Wireless data offers the promise of access to “data anytime anywhere.” The benefits of this technology are clear. Data anytime means that this data can be accessed at any moment of the day or night without having to be in a specific location. Data anywhere means that email, corporate networks, or Internet information can be accessed whether on the road, in the hotel, in the airport, at home, or in the office.

If you search the Internet for the phrase “data anytime anywhere” you receive a broad range of results from portable storage devices to technologies that utilize Wi-Fi or other wireless technologies. However, after closer examination it becomes apparent that some of these offerings do not truly offer real time data access. They simply provide a means of carrying a copy of existing data. These offerings fail to fulfill the promise of data anytime. In addition, some of these technologies do not truly offer access to data anywhere, as they require the user to be physically located near a wireless hotspot or other location where Internet connection is available. These offerings fail to fulfill the promise of data anywhere.

With the introduction of EV-DO (Evolution Data Optimized) networks in 2003, the promise of data anytime anywhere is closer to reality. EV-DO is a cellular technology that enables data to be transmitted at broadband speeds over cell phone signals. As a result for the first time, EV-DO offers users access to broadband data potentially wherever a cell phone signal is available. The first generation of EV-DO, called EV-DO Release 0, offers download speeds up to 2.4 megabits per second and upload speeds up to 156 kilobits per second. Recently an update to EV-DO called EV-DO Revision A was introduced. This technology offers improvements in download speeds to 3.1 megabits per second and a dramatic increase in upload speeds to 1.8 megabit per second. The result is increased usability and less total idle time for the user.

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