CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) - The most common digital technology in which information is digitized, assigned a unique code and spread over the entire bandwidth available to the phone. The receiver uses the same code to reassemble the signal. CDMA allows as many as 10 separate calls to occupy the same amount of space as an analog call. TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) - The first digital cellular technology to hit the market. Multiple users are squeezed into one bandwidth using a technology that divides the band into slices of time by allotting a small amount to each phone then reassembles each phone's data on the receiving end. AMPS (Analog Mobile Phone System) - The first commercial cell phone technology. This analog service was first used in 1983. iDEN (Integrated Dispatch Enhanced Network) - A digital communications technology developed by Nextel and Motorola that combines several services under one umbrella. The cellular component of iDEN is a TDMA system. PCS (Personal Communications Services) - A digital wireless system similar to TDMA but that operates at a different frequency. PCS also bundles together other services such as paging and e-mail. NiCad (nickel cadmium) - The traditional battery pack. Common in most older analog phones, it offers poor battery life and performance and long recharge time. Batteries must be completely drained before charging to avoid memory effect deterioration that limits recharges. NiMH (nickel metal hydrate) - An earlier style of efficient battery technology, NiMH offers quicker recharges, better general power management and resists the memory effect. Li-Ion (lithium ion) - Standard on most digital phones. Similar to NiMH in efficiency and performance.