>The public [CT2 pre-DECT] networks [in Britain] didn't allow incoming
>calls at all, whereas I
>understand that PHS networks do if you're lucky enough to catch the callee
>in range of a base station.
It would seem you have never used public PHS nor ever called any public PHS
user.
Public PHS provides essentially the same user experience as do traditional
cellular systems. True, in the early days there were major quality issues
and many dropped calls, but you have to take into account that Japan's
public PHS networks, were the world's first microcell networs deployed and
it takes a lot of radio planning and fine tuning to get it right. By now,
the quality on PHS is on par with cellular at least in urban areas. And the
know how the Japanese have gained in urban microcell radio planning with
PHS has certainly helped the Japanese cellular industry to roll-out
microcells for cellular, too.
CT2 based Rabbit on the other hand was only available in the proximity of
public phone boxes and therefore they did not even bother to implement
incoming calls because it was rather unlikely that you would ever catch
someone in the right moment.
Public PHS has full coverage. You can call a PHS subscriber and they will
be reachable just as well as a cellular subscriber. It is even more likely
that you get better coverage with PHS in buildings and underground
installations, of which there are many in Japan, than you will get with
cellular.
The limit of low handover speed between cells has been increased to about
100 km/h so unless you are on the Shinkansen (bullet train, travelling at
240 km/h and more) you won't have a problem with PHS anymore while moving
between cells.
On the other hand, PHS has longer battery life and better voice quality
than any other system and it has got the fastest data rates (32K, 64K and
128K). And due to the low cost of PHS infrastructure, calls are cheap.
Usually, a PHS call costs as much as a call on a public phone box, not only
in Japan but also in the other countries where there is public PHS.
In China, PHS is ridiculuosly cheap by first world standards, a three
minute call is less than a cent and they operate at a profit in more than
60 cities. Most Chinese can't afford cellular, but they can afford PHS.
There is absolutely no base for conclusions from the flawed CT2 network in
Britain to public PHS.
for more information on PHS check out http://www.phsmou.or.jp (Don't worry.
It's in English)
regards
benjamin
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Received on Wed Jul 25 19:54:38 2001