With the mass of media attention focused on developments in portable phones (IMT-2000 or 36) and Bluetooth connectivity, it is easy to overlook allied technologies that will have major impacts on the future wireless world. Probably the most important trend in wireless communications is the beginning of its transformation from a voice-centric to a data-centric technology. Already, manufacturers of phones are moving to equip up to 50 percent of their handsets with WWW surfing capability by next year. And that is only the beginning as the digital worlds of wireless, computers, and the Internet race headlong down a road where all three will converge. The trend is clearly under way as wireless services transition from 2.5 6 to 36 (Fig. 1).
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