1X and digital network
SaskTel has the largest 1X and digital network in Saskatchewan, now serving 95% of the province's population. To find out if your community is covered, check out our Interactive Coverage Map, or see 1X and digital cellular coverage by Saskatchewan community.
SaskTel also provides coverage throughout Canada and the United States through its roaming agreements with other carriers. For complete details, see Roaming.
1X network
On a 1X network, data is digital packet-switched,or divided into packets. This means that your connection to the network is always on - no need for a dial up connection, and it's always fast (five times the speed of today's wireless data transmission rate). Our network offers a maximum achievable speed of 163 Kbps and an average throughput of 60-80 Kbps.
Digital network
Digital cellular service uses digital technology to encode and compress radio signals. Voice and data transmissions are converted into a digital code, so they are less likely to be blocked by interference and are more secure from eavesdroppers. The voice quality is better and there is less chance of a call not getting through or being interrupted.
What is a kilobyte (KB) or megabyte (MB) of data?
1X data (being packet-based) is billed by volume, not time. The table below provides examples of applications and related sizes (volume of data).
| Application |
Approx. size (KB) |
Application |
Approx. size (KB)
|
| e-mail (160 characters) |
1
|
.xls (5 sheets) |
250
|
| WAP (single page) |
1
|
.ppw (20 pages, colour) |
450
|
| e-mail (200 words) |
4
|
.doc (30 pages, graphics) |
1,000
|
| .doc (10 pages, text-only) |
20
|
.pdf (100 pages, graphics) |
1,000
|
| .pdf (10 pages, text-only) |
45
|
MP3 (3 minutes) |
3,000
|
| .html (compiles page, banners, etc.) |
100
|
Mpeg (1 minute) |
5,000
|
1 megabyte (MB) is approximately equivalent to:
- 250 emails (of 200 words)
- 20 emails with attachments
- 20 pages of Excel spreadsheets
- 10 web pages
|
