Nokia has started its first tests of a technology that allows users to roam seamlessly between phone networks and local wireless hotspots such as Wi-Fi. 
The public Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) pilot over Wireless LAN will last at least two months and is being conducted under real life surroundings and conditions. Fifty families from the city of Oulu in northern Finland will test the technology with the help of brand new Nokia 6136 devices.
The Nokia 6136 was among the first Nokia mobile phones to offer UMA capabilities, to allow seamless handovers of voice and data connections between GSM cellular and WLAN networks. In other words, it combines the benefits of mobile and fixed landline through voice over WLAN.
UMA technology makes it possible for users to roam and handover between local area networks and wide area networks using the same dual-mode device. Instead of constantly communicating with a base station, UMA allows the phone to also make calls through WLAN internet networks. In turn, this will also make it easier and cheaper for operators to expand their area coverage by implementing WLAN hotspots instead of costly base stations.
The pilot project is a joint cooperation between Nokia, the DNA/Finnet group and the City of Oulu. The City of Oulu announced the Pan Oulu project last year which enables its citizens to receive free WLAN internet via hotspots around the city.
