| A cordless phone is a communication device | | | | including cordless phones, in the United |
| comprised of a base station and a cordless | | | | States. |
| receiver. This device is connected to a | | | | |
| landline (POTS) and operates up to | | | | Wireless Phones |
| (typically) one hundred feet from the base | | | | |
| station. Cordless phones serve the | | | | Wireless phones are similar to cordless |
| convenience of not being restricted by the | | | | phones, but they require a connection with a |
| tangle of a phone cord. | | | | local wired service instead of mobile phone |
| | | | network, and do need to plug into a wireless |
| As for power, cordless phones are unlike | | | | access point, such as a base station. Using |
| regular telephones in that they require | | | | electromagnetic waves, wireless phones work |
| household mains electricity. The cordless | | | | on a 2.4 GHz frequency band via digital |
| phone receiver is powered by a rechargeable | | | | technologies or 802.11a/b/g standards-based |
| battery when resting in its base station. | | | | wireless LAN technology. The difference |
| | | | between wireless phones and cordless phones, |
| Cordless phones use seven frequency bands | | | | however, is that wireless phones are |
| that have been allocated by the Federal Trade | | | | initiated by connecting to the public |
| Commission: | | | | switched telephony network (PSTN) via a call |
| | | | management function. Base stations may or may |
| ·1.7 MHz | | | | not have the capability of performing this |
| | | | connection. Most digital systems associated |
| ·27 MHz (allocated in 1980) | | | | with wireless phones have encryption |
| | | | incorporated into its programming, so privacy |
| ·43-50 MHz (allocated in 1986) | | | | is usually an expected and guaranteed |
| | | | feature. |
| ·900 MHz (902-928 MHz) (allocated in 1990) | | | | |
| | | | As the progenitor to cell phones, cordless |
| ·1.9 GHz (1920-1930 MHz) (allocated in | | | | phones are a more convenient form of modern |
| October 2005) | | | | communicative technology than standard or |
| | | | conventional telephones. These portable |
| ·2.4 GHz (allocated in 1998) | | | | devices are easy to set up, simple to use, |
| | | | inexpensive (or at least affordable), and |
| ·5.8 GHz (allocated in 2003) | | | | include multiple "user-friendly" features, |
| | | | such as privacy encryption and distinctive |
| Of those listed, the 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and | | | | ringing. It's no wonder why cordless phones |
| 5.8 GHz bands are used by all phones, | | | | are so popular and commonly used today! |