An overview of EGPRS: the packet data component of EDGE

The explosive growth of the Internet and the subsequent demand for wireless data communications have led to data services being a major component in the standardisation process of many cellular mobile radio systems across the world. In GSM, the standardisation of the first phase of a new data service, initiated by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and collectively known as Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), was finalised in 1999. The Enhanced Circuit Switched Data (ECSD) and Enhanced General Packet Radio Service (EGPRS) components of EDGE will enhance the existing GSM circuit-switched and packet-switched data services, respectively. This paper provides an overview of EGPRS and its performance.