Can You Run an Open GSM Network? 51
OpenCell asks: "Here in Vancouver, cellphone companies are charging ridiculous amounts for basic cellphone plans. I'm wondering if it's possible to run an open/almost free GSM network on a small college campus. Assuming we could find the hardware and get the rights, is there open source software out there to handle most aspects for something like this?"
Frequencies (Score:5, Insightful)
You might be able to use 900Mhz or 2.4.Ghz, but you still need specially made phones and cells, and coverage would be poor.
I don't think amateur cell phones are possible.
WiFi phones may be possible, but coverage would be bad.
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In fact, my school is transitioning to VoIP everywhere, for both (non-emergency) landlines and Institute-issued wireless phones. [mit.edu]
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In the immortal words of Agent Smith, "What good is a phone call, when you are unable to speak?"
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802.11N is much better at wide coverage than its predecessors (802.11B/G/A). With proper antennas and strategic placement, I think this could easily cover a college campus.
Re:Frequencies (Score:4, Informative)
GSM and other multiple access (the "MA" in CDMA and TDMA) technologies impose a high cost to provide mobility that must scale from pedestrians to automobiles and trains, etc., moving at 200 kmph and faster. This cost is for hardware and software in HLR, VLR and BTS components and others.
If your requirements do not require high-speed mobility, meaning you target terminals which move at human speeds around a limited geographic area like a campus, investigate limited mobility solutions using unlicensed spectrum such as WiFi and WiMax, and using off-the-shelf and Open Source technologies.
You may have to build from the ground up, but as a university your labor pool should be relatively inexpensive, and hardware, too, should be affordable.
Good luck. Please remember to let the readers of SlashDot know what you choose to implement, and your experience doing so.
Most Likely, no (Score:5, Informative)
oh, and forget about roaming to your local provider when not in coverage if you do not sign a roaming agreement (highly unlikely).
Grab a phone from nokia or others that dose the wi-fi to gsm trick, use voice over IP to lower costs, deploy a comprehensive wi-fi network in your campus, and you will be better served...
Oh, and by the way, six years of experience in the second (734-02) GSM operator in Venezuela (in the telecomms area, just in case someone was wandering)
http://www.digitel.com.ve/ [digitel.com.ve]
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That would be covered by the roaming agreement. ;-)
Neat Idea, But From Whence The Frequencies? (Score:5, Insightful)
Theoretically, you could try this on - say - the ISM bands, but they aren't going to give you the same performance as the cell bands. In addition, purpose-built cell equipment isn't designed nor licensed to operate outside of the cell bands, so you'd have a lot of DIY on the hardware side. Not so bad on the provider side so much as on the user side... where're you gonna get the handsets? Yes, there are ISM YoIP handsets, but they aren't really set up for portable use. While ISM ain't what you asked for, it's really all you have available.
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Then you can outsource the pots connection, you don't get great coverage off campus (I'm assuming that your campus, like mine in Ontario has really good wireless coverage) but its free and easy. If you can get the people using it to pay into the university campus wireless (another och should do it) you might be fine. Policing it would be your business, and if my experiences with wi-fi access are any indications University Students are really good at getting into trouble, and not jus
picocell (Score:4, Interesting)
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SFU? (Score:2, Funny)
I sure wish the major cell phone companies would Shut the Fuck Up, or at least that some of their customers would...
Expensive (Score:1, Redundant)
You might be able to dig up, slap togeather and in some way get into an operating state, the needed basic components for a GSM network (MSC, HLR/VLR, SMSC etc) but you will most probably not be allowed to transmit on any frequency that normal handsets can use, and even if your country doesnt regulate or give you permission to do it you will still be faced with the issues of getting an IMSI range, a number series, implementning number portability (it applicable), produci
Open VoIP (SIP phones) over Comm'y Mesh N/W's (Score:1, Interesting)
Why not skip the phone numbers & go SIP to SIP - on Community Mesh
Networks? Or, if you must dial those outside the SIP circle, use a
VoIP carrier (like MNF) & pay 10 cents per call, instead of 30c/min
Think of the Children! (Score:1, Offtopic)
or even worse, pirated music! SOMEBODY, THINK OF THE CHILDREN!
Ridiculous Amounts? (Score:4, Informative)
Unlimited incoming: $25
Any time: $20
Fido to Fido: $25
Telus http://www.telusmobility.com/bc/plans/pcs/index.s
Talk a lot 20: $20
Urban Talk 30: $30
Or there's their prepaid plans which can be cheaper if you don't call much: http://www.telusmobility.com/bc/plans/payandtalk/
Rogers/Cantel http://www.shoprogers.com/store/wireless/services
MegaTime from $20
I'm not sure how much you expect cellphone service to cost; but $20-30/month (note each plan has a system access fee of about $8) is pretty reasonable, and many offer free or cheap phones.
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You can purchase service directly from the companies themselves or from virtual operators.
Plans can be found for $30 if you prefer postpaid service -- see Sprint Employee Referral Offer, and T-Mobile's cheapest.
Prepaid service is available per-minute on nearly all providers and there is an abundance of prepaid VNOs. T-Mobile is reasonable and doesn't have Virgin Mobile-style "hip"
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As someone who just today cancelled his Fido service after having ported his Fido number to a Vonage Virtual number (attached to my existing Vonage service), let's look at my typical Fido bill for that $25/month plan:
So, just to get barely reasonable service, which doesn't work in either my home or my off
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DECT (Score:5, Insightful)
GSM is not designed for private networks, so forget it. What you want is DECT [wikipedia.org]. DECT is a standard for cordless phones. It scales from a single cordless phone connected to a fixed line to business systems that cover a whole campus and connect to a PBX, making it easy to integrate to your existing infrastructure.
You can find dual DECT/GSM phones that seamlessly switch between the two networks. Here is a example of a DECT solutions vendor, which has a full range of offers: http://www.diacom.ie/kirk.htm [diacom.ie].
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The idea was completely killed by the explosion of GSM cellphones. Smaller, nicer terminals with complete roaming and interoperability no matter where in Europe (and actually, large parts of Asia and Africa) you are. And no
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Wireless Network + Wireless VOIP Phones (Score:2)
Asterisk + Celliax (Score:1)
Some are OK. Some aren't. (Score:2)
The question remains: if $30 a month is too much, just how much do you want to spend?
I have, or have had, relationships with the various providers. Not necessarily for cellphones.
Telus do my home phone and ADSL. I have no complaints. If I wanted a cellphone I'd give them first right of refusal.
Bell Mobility are OK if you're a consumer wanting a cellphone, but need to get their act together for anything else. I'm doing some Brew CDMA development at work and they are somewhat less than cooperative. S
Try to cut a deal (Score:1)
The idea is to make businesses give up on the landline entirely. That could be an alternative to the DECT/GSM combo - if you can get such a deal.
Bluetooth .... (Score:1)
Anyhow, it worked in this way. Phones with bluetooth have about a ten metre range. A phone will maintain a list of those phones within its range (running the listening software). Then, just as 'router man' developed the router to route packets of data, the phone could rou
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View some of my papers at http://www.tech.port.ac.uk/~oweng [port.ac.uk]
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I'll read on and ge
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If you want something for general wireless communications
Software (Score:1)