GSM frequency ranges or frequency bands are the radio spectrum frequencies designated by the ITU for the operation of the GSM system for mobile phones. Rough plot of Earths atmospheric transmittance (or opacity) to various wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, including radio waves. ... Monument in Bern, Switzerland. ... The Global System for Mobile Communications, GSM (original acronym: Groupe Spécial Mobile) is the most popular standard for mobile phones in the world. ...

GSM frequency bands

There are eight frequency bands defined in 3GPP TS 05.05:

• GSM 450 Band
• GSM 480 Band
• GSM 850 Band
• Standard or primary GSM 900 Band, P GSM
• Extended GSM 900 Band, E GSM (includes Standard GSM 900 band)
• Railways GSM 900 Band, R GSM
• DCS 1 800 Band
• PCS 1 900 Band

Note: The table shows the extents of the band and not center frequency.

GSM-900 and GSM-1800

GSM-900 and GSM-1800 are used in most parts of the world.

• GSM-900 uses 890 - 915 MHz to send information from the Mobile Station to the Base Transceiver Station (uplink) and 935 - 960 MHz for the other direction (downlink), providing 124 RF channels (channel numbers 1 to 124) spaced at 200 kHz. Duplex spacing of 45 MHz is used.

In some countries the GSM-900 band has been extended to cover a larger frequency range. This 'extended GSM', E-GSM, uses frequency range 880 - 915 MHz (uplink) and 925 - 960 MHz (downlink), adding 50 channels (channel numbers 975 to 1023 and 0) to the original GSM-900 band. The GSM specifications also describe 'railways GSM', GSM-R, which uses frequency range 876 - 915 MHz (uplink) and 921 - 960 MHz (downlink). Channel numbers 955 to 1023. GSM-R provides additional channels and specialized services for use by railway personnel.

All these variants are included in the GSM-900 specification.

• GSM-1800 uses 1710 - 1785 MHz to send information from the Mobile Station to the Base Transceiver Station (uplink) and 1805 - 1880 MHz for the other direction (downlink), providing 374 channels (channel numbers 512 to 885). Duplex spacing is 95 MHz.

GSM-1800 is also called PCS in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. Most of the GSM operators in India use the 900 MHz band. Operators like Hutch, Airtel, Idea, and some others, use 900MHz in rural areas and 1800MHz in urban areas.

The Mobile Station(MS) comprises all user equipment and software needed for communication with a GSM network. ... The Base Station Subsystem (BSS) is the section of a GSM network which is responsible for handling traffic and signaling between a mobile phone and the Network Switching Subsystem. ... GSM-R (GSM-Railway) is a wireless communications platform developed specifically for railway communication and applications. ... The Mobile Station(MS) comprises all user equipment and software needed for communication with a GSM network. ... The Base Station Subsystem (BSS) is the section of a GSM network which is responsible for handling traffic and signaling between a mobile phone and the Network Switching Subsystem. ...

GSM-850

GSM-850 and GSM-1900 are used in the United States, Canada, and many other countries in the Americas. GSM-850 is also sometimes erroneously called GSM-800.

In Australia, GSM 850 is the frequency allocated to Telstra's NextG Network which was switched on in October 2006. The NextG Network is a step up from the 3G Network and is availible at faster speeds Australia wide compared to the 3G Network which is limited to only major population centres.

• GSM-850 uses 824 - 849 MHz to send information from the Mobile Station to the Base Transceiver Station (uplink) and 869 - 894 MHz for the other direction (downlink). Channel numbers 128 to 251.

Cellular is the term used to describe the 850 MHz band, as the original analog cellular mobile communication system was allocated in this spectrum. Providers commonly operate in one or both frequency ranges. The Mobile Station(MS) comprises all user equipment and software needed for communication with a GSM network. ... This article should belong in one or more categories. ... Cellular redirects here. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Analog electronics. ...

GSM-1900

GSM-850 and GSM-1900 are used in the United States, Canada, and many other countries in the Americas.

• GSM-1900 uses 1850 - 1910 MHz to send information from the Mobile Station to the Base Transceiver Station (uplink) and 1930 - 1990 MHz for the other direction (downlink). Channel numbers 512 to 810.

PCS is an initialism for Personal Communications Service and merely represents the original name in North America for the 1900 MHz band. The Mobile Station(MS) comprises all user equipment and software needed for communication with a GSM network. ... This article should belong in one or more categories. ... Personal Communications Service or PCS is the name for the 1900-MHz radio band used for digital mobile phone services in Canada and the United States. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...

GSM-400

Another less common GSM version is GSM-400. It uses the same frequency as and can co-exist with old analog NMT systems. NMT is a first generation (1G) mobile phone system which was primarily used in Nordic countries, Eastern Europe and Russia prior to the introduction of GSM. It operates in either 450.4 - 457.6 MHz paired with 460.4 - 467.6 MHz (channel numbers 259 to 293), or 478.8 - 486 MHz paired with 488.8 - 496 MHz (channel numbers 306 to 340). For other meanings of the abbreviation, see: NMT. NMT (Nordisk MobilTelefoni or Nordiska MobilTelefoni-gruppen, Nordic Mobile Telephone in English) is a mobile phone system that was specified by the Nordic telecommunications administrations (PTTs) starting in 1970, and opened for service in 1981 as a response to the increasing congestion... 1G (or 1-G) is short for first-generation wireless telephone technology, cellphones. ... Political map of the Nordic countries and associated territories. ... Regions of Europe as delineated by the United Nations (UN definition of Eastern Europe marked salmon):  Northern Europe  Western Europe  Eastern Europe  Southern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium...

GSM frequency usage in the Americas

In North America, GSM operates on the primary mobile communication bands - 850 MHz and 1900 MHz. Initial implementations were exclusively 1900 MHz, with 850 MHz being added in 2001. In Canada, GSM-1900 is the primary frequency used in urban areas with 850 as a backup, and GSM-850 being the primary rural frequency. In the United States, regulatory requirements determine which area can use which frequency.

GSM-1900 and GSM-850 are also used in parts of South and Central America, and both Ecuador and Panama uses GSM-850 exclusively. Some countries in the Americas use GSM-900 or GSM-1800.

The result is a mixture of usage in the Americas that requires travelers to confirm that the phone they have is compatible with the frequency of the network at their destination. Frequency-compatibility problems can be avoided through the use of multi-band, tri-band, or especially quad-band, phones.

Some countries in the Americas that use GSM-1900 phones:

• Antigua
• Argentina - also uses GSM-850
• Belize
• Bermuda
• Bolivia
• Canada - also uses GSM-850
• Chile - also uses GSM-850
• Colombia - also uses GSM-850
• Dominican Republic
• Honduras -also uses GSM-850
• Mexico
• Paraguay
• Peru
• Puerto Rico
• Trinidad and Tobago - also uses GSM-850 and GSM-1800 (850/1800 and 850/1900)
• United States - also uses GSM-850
• Uruguay - also uses GSM-1800
• U.S. Virgin Islands
• British Virgin Islands - also uses GSM-900

Some countries in the Americas that use GSM-850 phones:

• Anguilla
• Argentina - also uses GSM 1900
• Honduras - also uses GSM 1900
• Panama
• Ecuador
• Montserrat
• United States - also uses GSM-1900
• Canada - also uses GSM-1900
• Turks and Caicos Islands
• Grenada

Some countries in the Americas that use GSM-900 phones:

• Brazil - also uses GSM-1800
• British Virgin Islands - also uses GSM-1900
• Falkland Islands
• French Guiana
• St. Pierre and Miquelon Islands
• Suriname
• Venezuela

Some countries in the Americas that use GSM-1800 phones:

• Costa Rica
• Uruguay - also uses GSM-1900

These lists are not exhaustive.

Multi-band and multi-mode phones

Nowadays most phones support multiple frequencies used in different countries. These are typically referred to as multi band phones. Dual-band phones can cover GSM networks in pairs such as 900 and 1800 MHz frequencies (Europe, Asia, Australia and Brazil) or 850 and 1900 (North America). European tri-band phones typically cover the 900, 1800 and 1900 bands giving good coverage in Europe and allowing limited use in North America. Just the same, North American tri-band phones utilize 850, 1800 and 1900 for wide-spread North American service but limited world-wide use. A new addition has been the quad-band phone, supporting all four major GSM frequency groups, allowing for widespread usage globally, including in North America. Rough plot of Earths atmospheric transmittance (or opacity) to various wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, including radio waves. ...

There are also multi-mode phones which can operate on GSM systems as well as on mobile-phone systems using other technical standards. Often these phones use multiple frequency bands as well. For example, one version of the Nokia 6340i GAIT phone sold in North America can operate on GSM-1900, GSM-850 and legacy TDMA-1900, TDMA-800, and AMPS-800, making it both multi-mode and multi-band. GAIT (an acronym for the GSM-ANSI Interoperability Team) is a wireless standard to allow cross-operation of mobile telephone technologies. ... IS-54 and IS-136 are second-generation (2G) mobile phone systems, known as Digital AMPS (D-AMPS). ... Advanced Mobile Phone System (AMPS) is the analog mobile phone system standard developed by Bell Labs, and officially introduced in the Americas in 1984. ...

External links

• Coverage & Roaming A Canadian mobile-phone company's international roaming information for consumers.
• GSM Coverage Maps and Roaming Information GSM World's listing of countries, frequencies, and roaming agreements.
• 3GPP Specification detail TS 05.05 Specification 3GPP TS 05.05 Radio Transmission and Reception (In August 2006, showing GERAN R99 latest version as 8.20.0 of 2005-11-25.
• 3GPP Specification detail TS 45.005 Specification 3GPP TS 45.005 Radio Transmission and Reception (in August 2006, showing GERAN Rel-7 latest version as 7.6.0 of 2006-07-17 (also showing Rel-4, 5, 6 latest versions).