Wireless, Non-Cellular Phone to Get Test

A New York company said Thursday that it will begin testing within two years a revolutionary wireless telephone system in Houston and Orlando, Fla., designed to compete with wired and cellular systems.

The lightweight, wallet-sized phones will use high-frequency microwave signals to connect with each other over short distances, such as in office buildings or within neighborhoods.

The new system, known as a personal communications network, could be connected with PCNs in other cities to provide nationwide communications. Owners would only need to dial a code to let the system know where they were, said J. Shelby Bryan, chairman of Millicom Inc., a New York-based international cellular company.

Shelby said the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday approved a request for a Millicom subsidiary, PCN America Inc., to test the system.

Earlier this year, American Personal Communications Inc. received FCC permission to test a similar phone, but it would operate with certain restrictions. The company hopes to begin testing next year.

Because of the short range of high-frequency microwave signals--as little as 600 feet--PCN, unlike regular cellular service, will be able to share space with other private microwave users.

This feature greatly increases the system’s capacity--and its attractiveness to businesses, which may find PCNs more convenient in an office building than wired systems.

A large number of users in small areas would greatly lower the cost of the phone units--perhaps to $100 or less, Bryan said.