Side-by-Side Comparison
Cellular Generations
2G (GSM) vs. 4G (LTE)
Comparing 2 standards across 14 specifications. 14 key differences identified.
Comparing:
2G (GSM)
4G (LTE)
2G (Second Generation Cellular) revolutionized mobile communications in 1991 by transitioning from analog 1G to digital TDMA/FDMA. Governed by 3GPP GSM standards, it introduced Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards, SMS text messaging, GPRS packet data (up to 114 kbps), and 8PSK-modulated EDGE (up to 384 kbps).
4G (Long Term Evolution / LTE-Advanced) is an all-IP cellular architecture standardized under 3GPP Releases 8 through 14. Abandoning CDMA in favor of Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Carrier Aggregation, and 4x4 MIMO, it provides data rates from 150 Mbps (Cat 4) to over 1.2 Gbps (Cat 18 Gigabit LTE) with VoLTE voice.
Specification Comparison Table
14 Parameters| Parameter / Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standardization Body
|
ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) / 3GPP | 3GPP (Rel-8 LTE to Rel-10/13 LTE-Advanced Pro) / ITU IMT-Advanced |
|
Commercial Launch Year
|
1991 (Radiolinja Finland) | 2009 (TeliaSonera Stockholm/Oslo) |
|
Multiple Access Technology
|
TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) + FDMA (200 kHz channels) | — |
|
Primary Frequency Bands
|
900 MHz and 1800 MHz (EU/Asia) / 850 MHz and 1900 MHz (US) | — |
|
Basic Circuit-Switched Voice Rate
|
13 kbps (Full Rate Speech Codec) | — |
|
GPRS Packet Data Rate (2.5G)
|
Up to 114 kbps (CS-1 through CS-4 coding) | — |
|
EDGE Data Rate (2.75G)
|
Up to 384 kbps (8PSK modulation) | — |
|
Key Milestone Features
|
SIM Card (Subscriber Identity Module), SMS (Short Message Service), A5/1 encryption | — |
|
Downlink Air Interface
|
— | OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) |
|
Uplink Air Interface
|
— | SC-FDMA (Single-Carrier FDMA for lower mobile PA power) |
|
Scalable Channel Bandwidths
|
— | 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, and 20 MHz per component carrier |
|
Carrier Aggregation (LTE-A)
|
— | Up to 5 carriers (100 MHz total aggregated bandwidth) |
|
Peak Category Speeds
|
— | Cat 4 (150 Mbps), Cat 6 (300 Mbps), Cat 16 (1 Gbps), Cat 18 (1.2 Gbps) |
|
Voice Protocol
|
— | VoLTE (Voice over LTE / IMS–IP Multimedia Subsystem) |