- A 3G mobile phone has faster data service than a 2G phone. A 3G phone can reach speeds of 144Kbps (kilobytes per second) to 2.4Mbps (megabytes per second), which are similar to the speed of a cable modem. By contrast, a 2G phone can only reach speeds of between 56Kbps to 114Kpbs.
- 2G phones are able to handle phone calls, text messages, and a limited version of the Internet called WAP, or Wireless Application Protocol. WAP websites are very abbreviated versions of the full website. A 3G phone, however, offers an Internet experience close to what can be accessed on a computer or laptop, and can support full Internet browsers and web-based applications.
- As with Internet access, email access on 2G phones is severely limited and only supports the ability to send text. 3G phones, on the other hand, can support file attachments and downloads such as PDFs, DOCs, and image files. Some 3G phones even have the ability to scan and then email attachments.
- 3G phones are backwards compatible, meaning they can support 2G networks, while 2G networks cannot support 3G capabilities. However, because of the difference in speed between the two networks, the 3G phone will not run at its normal capacity and will perform at a speed closer to 2G than 3G.
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