Making calls on your mobile with low radiation - more than a low SAR value
If you want to keep your radiation emissions as low as possible when using your mobile phone, you can choose a low-radiation handset - and adapt your calling behaviour.
What is a low-radiation mobile phone?
The amount of radiation absorbed by the body, the so-called SAR value, is used as a measure of the emissions produced by a phone. This criterion is measured for all types of mobile phone functioning at maximum transmission power and when not being used in the best way. The measurement may not exceed the threshold value of 2 watts/kg, as proposed by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).
The SAR value is therefore like a crash test, but it does not tell us what the considerably lower radiation during normal use is. During normal use, mobile phones only transmit at the rate absolutely required and not at full power. For instance, our own research has shown that during normal use with an average signal, GSM mobile phone emissions are six times lower, and for UMTS phones these values are 100-1000 times lower. The largest reductions in exposure can therefore be made if you call on the UMTS network.
That's why only UMTS-compatible mobile phones with a low SAR value are designated low-radiation by Swisscom.