GSM frequency ranges

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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.

1 GSM frequency bands
2 GSM frequency usage in the Americas
3 Multi-band and multi-mode phones
4 External links

[edit] GSM frequency bands

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

Standard or primary GSM 900 Band, P GSM
GSM 450 Band
GSM 480 Band
GSM 850 Band
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

System	Band	Uplink	Downlink	Channel Number
GSM 400	450	450.4 - 457.6	460.4 - 467.6	259 - 293
GSM 400	480	478.8 - 486.0	488.8 - 496.0	306 - 340
GSM 850	850	824.0 - 849.0	869.0 - 894.0	128 - 251
GSM 900 (P-GSM)	900	890.0 - 915.0	935.0 - 960.0	1 - 124
GSM 900 (E-GSM)	900	880.0 - 915.0	925.0 - 960.0	975 - 1023, (0, 1-124)
GSM-R (R-GSM)	900	876.0 - 880.0	921.0 - 925.0	955 - 973
DCS 1800	1800	1710.0 - 1785.0	1805.0 - 1880.0	512 - 885
PCS 1900	1900	1850.0 - 1910.0	1930.0 - 1990.0	512 - 810

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

GSM-900 and GSM-1800 are used in most parts of the world: Europe, Middle East, Africa and most of Asia.

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 , Airtel, Idea, and some others, use 900MHz in rural areas as well as in urban areas.where as hutch uses 1800mhz everywhere except in its bpl network

[edit] 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 available 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.

[edit] 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.

[edit] 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).

[edit] 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:

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

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

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

These lists are not exhaustive.

[edit] Multi-band and multi-mode phones

Today, most telephones 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, while 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.

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.

[edit] External links

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).

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Category: GSM Standard