Difference Between GPS and GPRS

GPS vs. GPRS

Although there is only one letter separating GPS and GPRS, they are worlds apart when you examine their technology and functions. GPS is a positioning service that can determine any location on earth, through a process called transliteration, hence the name Global Positioning System. On the other hand, GPRS is a data service techn

ology that enables 2G telecommunication networks to provide services other than voice calls. These services include access to email, multimedia messaging, and a somewhat limited access to the internet.

As stated above, GPS and GPRS play specific roles, and are not compete technologies. GPS is an old military technology that is now beginning to mature in the market, since it was not that long ago when full civilian access was given by the US government. Full access allowed receivers to pinpoint their location within 10 feet, making it a viable tracking tool for location and navigation devices used in planes, boats, and its most popular use nowadays, cars. The accuracy allows the navigation devices to give you real time directions. GPRS is a part of the 2G technologies, and is rather old. In most parts of the developed world, GPRS has been replaced by superior 3G technology. It can be thought of as the dial-up equivalent for mobile phones.

The workings of both also differ significantly, as GPS receives information from satellites on low earth orbit, while GPRS communicates with terrestrial cellular towers. GPRS needs just one cell tower with adequate signal in order to work properly. GPS, on the other hand, needs three or more satellites due to basic principles of transliteration. Due to the extreme height of the orbiting satellites, you can use your GPS device just about anywhere in the world, even in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. GPRS is limited to cellular towers located on land.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

GPS

GPS, or Global Positioning System, is a navigation system for portable devices. It uses a network of satellites surrounding the planet. A compatible device such as a smartphone or a dedicated navigation device has a built-in receiver chip that picks regular up signals from these satellites. Each signal is time-coded so the device can calculate how far away it is from the satellite based on the time the signal takes to arrive. By combining the distances from at least four satellites, the device can calculate its position to within a few feet. It can also cross-reference this with map data to provide navigation such as driving directions.

GPS Alternatives

Not all phones have a GPS receiver, but those that do not may still offer navigation tools. One method is using cellular triangulation which works in a similar way to GPS but using signals from cellphone towers rather than satellites. Because the towers are nearer only three signals are needed to calculate a location, although the resulting location is not as precise. Another method is scanning for nearby Wi-Fi networks and checking their IP address against a database of known networks to find the location. This method is the least reliable and gives even less precise positioning.

GPRS

GPRS, or General Packet Radio Service, is the standard technology used for data transfers on all but the latest cellphones. It was introduced with the first digital handsets and is also known as 2G, or "Edge" (which is why you may recall seeing an "E" near your signal bars) and continues to be used with handsets supporting faster connections, known as 3G. GPRS is the sister technology of GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) which is used for voice calls. The key to GPRS is that it breaks data into small pieces known as packets. If there is a problem with the connection, the receiving device can issue a request for the missing packets to be resent without the need to start the entire data transmission again. This mirrors the way data transfers over the Internet.

GPRS Alternatives

Newer handsets may run one of two technologies for even faster data transfer, known as 4G. These are called WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) and LTE (Long Term Evolution). They work by using different systems for encoding and transmitting data to make more efficient use of the available bandwidth. 4G services can work for both cellphones and computer devices and aim to give similar performance to wired broadband services in the home. 4G requires a specially built cellphone network which means that as of October 2012 it is much less widely available than GPRS-based services.