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What are 3G mobile phones?

Our mobile expert says...

Most mobile phone manufacturers make 3G-enabled mobile phones nowadays. The term “3G” actually refers to the speed at which phones can wirelessly send and receive data, such as pictures and emails, over an operator’s network.

A 3G mobile phone or smartphone should be capable of receiving data at up to 14Mb per second (Mbps) and sending it at up to 5.8Mbps. But in reality most existing 3G phones – including the iPhone 3GS – typically receive data at up to 7.2Mbps and send it at around 2Mbps.

Mobile phones receive data each time you, say, load a webpage, open a picture or check your email. Data is sent from your mobile each time you use it to send an email or put a photo on Facebook.

3G smartphones

Typical 3G speeds are slower than home broadband speeds – click here to test your home's broadband speed – but still fast enough to stream live TV onto your phone, hold videoconferences and provide location-based services, such as weather reports.

To use such 3G-based services your mobile must be within reach of 3G signals, which are usually densest within cities. Your 3G phone may struggle to find a 3G signal in remote locations, though this won’t affect its ability to make telephone calls.

Some of the market’s leading 3G mobile phones include the Apple iPhone 3GS, HTC Desire, Sony Ericsson X10, Nokia N97, Palm Pre, BlackBerry Bold 9700 and the Toshiba TG01.