Network
frequency bands are often overlooked while purchasing any smartphone. Network
bands are important related to coverage and data speed on your mobile. So, we
will discuss about different network bands used in India on GSM, HSPA or UMTS
and LTE.
What is a
Network Band ?
Network band is a
specific range of frequencies in a spectrum. With each band defined Upper and
down limit. By default Spectrum is government property and it is leased by
carriers for fixed amount of time. Government agencies allocates spectrum in
auctions to various network carriers.
In India, Telecom Regularity Authority of
India is responsible for spectrum allocations. Spectrum is allocated to network
carriers Like Airtel, Vodafone, Jio, Idea, BSNL for interference free and
unlimited usage. Before proceeding further, we must discuss some useful terms
Spectrum:
Spectrum is collection of
various types of electromagnetic radiations of different wavelengths. In
simplified words, Spectrum is airwaves on which signals of network carrier
travels.
LTE
Full form of LTE is Long
term evolution and often referred as 4G. LTE is an standard for high speed
wireless communication for mobile phones and data terminals.
GSM
Full form of GSM is Global
System for Mobile communications. GSM is a standard for defining 2nd Generation
of digital telephony which offers internet services on mobiles but relatively
very low speeds.
HSPA
Full form of HSPA is High
Speed Packet Access. HSPA is combination of HSDPA (High speed downlink Packet
Access) and HSUPA (High Speed Uplink Packet Access). It is an standard defined
to improve performance of 3rd generation (3G) digital telephony with relatively
much higher speeds than its predecessor 2G.
Downlink
Downlink means transfer of
signals from base station to mobiles.
Uplink
Uplink means transfer of
signals from mobiles to base station.
Network Bands Used in India
In India, GSM telephony
works on two different frequency bands GSM900 and GSM1800 in MHz(mega hertz). Lower frequency network bands offers
higher coverage while higher frequency network bands offers higher data speeds.
HSPA telephony in India
works on two different network bands UMTS900 and UMTS 2100 in MHz. UMTS network bands are radio frequencies used by 3G.
UMTS network bands in India are commonly deployed at 2100 MHz for better speeds.
LTE Technology in India
make use of 3 network bands namely
LTE850 (Band 5),
LTE1800(Band 3),
LTE2300 (Band 40).
LTE850 (Band 5),
LTE1800(Band 3),
LTE2300 (Band 40).
Band 3 provided great network
coverage while Band 40 0ffers greater data speeds.
Band 3
Among different network
bands, Band 3 is already used by various network companies in India to provide
2G services. Band 3 runs on 1800 MHz spectrum and provides an superb ecosystem
in world to deploy LTE services to users. In auction of 2015, almost every
cellular company leased out Band 3 spectrum to provide their services. In
India, Jio, Airtel, Vodafone, Idea, Reliance, Telenor, Videocon bags out 1800
MHz band to provide their 4G services. Only BSNL and Tata Docomo were not able
to lease out this frequency band.
Band 5
Band 5 is another out of
another network bands that your smartphone should support. Band 5 runs on
850MHz which results into best network coverage. Reliance Jio has already
launched its LTE services on Band 5 and network is available in almost every
part of the country. Apart from Jio, BSNL, MTS and Docomo also hold this
spectrum in their polythenes. Earlier smartphones does not included support for
this band because it provides poor 4G speeds but best network reception on 4G
network. But after Jio and their VoLTE smartphones, now smartphones
includes support for Band 5 as well.
Band 40
Another Popular Network
Bands used includes Band 40 which run on radio frequency of 2300 MHz. It is
specially used by 4G networks to provide their services with great data speeds.
Currently, Airtel, Jio, Aircel and Tikona uses this spectrum for its service
deployments. Band 40 is also supported on almost every 4G smartphones in India.
Reliance Jio holds PAN India license for 2300 MHz spectrum and already launched
it throughout the country.
Note : Reliance Jio uses all of three LTE network Bands namely Band 3,
Band 5, Band 40. All three bands are required for VoLTE services and superb
data speeds on Jio SIMS. Choosing Band 5 will provide better network
reception while choosing Band 40 will provide greater data speeds on your
mobile.
Better
speed: 2300Mhz >
1800Mhz > 850Mhz
Better coverage: 850Mhz > 1800Mhz > 2300 Mhz
