be nerve racking. You will easily notice spam sites because they redirect to other sites, which are irrelevant to your search.

This can be a very waste of time. However looking for download free ringtone is that instant, you will also need a little patience. Some websites don’t actually work but yet, they are still included in the search engines. Some websites load too long that will eat up all your time.

You can always encounter a good site especially if you have entered a good keyword search. Make sure that you have entered the correct spelling and the exact title of the song. Now that you know that it’s not that twisty to download free ringtone, you can have it anytime, anywhere without spending all your dollars.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:31 AM  0 Comments

Imagine sitting comfortably on your flight. You have just had a relaxing glass of wine and are about to nod off till you reach your destination. A phone rings. The passenger sitting next to you takes his mobile phone out of his pocket, and starts to chat to a friend, negotiate a business deal or whatever! Welcome to the chattering class.

Like it or not, the prospect of using mobile phone on the planes is closer than ever. OnAir, a company backed by Airbus has technology that allows mobile phone calls without interfering with ground based networks. Ryanair, Europe’s largest low cost airline has announced plans to equip its entire fleet of Boeing 737s with this technology to enable passengers to make in-flight calls. Air France is to do the same with its Airbus A318 planes. It is only a matter of time before other airlines follow suit.

Why should airlines invest in this technology? They want a share of the phone call revenue. Ryanair’s reasoning is that this will keep its fares down.

Will people flock to airlines that offer in-flight calling? How much the passengers are likely to pay for the privilege of making a call even if the flight is cheap? Time will tell. Prices are likely to be on the higher side initially and they will come down in time.

Surveys conducted recently suggest that a vast majority of people approve the idea of an ability of making calls from the plane while only around 54% business and 40% leisure travellers are likely to switch their phones on as long as call prices are under $2.50 per minute. Interestingly Europeans are much warmer to the idea of in-flight calling than their American counterparts. United and Delta do not want it, yet!

The ability to make in-flight calls, and any airlines’ interest in this, is an interesting development. This is more so since Boeing recently scrapped Connexion, its impressive satellite based in-flight broadband service on its planes.

The Europeans are likely to give a formal go ahead to in-flight mobile calling soon by start issuing frequencies and guidelines to airlines.

I think that this service will more likely to be a success in short haul flights where people do not mind sitting next to a fellow passenger shouting into his mobile phone, however annoying it may be, as long it helps airlines subsidise their airfare.

# posted by Medical Information : 4:31 AM  0 Comments