Apple's iPhone initiated the popularization of smart phones in 2007. Smart phones and similar mobile computing devices have led to an unprecedented surge in mobile data usage which is a double edged sword as it generates more revenue for carriers, however the rapidly increasing number of devices and the way they operate, most wireless networks today are heavily congested which reduces the Quality-of-Service and will have detrimental effects in the long run if not curbed swiftly. This paper examines the effects smart phones have had on wireless cellular networks, their cause and what strategies will mitigate these adverse effects.
I. Introduction and Motivation.
In the past few years, the mobile communications industry has seen an explosive growth of mobile data [1]. This phenomenon can be attributed to the Apple iPhone which when released in 2007 ushered in the era of smart phones and other mobile computing devices. Even though smart phones did exist before the iPhone, it was the Apple iPhone which truly brought smart phones to the masses. This was followed closely by Google Android, tablet computers such as the iPad and other developments in the mobile communications industry which paved the way for smart phones to become a substantial share of worldwide mobile handset sales. One key development which also led to the rise of smartphones was the development of high data rates standards such as High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and Evolution Data-Optimized (EV-DO). Smart phones are able to provide users with a wide variety of features which usually require heavy data transfer such as video calls, high-quality video streaming, location- based data services and other content delivery services. These features led to the popularity of smart phones and similar devices. The subsequent rapid growth in smart phones brought with it an equally rapid growth in data consumption [1]. Wireless carriers may have been ready to provide high data rates, but they were ill-prepared to handle the sheer amount and the type of load which has gone beyond the limits of their network capacities.