Cell Phone Acronyms

* GSM: Short for Global System for Mobile Communications, GSM is the most widespread standard for cell phones networks in the world. If you're a jetsetter who likes keeping in touch during your far-flung travels, you should go with a GSM-enabled phone, and here in the U.S., AT&T and T-Mobile are both GSM carriers. Besides the technical differences between CDMA and GSM networks (I'll spare you the details), the main distinction of a GSM phone is that it comes with a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card—a little plastic chip that, as its name implies, identifies your phone on the GSM network. If you take the SIM card out of your GSM phone and put it into another GSM handset, you'll be able to place and receive calls on the second phone using your own cell phone number. GSM phones are also capable of handling six-way conference calls.
* CDMA: Short for Code Division Multiple Access, CDMA networks are much more prevalent in the U.S. than they are abroad, and while CDMA boasts many of the same features as GSM networks (including caller ID, call waiting, and text messaging), there are some key differences—namely, CDMA phones don't use SIM cards. Instead, your phone's identity and number are programmed into the handset by your carrier, and you can't easily switch numbers on CDMA phones as you can with SIM-equipped GSM phones. Also, CDMA phones can only handle three-way conference calls, versus six-way calls on GSM networks. Major CDMA carriers in the U.S. include Sprint, Verizon Wireless, and regional operator Alltel.


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