2G vs. 3G Talk

alra111

alra111

Registered
Apple's new iPhone 3G S has the following talk time specifications:

Talk time:
Up to 12 hours on 2G
Up to 5 hours on 3G

Could someone explain to me briefly why the talk time is so much lower on 3G? I know data transfer is definitely better on 3G vs. 2G, but why would I want to talk on 3G is it depletes my battery so much quicker? Can I choose to talk on 2G even if 3G is available?

Thanks,

Alra111
 
Because it's a more robust and faster transmission protocol/medium, and therefore, uses more energy.

Yes, you can turn off 3G under Settings > General > Network > Enable 3G.
 
Thanks a bunch, ElDiabloConCaca! That makes total sense!

It may make sense for some people to just use the phone mostly in Edge mode and switch to 3G when they need to do Internet-intensive stuff!

Too bad they don't have a setting such as:

Voice calls - Preferred mode - 3G or Edge
Data transfer - Preferred mode - 3G or Edge

That way I would always keep my voice calls on Edge and my data always on 3G.

Alra111
 
You can only use one protocol/medium at a time: either 2G (EDGE) or 3G. It takes a moment or two to switch networks, so you can see that it would technically be infeasible to auto-switch to 2G for voice and 3G for data -- what if you're surfing the net with Safari and a phone call comes in? Not to mention that there are "handshaking" events that occur at the onset of a data request or a phone call initiation... and it's impossible (at the moment) for a current data/voice session occurring on the 2G network to transition seamlessly to a 3G network connection -- imagine being on a phone call in your kitchen (e.g., the 2G network) on your land line, then having to switch to the bedroom phone (e.g., the 3G network) -- but the only catch is that you have to hang up the kitchen phone before heading to the bedroom... you're stuck in a catch-22, and you'll just have to start the phone call over again from the bedroom.

AT&T is currently working on technology that would allow a phone to seamlessly transition from either a 2G or 3G network to a wifi network -- they intend to do this to relieve some of the burden on their network. That way, when a person encounters a free AT&T hotspot (like at McDonald's or wherever they are), the AT&T network can be relieved of some strain by transitioning the connection from the 2G/3G network to the AT&T wireless hotspot network mid-call -- all without having the user realize they've switched. It doesn't work as of yet, but will soon.
 
Seems to me that the iPhone often switches to 2G from 3G when you're actually receiving a call. My iPhone is on 3G when I'm at home. Like: Always. But when I get a call and talk for 3-5 minutes and then hang up, I see that it has gone 2G somewhere on the way. A couple of moments later, it returns to 3G connectivity. I'd say they have (of course!) implemented a "calls prefer 2G" feature already.
 
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