What are the different types of wireless networks in Canada?
Wireless phone networks are either analog or digital. There are 3 competing digital networks in use throughout Canada: TDMA, CDMA, and GSM. The standard analog format used by traditional cell phones is AMPS.


What is AMPS?
AMPS stands for Advanced Mobile Phone Service. AMPS is the standard format for analog cellular phone services.


What is TDMA?
TDMA stands for Time Division Multiple Access. TDMA operates by transmitting signals only at certain intervals, allowing several phones to use the same frequency simultaneously.


What is CDMA?
CDMA stands for Code Division Multiple Access. CDMA sends signals in a series of ‘packets’, each with its own encrypted code. When the packets are received, they are reassembled back into a continuous signal.


What is GSM?
GSM stands for Global System for Mobile Communications. GSM operates similar to TDMA and is the standard format used throughout most of the world. Canadian GSM systems operate at a different frequency than most European and Asian GSM systems however, making them incompatible.