Both CDMA and GSM are wireless transmission technologies used in mobile phones. The main difference between them is, GSM supports voice and data transmission simultaneously whereas CDMA doesn’t support this feature.
Difference between CDMA and GSM in Tabular Form
| Basis | CDMA | GSM |
|---|---|---|
| Stands for | Code Division Multiple Access | Global System for Mobile communication |
| Technology | CDMA is used | FDMA and TDMA are used |
| Speed | Slower | Faster |
| Frequency Band | Single | Multiple |
| Data transfer | Both voice and data transmission are not allowed at the same time | Both voice and data transmission are allowed at the same time |
| Security | Provides greater security than GSM | Provides lesser security than CDMA |
| Radiation emission | Low | High |
| Sim Card | Not required or Optional as it is handset specific | Required |
| Availability | Limited | Worldwide |
CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access)
CDMA stands for Code Division Multiple Access is totally call performance-based technology.
In CDMA, each and every user gets entire and a wider frequency band that allows them to communicate over the communication network by sharing same band . In other words, it uses single transmission channel that handles multiple signals over which communication take place. It is more tolerant to interference. It uses code sequence to deliver data over frequency.
GSM (Global System for Mobile communication)
GSM stands for Global System for Mobile communication is the most flexible yet slouch performer in terms of quality of calls.
It uses Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card that enables a mobile and network to identify each other and initiate an encrypted communication.
Key Difference
- Global Usage
GSM is the most widely used technology across the whole world about 70-80% global users whereas; CDMA is mostly used in Japan and USA, many countries don’t even support for CDMA.
- Technology used
When it comes to GSM, it used FDMA and TDMA technology. The Frequency Division Multiple Access is used for dividing the frequency among multiple users and Time Division Multiple Access is used to divide time among various users to increase its functionality, whereas; CDMA gives the entire bandwidth to the users all the time which is the technology called spread spectrum, this makes CDMA more efficient than GSM.
- Data Speed
GSM currently uses 4G technology which is powerful than its predecessors like EDGE which were very slow and has a maximum download speed of 10-15 Mbps, whereas; CDMA has a more consistent and effective data speed because of its EVDO technology which offers constant high speed as a result of its spread spectrum technology.
- Security
GSM has no security as there is no form of encryption in this technology, though a few upgrades are made on the software front to make this effective; whereas; CDMA has inbuilt security which means that technology itself roots for encryption which makes it even more secure to breach.
- Harmful radiations
GSM is known to have more radiations and are continuously emitting electromagnetic waves at all times, whereas; CDMA produces about 1/28th radiations when compared to GSM.
