List of wireless network technologies
This article summarizes the main generations of mobile network technology, from early analog radio systems to current digital cellular standards.
| Generation | Standards | Core technology | Maximum data rate | Launch year | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0G | Mobile radio telephone | Analog (pre-cellular) | <1 kbit/s | 1946 | Point-to-point radio without cells |
| 1G | NMT, AMPS, TACS | Analog voice | 2.4–9.6 kbit/s | 1979 | First cellular systems |
| 1.5G | D-AMPS | Hybrid analog/digital | 14.4 kbit/s | 1990 | Transitional between 1G and 2G |
| 2G | GSM, IS-95, IS-136 | Digital voice and SMS | 64–144 kbit/s | 1991 | Introduced digital encryption and text messaging |
| 2.5G | GPRS | Packet-switched overlay | 56–115 kbit/s | 2000 | Added packet-switched data to GSM |
| 2.75G | EDGE | 8PSK modulation | 236 kbit/s | 2003 | Enhanced GPRS data rates |
| 3G | UMTS, CDMA2000 | W-CDMA / CDMA | 384 kbit/s–several Mbit/s | 1998 | Enabled Internet and video services |
| 3.5G | HSDPA, HSUPA | High-speed packet access | 14.4 Mbit/s ↓ / 5.8 Mbit/s ↑ | 2005 | Higher capacity and lower latency |
| 3.75G | HSPA+ | Enhanced HSPA | 42 Mbit/s ↓ | 2008 | Final 3G evolution stage |
| 4G | LTE, WiMAX | All-IP, OFDMA | 100 Mbit/s–1 Gbit/s | 2009 | Broadband Internet and multimedia services |
| 4.5G | LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro | Carrier aggregation, MIMO | 1–3 Gbit/s | 2015 | Precursor to 5G |
| 5G | 5G NR | Massive MIMO, beamforming | Up to 20 Gbit/s | 2019 | Low latency, IoT, mmWave spectrum |
| 6G | (under research) | Sub-THz (100 GHz–3 THz) | >1 Tbit/s (target) | ~2028 | Experimental systems in development |