Tech Shout!

Nokia began its first public Unlicensed Mobile Access pilot over Wireless LAN in the city of Oulu, Finland last week. This live trial, which is being conducted under real life surroundings and conditions, will go on for a minimum of two months.

The functionalities of this new technology will be tried and tested by fifty families from the city of Oulu. The trials will be conducted with the help of a brand new Nokia 6136 mobile device.

The Nokia 6136 is among the pioneering Nokia mobile phones to offer UMA capabilities. This unique device incorporates UMA technology to allow for flawless handover of voice and data connections between GSM cellular and WLAN networks. In other words, it blends the benefits of mobile and fixed landline through voice over WLAN.

UMA technology makes it possible for users to effortlessly roam and handover between local area networks and wide area networks using the same dual-mode device.

Instead of constantly communicating with a base station, UMA allows the phone to also make calls through WLAN internet networks. In turn, this will also make it easier and cheaper for operators to expand their area coverage by implementing WLAN hotspots instead of costly base stations.

When they move out of range, the connection will automatically revert to a GSM, GPRS or UMTS mobile phone network.

“UMA technology truly brings simplicity in the usage of voice over IP,” said Peter Ropke, Senior Vice President, Mobile Phones R&D, Nokia. “This pilot project is an important step forward in bringing functional UMA technology to the mass market. Both operators and consumers will be able to garner the benefits of this new technology.”

The pilot project is a joint collaboration between Nokia, the DNA/Finnet group and the City of Oulu. The City of Oulu announced the Pan Oulu project last year which allows its public to receive free WLAN internet via hotspots around the city. These hotspot areas around the downtown area of Oulu will be a great way to assess the way UMA works in a frequently changing environment like WLAN.