> All FOMA mobiles are UMTS (W-CDMA) which is why you can use a 3G mobile
> like the Nokia 7600 in Japan with a FOMA USIM card.
Sorry but I don't think this is correct, not all FOMA mobiles are
UMTS. Both UMTS and FOMA are based on W-CDMA but are not compatible
with each other. You might be able to use a FOMA USIM card in a UMTS
phone (haven't tried) but UMTS phones can't connect to the FOMA
network. Vodafone Japan on the other hand operates a UMTS compatible
network.
I think the fact that FOMA is not compatible with UMTS is a major
drawback for Japanese (DoCoMo) phone manufacturers because they can't
sell their phones worldwide easily. Otherwise Motorola & Co would have
many problems matching the features of Japanese handsets.
Claus
Received on Fri Jul 16 05:26:02 2004