MOBILE SALES AND
SERVICE
INTRODUCTION
A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone or hand phone, sometimes shortened to
simply mobile, cell or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over
a radio frequency link while the user is moving within a telephone service area. The radio
frequency link establishes a connection to the switching systems of a mobile phone operator,
which provides access to the public switched telephone network (PSTN).
Modern mobile telephone services use a cellular network architecture and, therefore,
mobile telephones are called cellular telephones or cell phones in North America. In addition
to telephony, digital mobile phones (2G) support a variety of other services, such as text
messaging, MMS, email, Internet access, short-range wireless communications
(infrared, Bluetooth), business applications, video games and digital photography. Mobile
phones offering only those capabilities are known as feature phones; mobile phones which offer
greatly advanced computing capabilities are referred to as smartphones.
CONTENTS
1. History
2Types
2.1 Smartphone
2.2 Feature phone
2.3 Kosher phone
3 Infrastructure
4 Hardware
4.1Central processing unit
4.2Display
4.3Sound
4.4Battery
4.5SIM card
5Software
5.1Software platforms
5.2Mobile app
5.3Application stores
6Sales
6.1By manufacturer
6.2By mobile phone operator
7Use
7.1General
7.2Content distribution
7.3Mobile banking and payment
7.4Mobile tracking
7.5While driving
7.6Health effects
7.7Educational impact
7.8Electronic waste regulation
7.9Theft
7.10Conflict minerals
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
HISTORY
The history of mobile phones covers mobile communication devices that connect wirelessly to
the public switched telephone network.
While the transmission of speech by radio has a long history, the first devices that were wireless,
mobile, and also capable of connecting to the standard telephone network are much more recent.
The first such devices were barely portable compared to today's compact hand-held devices, and
their use was clumsy.
Along with the process of developing a more portable technology, and a better interconnections
system, drastic changes have taken place in both the networking of wireless communication and
the prevalence of its use, with smartphones becoming common globally and a growing
proportion of Internet access now done via mobile broadband.
SMARTPHONE
Main article: Smartphone
Smartphones have a number of distinguishing features. The International Telecommunication
Union measures those with Internet connection, which it calls Active Mobile-Broadband
subscriptions (which includes tablets, etc.). In the developed world, smartphones have now
overtaken the usage of earlier mobile systems. However, in the developing world, they account
for around 50% of mobile telephony.
Feature phone
Main article: Feature phone
Feature phone is a term typically used as a retronym to describe mobile phones which are limited
in capabilities in contrast to a modern smartphone. Feature phones typically provide voice
calling and text messaging functionality, in addition to
basic multimedia and Internet capabilities, and other services offered by the user's wireless
service provider. A feature phone has additional functions over and above a basic mobile phone
which is only capable of voice calling and text messaging.[20][21] Feature phones and basic
mobile phones tend to use a proprietary, custom-designed software and user interface. By
contrast, smartphones generally use a mobile operating system that often shares common traits
across devices.
KOSHER PHONE
There are Orthodox Jewish religious restrictions which, by some interpretations, standard mobile
telephones overstep. To deal with this problem, some rabbinical organizations have
recommended that phones with text-messaging capability not be used by children.[22] Phones
with restricted features are known as kosher phones and have rabbinical approval for use in
Israel and elsewhere by observant Orthodox Jews. Although these phones are intended to
prevent immodesty, some vendors report good sales to adults who prefer the simplicity of the
devices. Some phones are approved for use by essential workers (such as health, security, and
public service workers) on the sabbath (the use of any electrical device is generally prohibited
during this time, other than to save lives, or reduce the risk of death or similar need
INFRASTRUCTURE
Mobile phones communicate with cell towers that are placed to give coverage across a telephone
service area which is divided up into 'cells'. Each cell uses a different set of frequencies from
neighboring cells, and will typically be covered by 3 towers placed at different locations. The
cell towers are usually interconnected to each other and the phone network and the internet by
wired connections. Due to bandwidth limitations each cell will have a maximum number of cell
phones it can handle at once. The cells are therefore sized depending on the expected usage
density, and may be much smaller in cities. In that case much lower transmitter powers are used
to avoid broadcasting beyond the cell.
In order to handle the high traffic, multiple towers can be setup in the same area (using different
frequencies). This can be done permanently or temporarily such as at special events like at the
Super Bowl, Taste of Chicago, State Fair, NYC New Year's Eve, hurricane hit cities, etc. where
cell phone companies will bring a truck with equipment to host the abnormally high traffic with a
portable cell.
HARDWARE
The common components found on all mobile phones are:
A central processing unit (CPU), the processor of phones. The CPU is
a microprocessor fabricated on a metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit (IC) chip.
A battery, providing the power source for the phone functions. A modern handset typically uses
a lithium-ion battery (LIB), whereas older handsets used nickel–metal hydride (Ni–MH)
batteries.
An input mechanism to allow the user to interact with the phone. These are a keypad for feature
phones, and touch screens for most smartphones (typically with capacitive sensing).
A display which echoes the user's typing, and displays text messages, contacts, and more. The
display is typically either a liquid-crystal display (LCD) or organic light-emitting diode (OLED)
display.
Speakers for sound.
Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards and Removable User Identity Module (R-UIM) cards.
A hardware notification LED on some phones
Low-end mobile phones are often referred to as feature phones and offer basic telephony.
Handsets with more advanced computing ability through the use of native software applications
are known as smartphones.
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT
Mobile phones have central processing units (CPUs), similar to those in computers, but
optimized to operate in low power environments Mobile CPU performance depends not only on
the clock rate (generally given in multiples of hertz)[24] but also the memory hierarchy also
greatly affects overall performance. Because of these problems, the performance of mobile
phone CPUs is often more appropriately given by scores derived from various standardized tests
to measure the real effective performance in commonly used applications.
DISPLAY
One of the main characteristics of phones is the screen. Depending on the device's type and
design, the screen fills most or nearly all of the space on a device's front surface. Many
smartphone displays have an aspect ratio of 16:9, but taller aspect ratios became more common
in 2017.
Screen sizes are often measured in diagonal inches or millimeters; feature phones generally have
screen sizes below 90 millimetres (3.5 in). Phones with screens larger than 130 millimetres
(5.2 in) are often called "phablets." Smartphones with screens over 115 millimetres (4.5 in) in
size are commonly difficult to use with only a single hand, since most thumbs cannot reach the
entire screen surface; they may need to be shifted around in the hand, held in one hand and
manipulated by the other, or used in place with both hands. Due to design advances, some
modern smartphones with large screen sizes and "edge-to-edge" designs have compact builds
that improve their ergonomics, while the shift to taller aspect ratios have resulted in phones that
have larger screen sizes whilst maintaining the ergonomics associated with smaller 16:9 displays.
Liquid-crystal displays are the most common; others are IPS, LED, OLED,
and AMOLED displays. Some displays are integrated with pressure-sensitive digitizers, such as
those developed by Wacom and Samsung,[28] and Apple's "3D Touch" system.
SOUND
In sound, smartphones and feature phones vary little. Some audio-quality enhancing features,
such as Voice over LTE and HD Voice, have appeared and are often available on newer
smartphones. Sound quality can remain a problem due to the design of the phone, the quality of
the cellular network and compression algorithms used in long-distance calls.[29][30] Audio
quality can be improved using a VoIP application over WiFi.[31] Cellphones have small
speakers so that the user can use a speakerphone feature and talk to a person on the phone
without holding it to their ear. The small speakers can also be used to listen to digital audio files
of music or speech or watch videos with an audio component, without holding the phone close to
the ear.
BATTERY
The average phone battery lasts 2–3 years at best. Many of the wireless devices use a Lithium-
Ion (Li-Ion) battery, which charges 500–2500 times, depending on how users take care of the
battery and the charging techniques used.[32] It is only natural for these rechargeable batteries to
chemically age, which is why the performance of the battery when used for a year or two will
begin to deteriorate. Battery life can be extended by draining it regularly, not overcharging it,
and keeping it away from heat.
SIM CARD
Mobile phones require a small microchip called a Subscriber Identity Module or SIM card, in
order to function. The SIM card is approximately the size of a small postage stamp and is usually
placed underneath the battery in the rear of the unit. The SIM securely stores the service-
subscriber key (IMSI) and the Ki used to identify and authenticate the user of the mobile phone.
The SIM card allows users to change phones by simply removing the SIM card from one mobile
phone and inserting it into another mobile phone or broadband telephony device, provided that
this is not prevented by a SIM lock. The first SIM card was made in 1991 by Munich smart card
maker Giesecke & Devrient for the Finnish wireless network operator Radiolinja.
A hybrid mobile phone can hold up to four SIM cards, with a phone having an IMEI per SIM
Card. SIM and R-UIM cards may be mixed together to allow both GSM and CDMA networks to
be accessed. From 2010 onwards, such phones became popular in emerging markets,[35] and
this was attributed to the desire to obtain the lowest on-net calling rate.
SOFTWARE
Feature phones have basic software platforms.
Smartphones have advanced software platforms
MOBILE APP
A mobile app is a computer program designed to run on a mobile device, such as a smartphone.
The term "app" is a shortening of the term "software application"
MESSAGING
A common data application on mobile phones is Short Message Service (SMS) text messaging.
The first SMS message was sent from a computer to a mobile phone in 1992 in the UK while the
first person-to-person SMS from phone to phone was sent in Finland in 1993. The first mobile
news service, delivered via SMS, was launched in Finland in 2000,[citation needed] and
subsequently many organizations provided "on-demand" and "instant" news services by
SMS. Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) was introduced in 2001.
APPLICATION STORE
The introduction of Apple's App Store for the iPhone and iPod Touch in July 2008 popularized
manufacturer-hosted online distribution for third-party applications (software and computer
programs) focused on a single platform. There are a huge variety of apps, including video games,
music products and business tools. Up until that point, smartphone application distribution
depended on third-party sources providing applications for multiple platforms, such
as GetJar, Handango, Handmark, and PocketGear. Following the success of the App Store, other
smartphone manufacturers launched application stores, such as Google's Android Market (later
renamed to the Google Play Store) and RIM's BlackBerry App World and Android-related app
stores like F-Droid. The introduction of Apple's App Store for the iPhone and iPod Touch in July
2008 popularized manufacturer-hosted online distribution for third-party applications (software
and computer programs) focused on a single platform. There are a huge variety of apps,
including video games, music products and business tools. Up until that point, smartphone
application distribution depended on third-party sources providing applications for multiple
platforms, such as GetJar, Handango, Handmark, and PocketGear. Following the success of the
App Store, other smartphone manufacturers launched application stores, such as Google's
Android Market (later renamed to the Google Play Store) and RIM's BlackBerry App World and
Android-related app stores like F-Droid.
SALES BY MANUFACTURER
From 1983 to 1998, Motorola was market leader in mobile phones. Nokia was the market leader
in mobile phones from 1998 to 2012.[38] In Q1 2012, Samsung surpassed Nokia, selling 93.5
million units as against Nokia's 82.7 million units. Samsung has retained its top position since
then. In 2017, the top five manufacturers worldwide were Samsung (20.9%), Apple (14.0%),
Huawei (9.8%), Oppo (5.7%), and Vivo (6.5%).[39] During Q2 2018, Huawei overtook Apple as
the world's second-largest phone manufacture
BY MOBILE PHONE OPERATOR
The world's largest individual mobile operator by number of subscribers is China Mobile, which
has over 902 million mobile phone subscribers as of June 2018.[41] Over 50 mobile operators
have over ten million subscribers each, and over 150 mobile operators had at least one million
subscribers by the end of 2009.[42] In 2014, there were more than seven billion mobile phone
subscribers worldwide, a number that is expected to keep growing.
USE
GENERAL
Mobile phones are used for a variety of purposes, such as keeping in touch with family members,
for conducting business, and in order to have access to a telephone in the event of an emergency.
Some people carry more than one mobile phone for different purposes, such as for business and
personal use. Multiple SIM cards may be used to take advantage of the benefits of different
calling plans. For example, a particular plan might provide for cheaper local calls, long-distance
calls, international calls, or roaming.
CONTENT DISTRIBUTION
In 1998, one of the first examples of distributing and selling media content through the mobile
phone was the sale of ringtones by Radiolinja in Finland. Soon afterwards, other media content
appeared, such as news, video games, jokes, horoscopes, TV content and advertising. Most early
content for mobile phones tended to be copies of legacy media, such as banner advertisements or
TV news highlight video clips. Recently, unique content for mobile phones has been emerging,
from ringtones and ringback tones to mobisodes, video content that has been produced
exclusively for mobile phones.
MOBILE BANKING AND PAYMENT
In many countries, mobile phones are used to provide mobile banking services, which may
include the ability to transfer cash payments by secure SMS text message. Kenya's M-
PESA mobile banking service, for example, allows customers of the mobile phone
operator Safaricom to hold cash balances which are recorded on their SIM cards. Cash can be
deposited or withdrawn from M-PESA accounts at Safaricom retail outlets located throughout
the country and can be transferred electronically from person to person and used to pay bills to
companies
Some mobile phones can make mobile payments via direct mobile billing schemes, or
through contactless payments if the phone and the point of sale support near field
communication (NFC). Enabling contactless payments through NFC-equipped mobile phones
requires the co-operation of manufacturers, network operators, and retail merchants.
MOBILE TRAKING
Mobile phones are commonly used to collect location data. While the phone is turned on, the
geographical location of a mobile phone can be determined easily (whether it is being used or
not) using a technique known as multilateration to calculate the differences in time for a signal to
travel from the mobile phone to each of several cell towers near the owner of the phone. The
movements of a mobile phone user can be tracked by their service provider and if desired, by law
enforcement agencies and their governments. Both the SIM card and the handset can be tracked.
WHILE DRIVING
Japan has proposed using this technology to track the commuting patterns of Beijing city
residents.[58] In the UK and US, law enforcement and intelligence services use mobile phones to
perform surveillance operations. They possess technology that enables them to activate the
microphones in mobile phones remotely in order to listen to conversations which take place near
the phone.[59][60]
Hackers are able to track a phone's location, read messages, and record calls, just by knowing the
phone number.
Mobile phone use while driving, including talking on the phone, texting, or operating other
phone features, is common but controversial. It is widely considered dangerous due to distracted
driving. Being distracted while operating a motor vehicle has been shown to increase the risk of
accidents.
Due to the increasing complexity of mobile phones, they are often more like mobile computers in
their available uses. This has introduced additional difficulties for law enforcement officials
when attempting to distinguish one usage from another in drivers using their devices. This is
more apparent in countries which ban both handheld and hands-free usage, rather than those
which ban handheld use only, as officials cannot easily tell which function of the mobile phone
is being used simply by looking at the driver. This can lead to drivers being stopped for using
their device illegally for a phone call when, in fact, they were using the device legally, for
example, when using the phone's incorporated controls for car stereo, GPS
HEALTH EFFECT
The effect of mobile phone radiation on human health is the subject of recent[when?] interest
and study, as a result of the enormous increase in mobile phone usage throughout the world.
Mobile phones use electromagnetic radiation in the microwave range, which some believe may
be harmful to human health. A large body of research exists, both epidemiological and
experimental, in non-human animals and in humans. The majority of this research shows no
definite causative relationship between exposure to mobile phones and harmful biological effects
in humans. This is often paraphrased simply as the balance of evidence showing no harm to
humans from mobile phones, although a significant number of individual studies do suggest such
a relationship, or are inconclusive. Other digital wireless systems, such as data communication
networks, produce similar radiation
One study of past mobile phone use cited in the report showed a "40% increased risk
for gliomas (brain cancer) in the highest category of heavy users (reported average: 30 minutes
per day over a 10‐year period)".[81] This is a reversal of the study's prior position that cancer
was unlikely to be caused by cellular phones or their base stations and that reviews had found no
convincing evidence for other health effects.[76][82] However, a study published 24 March
2012, in the British Medical Journal questioned these estimates because the increase in brain
cancers has not paralleled the increase in mobile phone use.[83] Certain countries, including
France, have warned against the use of mobile phones by minors in particular, due to health risk
uncertainties.[84] Mobile pollution by transmitting electromagnetic waves can be decreased up
to 90% by adopting the circuit as designed in mobile phone and mobile exchange.[85]
In May 2016, preliminary findings of a long-term study by the U.S. government suggested that
radio-frequency (RF) radiation, the type emitted by cell phones, can cause cancer.
EDUCATION IMPACT
A study by the London School of Economics found that banning mobile phones in schools could
increase pupils' academic performance, providing benefits equal to one extra week of schooling
per year
ELECTRONIC WASTE REGULATION
Studies have shown that around 40–50% of the environmental impact of mobile phones occurs
during the manufacture of their printed wiring boards and integrated circuits.[89]
The average user replaces their mobile phone every 11 to 18 months,[90] and the discarded
phones then contribute to electronic waste. Mobile phone manufacturers within Europe are
subject to the WEEE directive, and Australia has introduced a mobile phone recycling scheme
THEFT
According to the Federal Communications Commission, one out of three robberies involve the
theft of a cellular phone.[citation needed] Police data in San Francisco show that half of all
robberies in 2012 were thefts of cellular phones.[citation needed] An online petition
on Change.org, called Secure our Smartphones, urged smartphone manufacturers to install kill
switches in their devices to make them unusable if stolen. The petition is part of a joint effort by
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and San Francisco District Attorney George
Gascón and was directed to the CEOs of the major smartphone manufacturers and
telecommunication carriers.[92] On 10 June 2013, Apple announced that it would install a "kill
switch" on its next iPhone operating system, due to debut in October 2013.[93]
All mobile phones have a unique identifier called IMEI. Anyone can report their phone as lost or
stolen with their Telecom Carrier, and the IMEI would be blacklisted with a central registry.
[94] Telecom carriers, depending upon local regulation can or must implement blocking of
blacklisted phones in their network. There are, however, a number of ways to circumvent a
blacklist. One method is to send the phone to a country where the telecom carriers are not
required to implement the blacklisting and sell it there,[95] another involves altering the phone's
IMEI number.[96] Even so, mobile phones typically have less value on the second-hand market
if the phones original IMEI is blacklisted.
An unusual example of a phone bill caused by theft (reported on 28 June 2018) was when a
biological group in Poland put a GPS tracker on a white stork and released it; during
autumn migration over the Blue Nile valley in eastern Sudan someone got hold of the stork's
GPS tracker, and found in it a mobile-phone-type sim card, which he put in his mobile phone,
and made 20 hours of calls on it, running up a bill of over 10,000 Polish zlotys (US$2,700) for
the biological group.
CONFLICT MINERALS
Demand for metals used in mobile phones and other electronics fuelled the Second Congo War,
which claimed almost 5.5 million lives.[98] In a 2012 news story, The Guardian reported: "In
unsafe mines deep underground in eastern Congo, children are working to extract minerals
essential for the electronics industry. The profits from the minerals finance the bloodiest conflict
since the second world war; the war has lasted nearly 20 years and has recently flared up again.
For the last 15 years, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been a major source of natural
resources for the mobile phone industry.
