Performance Analysis of 3G+ Cellular Technologies with Mobile Clients

Abstract

This work presents a performance evaluation of two of the most popular end-to-end third generation technologies. The technologies analyzed were EVDO Rev. A and HSDPA. Although these technologies are present around the world, most of the work based on these technologies is only simulation, being most of the real-case scenario investigations, internal carrier studies. We used a real-case scenario  using TCP and UDP. We measured throughput, jitter and packet loss/discard as QoS performance parameters. We performed tests using both technologies concurrently with two identical computers at downlink and uplink at 0 km/h, 60 km/h and 90 km/h. These computers send/receive data to a static server host located in California. In general, we noticed that HSDPA and EVDO lose performance when speed increases. The most affected performance parameter was the throughput being most of the average values under 50 percent of the nominal throughput value. At downlink, HSDPA was the most speed increase sensitive technology and at uplink EVDO was the most speed sensitive. HSDPA at downlink goes from 32.9 percent of the nominal throughput value to 8.57 percent of nominal throughput value at 90 km/h. EVDO in the uplink goes from 17.11 percent of nominal throughput value to 6.79 percent of the nominal throughput value at 90 km/h.