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EU mandated GSM, which was a success, but we aren’t stuck with it still.
by bjelkeman-again 5y ago
EU mandated GSM, which was a success, but we aren’t stuck with it still.
- dahfizz 5y agoWe aren't stuck with _just_ gsm, but all phones still have to carry support for 2g. The analogous scenario is a phone with 2 charging ports. The legacy usb-c alongside the newer port you would actually want/use.
- logifail 5y ago> [..] but all phones still have to carry support for 2g. Q: Do network operators/SIM card (re)sellers still have to support 2G, or just the phone manufacturers?
- soco 5y agoThe sim/operator is irrelevant for emergency calls, and the motivation behind keeping 2G is better signal reach for emergency calls. So I guess even if you wouldn't be able to call your friends from the top of the mountain, you could successfully dial or sms to 112 (if there's a distant mast somewhere in sight with a signal to camp on).
- floatboth 5y agoNot sure how it is in the EU specifically but many new networks around the world do not have 2G (Jio in India is (in)famously 4G-only, Tele2 in Moscow is 3G+4G)
- soco 5y agoGSM aka 2G is kept as fallback for dumb terminals - it's rather 3G which was (is) sunsetted. I think keeping it is actually a sensible decision.