3G   3G stands for "third generation." It is aimed at delivering high-speed services and is targeted to offer access speeds of about 144 Kbps, later moving up to 2.4 Mbps. 3G will allow for mobile-based bells and whistles – like graphics on your cell. ETA: within two years.

Bluetooth is a communications specification using low-band radio frequency (2.4Ghz ) to wirelessly connect and synchronize PDAs, mobile phones, computers and other devices existing within a 30 foot/10 meter area.

CDMA   Code Division Multiple Access got its start as a military technology, developed by the Allies in WWII. Much like data sent over the Internet, CDMA conversations are "spread" when sent, then reassembled upon arrival. The technology allows multiple calls to be carried over one channel. CDMA is the fastest-growing transmission technology and is basically the multiplexing platform for 3G. It is considered an efficient and secure technology, and it operates at lower power, which conserves batteries. CDMA carriers: Verizon, Sprint PCS. CDMA champion: Qualcomm. Estimated number of users: 67 million.

EDGE Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution is as the name states: an evolution of GSM (and US-TDMA) systems moving into 3G. It operates at 384 kbps, and enables multimedia transmissions and broadband applications.

EPOC EPOC is an open platform OS for handheld computers and mobile phones with Web access. EPOC is being developed by Symbian, a joint company of Psion, Nokia, Ericssson, Motorola and Matsushita (Panasonic). EPOC's main competitor is Windows CE.

GSM   Global System for Mobile Communications is the digital transmission technique widely adopted in Europe and supported in North America for PCS. The U.S. companies with GSM support include VoiceStream and the new Cingular wireless service from BellSouth and SBC Communications. GSM's cool feature: the "portable" memory chip that can be plugged into any GSM compatible phone without losing the data (phone numbers, messages etc.). It is a variation of TDMA, with a data transfer rate of 9.6 kbps. Estimated number of users: 331 million.

GPRS   General Packet Radio Service is a wireless data transmission service based on packet transmission, which is similar to the way Internet email is delivered. GPRS is being absorbed in 3G, is compatible with GSM and TDMA networks and offers speeds in the 115 kbps range.

HDML Like HTML, Handheld Device Markup Language formats information, in this case for mobile phones or handheld computers. It was originally developed by Unwired Planet (now phone.com) and considered the forerunner of WML (Wireless Markup Language).

i-Mode i-Mode is a packet-based wireless service launched in 1999 by Japan's NTT DoCoMo. i-Mode operates at 9.6 kbps and uses a subset of HTML, rather than WML. Next generation i-Mode will reportedly support transmission rates of 384 kbps.

PCS   Personal Communications Service is an all-digital set of cellular services operating in the 1850-1990 MHz bands. PCS technologies include CDMA, TDMA AND GSM.

SMS Short Messaging Service, wildly popular in Europe and Japan, allows text messaging between mobile phones. SMS is just now entering the U.S. market.

TDMA   Time Division Multiple Access is the "oldest" of the digital technologies listed here. It allows a number of users to access a single radio-frequency (RF) channel without interference, doing so by allocating "unique" time slots to each caller. Estimated number of users: 48 million.

Windows CE is a version of Microsoft Windows designed to run on PDAs or other small devices. CE was renamed Pocket PC with the version 3.0 release.

WML Wireless Markup Language is the language that allows the display of Web pages on mobile phones and PDAs. WML is part of Wireless Access Protocol (WAP). It is a cousin to HTML.