Okuzeka
Networking & Telecommunications vocabulary · Wireless and Mobile Networks

Handover

Meaning in networking & telecommunications, with examples

/ˈhændəʊvər/nounAdvanced term

In networking & telecommunications, handover means: The process of moving an active call or data session from one cell or base station to another as the user moves, without the connection dropping.

In Turkish: hücre geçişi, el değiştirme, handover

How it is used

A key term in mobile network engineering. Engineers analyse handover success rates, failed handovers and handover parameters. American documents often say 'handoff'. In general business English, 'handover' also means passing work to a colleague, for example a shift handover.

Example sentences

  1. Calls are dropping on the motorway because the handover between the two sites is failing.

  2. The handover success rate improved after we adjusted the neighbour lists.

Common collocations

  • handover success rate
  • failed handover
  • inter-cell handover
  • handover parameters
  • base stationThe radio equipment and antennas, usually on a mast or rooftop, that connect mobile phones and other devices in a particular area to an operator's mobile network.
  • roamingUsing a mobile network other than your own operator's, usually abroad; in Wi-Fi, moving from one access point to another without losing the connection.
  • 5GThe fifth generation of mobile network technology, designed to offer much higher speeds, lower latency and support for far more connected devices than 4G.
  • signal strengthHow strong a received Wi-Fi or mobile signal is, usually measured in dBm; values closer to zero are stronger, so -55 dBm is better than -80 dBm.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Wireless and Mobile Networks

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: