Real 3G WCDMA networks performance analysis

Third generation (3G) technologies are becoming more widely deployed. However, a prerequisite for the successful deployment of such services is the measurement of practical performance characteristics offered by the underlying wireless network (e.g. 3G). This paper presents the results of a number of experiments aiming to identify the performance of a real WCDMA (wideband code division multiple access) -based wireless network for different types of applications: FTP, HTTP, VoIP, and audio and video streaming. Moreover, the paper discusses the impact on the measured performance by assigning different QoS profiles to end-users. Based on the evaluation results, the paper provides a set of recommendations for both operators and service developers when designing and deploying applications on such wireless networks. These recommendations can also help researchers in accurately validating 3G wireless network research proposals.