Wireless FAQ  -> What is an analog radio?

An analog radio is any radio, whether a transmitter or receiver, that modulates and demodulates voice communication. The modulation used is either FM or AM; however, the typical method used in wireless communication for an analog radio is FM.

In an analog cellular system, the voice communication is digitized within the cell site itself for transport along the T carrier to the MTSO. The voice representation and information transfer used in AMPS cellular is analog, and it is this part in the communication link that engineers are currently trying to convert to a digital platform.