The Consumer Mobile Glossary
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Advice of charge
A service which provides the user with information on the cost of calls from a mobile phone
Airtime
The amount of time a subscriber spends using his/her mobile phone
Battery status/Battery charge display
An indication of the amount of battery life remaining
Battery
A chargeable device which provides the mobile phone with power. A variety of battery technologies have been used for mobile phones including nickel cadmium (NiCad), nickel metal hydride (NiMH) and lithium ion (Li-ion)
Call barring
A service which enables users to bar certain incoming or outgoing calls on their mobile phones
Call timer
A service which keeps track of the amount of airtime being used by the subscriber on a cumulative basis
Call divert
The capability to divert incoming calls to another phone (fixed or mobile) or to an answering service
Call hold
The ability to put an ongoing call on hold whilst answering or making a second call
Caller ID
Caller Identification; displays the name/number of the person calling a mobile phone. Also known as CLI
CLI
See Caller ID
CLR
Clear; the key on a cellular phone which is pressed to remove information from the display
Data capable
Mobile phones which have the capability to enable transmission of data from a laptop computer or PDA via the phone
Dual band
Mobile phones which support transmission and reception of calls on the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands with seamless handover between the two frequency bands
EFR
Enhanced Full Rate (codec); an improved version of the standard voice codec used in GSM phones; offers improved speech quality without impacting on network capacity
END
The key on a cellular phone which is pressed to terminate a call
Infrared data port
A facility on a mobile phone to allow information to be exchanged with other devices e.g. a PC using infra red technology
Lock
A function on a cellular phone which, when activated, prevents use of the phone until the user enters a security code
No Service
An indication on the display of a cellular phone that indicates that the user is in an area where cellular service is unavailable
One-touch dialling
The ability to dial frequently called numbers using a single key stroke; see Speed Dialling
PCN
Personal Communications Networks; an outdated term for GSM services in the 1800MHz band
PDA
Personal Digital Assistant; a sophisticated handheld device with advanced display facilities and a range of business-oriented software programs
Phone book
A list of personal names and numbers stored in a mobile phone’s internal memory or in the SIM card. These numbers can be called by accessing the appropriate memory and making a single key stroke
PIN
Personal Identity Number; a number, usually four digits, that must be keyed into a mobile phone to make it work. A security measure to prevent unauthorised usage
RCL
The function on a cellular phone which recalls a phone number from memory
Roaming
The ability to make and receive calls on the same mobile phone when travelling outside the area of the home network operator
Smartphone
a combination of mobile phone and personal digital assistant
SND
Send; The key on a cellular phone which initiates a call or answers an incoming call
Speed dialling
See One-touch dialling
Standby time
The length of time a battery can power a mobile phone when it is switched on but not making or receiving calls
Talk-time
The length of time a battery can power a mobile phone when making or receiving calls
Voicemail
A service offered by network operators whereby calls received when the mobile is in use, switched off or out of coverage can be diverted to an answering service which can be personalised by the user
WAP
Wireless Application Protocol; a standard whereby mobile phones can gain access to specially tailored Internet websites
WML
Wireless Markup Language; a specially designed markup language used for tailoring WAP content. WML enables optimum usage of the limited display capabilities of the mobile phone