Mobitex vs. ReFLEX/Slide5.png
ROUND 4: BASIC FACTS
ReFLEX™ is based on traditional broadcast technology and consists of two one-way paging networks whereas Mobitex™ is a single integrated two-way data network with cellular design. Today, FLEX™ networks operate on several different frequencies around the world, but in general, the current frequency in the US for FLEX™ is 929-932 MHz.
Whereas ReFLEX™ has an asymmetric architecture, supporting different data rates on the up- and down link, Mobitex is a symmetric network with the same data rate on both links (8Kbps). For capacity reasons, a ReFLEX™ network is divided into several simulcast zones with 30-50 transmitters (huh ??, A zone size could be this big or as small as one transmitter) and a maximum of eight up-link channels in each zone, all supporting the same frequencies. In a Mobitex™ network on the other hand, a coverage area is divided into unicast cells where each cell equals one base station that functions as a combined receiver and transmitter.
In a ReFLEX™ network the location of a device is known at zone level and messages are broadcasted within the entire zone, whereas in a Mobitex™ network the location of a device is known at cell level and messages are sent within one cell only. A ReFLEX zone can consist of one transmitter or a cell per Mobitex vernacular.
When messages are not transmitted correctly in a ReFLEX™ network, the entire messages are re-transmitted, (not true, only the identified faulty fragments are re-transmitted) whereas in a Mobitex network, only erroneous blocks of a message are re-transmitted.