The Evolution of Mobile Data: A Primer on EV-DO

WHAT IS EV-DO?
Evolution Data Only, or Data Optimized (EV-DO), is a wireless broadband data protocol. Wireless broadband, sometimes known as mobile broadband, utilizes cellular technology to transmit data at speeds that rival those of wired broadband. EV-DO is used today with the greatest efficacy and compares EV-DO technology with two competing technologies: wireless local area networks and an alternative wireless broadband service called EDGE.

APPLES AND ORANGES
To understand the value and positioning of EV-DO, we must first distinguish wireless broadband from wireless access to broadband speed. The differences are not altogether clear to many of today's technology consumers. Some users mistakenly believe they have enjoyed using wireless broadband for years. Actually, they have been using wireless access to a wired broadband connection, which is entirely different from wireless broadband. Wireless broadband is fast, direct access without the need for any wired connection.

The confusion, in part, results from the relationship between broadband connectivity and wireless local area networks (WLANs). Broadband connectivity most often refers to high-speed connections, like DSL, cable or T1, and is the near-ubiquitous successor to the dial-up access market. WLANs are built on a set of standards known as 802.11, a.k.a. "Wi-Fi." They have emerged as an alternative to traditional wired LANs, eliminating the need for cumbersome Ethernet cables. WLANs emerged around the same time broadband Internet access became more popular and accessible. Taken together, these technologies allow us to enjoy high-speed, broadband connections on our computers without being tethered - so long as we remain within a few hundred feet from the wireless router.

Indeed, many people today enjoy the benefits of high-speed, wireless computing. The convenience and freedom to move from desk to couch, study to veranda and office to conference room without losing one's network connection has proven to be immensely popular, creating a fast-growing Wi-Fi Industry. Last year, 65 percent of notebooks sold had integrated Wi-Fi capabilities. According to the Worldwide WLAN Semiconductor 2005-2009 Forecast, all notebooks will have integrated Wi-Fi by 2007.

Today we find Wi-Fi in homes, offices and public venues like coffee shops, bookstores, hotels and airports. Public Wi-Fi access spots, known as hot spots, become more numerous daily. San Francisco, for example, has almost 1,400 hot spots; Seattle has 800.

Each of these hot spots, however, still requires a wired, broadband connection. It is important to remember that all WLANs have two requisite components: one wireless and one wired. The wireless component links a user to the wired Internet connection; it does not provide the Internet connection.

WIRELESS AND BROADBAND
Wireless or mobile broadband devices combine both wireless functionality and broadband connectivity. An EV-DO card in your notebook does not connect to a particular hot spot. The connection is direct, empowering the notebook to be the hot spot. EV-DO obviates the need for hot spots because your laptop wirelessly connects directly to cellular towers, just as a cell phone would. Anywhere a cell phone works (the car or train, the beach, a restaurant), EV-DO works too, provided there is also EV-DO service in that area.

In addition to the advantages of complete mobility, EV-DO also offers up to a sevenfold download speed increase over earlier technology. While its predecessor, 1xRTT, averaged download speeds of 50 Kbps to 70 Kbps, average EV-DO download speeds range 300 Kbps to 500 Kbps with peak rates of 2.4 Mbps (Source: PC Magazine). Upload speeds averaging 50 Kbps to 70 Kbps with peak rates of 144 Kbps are on par with the earlier technology. EV-DO data transmissions are protected by both the inherent security of the underlying networks and newer 3G security measures such as 128-bit privacy and authentication keys, Secure Hashing Algorithm-1 (SHA-1), and Advanced Encryption Standard (AES). As of December 2005, EV-DO coverage includes most major U.S. cities and is available to approximately 150 million people.

Leveraging EV-DO is fast and easy, requiring only a simple hardware card and a service subscription. CDMA cellular providers currently offer the cards and service subscriptions. Although notebooks with integrated EV-DO are beginning to appear, EV-DO hardware usually comes in the form of an aftermarket PCMCIA card. Sierra Wireless manufactures a popular EV-DO card called the AirCard® 580. Novatel Wireless manufactures another called the Merlin S620™. Both cards retail for approximately $250. Consumers need not pay full retail price, however. Service providers now offer incentives when users sign up for two-year wireless data or voice services subscriptions.

EARLY ADOPTERS
Mobile professionals have been among the first to benefit from the speed and mobility of EV-DO. Early adopters include companies whose employees are in the field and on the move regularly. For example, in the weeks after Hurricane Katrina, one major U.S. insurance provider deployed 1,500 EV-DO cards to its claims adjusters in the field. Because of the Gulf Coast devastation, claims adjusters were often working in areas that still lacked phone service and power. Accessing Wi-Fi hot spots was not merely inconvenient, but frequently impossible.

Briggs Corporation, a leading supplier of professional documentation systems, operational resources and medical supplies to the healthcare industry, uses EV-DO cards in the field and at corporate headquarters. Harry Alley, manager of IT operations, ensures that "Briggs' employees have all the tools they need to do their jobs and do them efficiently and effectively." EV-DO is one of the tools on which Alley receives the most positive feedback. He keeps the help desk at corporate headquarters in Des Moines, Iowa, stocked with EV-DO cards for use on a checkout basis. Employees who require only temporary EV-DO service - like those heading off for trade shows - can check them out for the duration of their trip.

Employees based in the field, like Spencer Thomas, corporate account director, have dedicated EV-DO cards which they use exclusively. "It's the first thing I do every morning," says Thomas. "I VPN into our network and sync up with email and other applications like CRM." Thomas appreciates the fact that his wireless connection is now as fast as a wired one. "Because it's fast and works pretty much everywhere, [EV-DO] allows me to be more efficient." He adds, "I now use my notebook more often and more easily, like during airport layovers or even during cab rides."

The advantages of EV-DO over standard Wi-Fi are clear. However, EV-DO is but one wireless broadband solution. It has its competitors, although the competition cannot be described as close. A brief overview of cellular technologies will help in understanding the differences between wireless broadband options.

PREDECESSOR TECHNOLOGIES
The very first cellular technology (referred to as first generation, or 1G) used an analog protocol called Advanced Mobile Phone Standard (AMPS). Although inefficient and poor in sound quality, analog signified an important first step away from fixed-line telephony.

Second-generation, or 2G, cellular technology switched to digital protocols. Digital technology yielded benefits for both users and providers. Users benefited from improved sound quality and more energy-efficient devices that resulted in longer talk and standby times. Providers reaped more business as digital systems, which divide a cell's limited spectrum more efficiently, allowed them to carry more calls. Three major 2G technologies emerged, focusing on voice rather than data: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA).

With the emergence of data-rich trends like mobile browsing, downloadable ring tones and picture messaging, cellular providers sought to improve their data transmissions as well. The resulting enhancements became known as the 2.5 generation, or 2.5G, and enabled faster, more efficient data transmissions. For CDMA this became known as Single Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (1xRTT), also known as CDMA2000. For GSM it's referred to as General Packet Radio Service (GPRS). When significant 2.5G TDMA improvements failed to emerge, many carriers dropped TDMA and migrated to GSM. Each enhancement is specific to its respective underlying technology and the aforementioned 2.5G technologies cannot function with each other.

EV-DO AND EDGE: THE 3G TECHNOLOGIES
Third-generation, or 3G, technologies followed the bifurcation that emerged during 2.5G. CDMA networks, like those of Sprint, Verizon and Alltel, launched a 3G successor to 1xRTT called Evolution Data Only, or EV-DO, which goes by other abbreviations such as EVDO, EvDO, 1xEV-DO and 1xEvDO. EV-DO networks use a different data protocol than 1xRTT but employ the same voice technology. GSM networks, like those of Cingular and T-Mobile, updated their 2.5G GPRS technology with Enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (EDGE).

Although both EV-DO and EDGE are considered wireless broadband technologies, EV-DO outperforms EDGE. In fact, EV-DO speeds begin where EDGE ends. EDGE downloads at speeds that range from 100 Kbps to 300 Kbps; EV-DO speeds start at 300 Kbps.

EV-DO has another significant advantage - backward compatibility. EV-DO is based on, and fully compatible with, its predecessor technology 1xRTT. While EV-DO deployment covers most major U.S. cities, its coverage is not complete. Fortunately, 1xRTT coverage is available wherever CDMA-based cellular coverage exists. While considerably slower than EV-DO, 1xRTT's average speeds of 50 Kbps to 70 Kbps still surpass standard dial-up speeds. And because of backward compatibility, should a user leave an EV-DO coverage area, the switch to 1xRTT coverage is automatic.

Of course, both CDMA- and GSM-based providers continue to work on next-generation technologies. GSM proponents are working on Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), which is also known as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and a succeeding technology called High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA). CDMA proponents are developing Evolution-Data and Voice (EV-DV) and a successor called Three Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (3xRTT).

CONCLUSION
EV-DO represents a significant technological breakthrough for companies and individuals who desire or require both throughput and mobility. By synergizing broadband connectivity with true mobility, EV-DO offers unprecedented computing potential with coverage in most major U.S. cities, with more to come in the future. While next-generation technologies are always in the works, and may offer stiff competition at some future point, EV-DO is the best solution for those who need both speed and mobility today.