Ever missed a call because your phone was in and out of service and it only rang once before going to voicemail? constantly having to go to windows or face to make a call? Tired of playing the "Can you hear me now?" game? With more and more citizen opting to do away with their landline, dependable call ability and carrier service has never been more important. So what can you do to improve your reception and stop dropping calls?
The most popular options are cell phone signal boosters and Femtocells. Without going into too much detail, by the end of this description you should have sufficient information to conclude which one is right for you.
Let us start by defining the two technologies. Most wireless cell phone signal boosters (also called amplifiers and repeaters) work by capturing the signal outside, amplifying it, and then redistributing it inside. This is done straight through 3 major pieces: an face antenna (either directional or omni-directional), the amplifier, and the inside antenna (either directional or omni-directional). The face signal can be weak or strong, but must be gift in order for the booster to operate properly. In general, the weaker the signal outside, the more gain the amplifier needs to contribute in order to offer sufficient coverage inside. Femtocells are basically dinky cell phone towers, about the size of a wireless router, that are provided by your wireless carrier and are installed in your home to contribute coverage of up to a 40' radius. They are essentially a Wi-Fi router for cellular and Pcs frequencies. information is transmitted wirelessly from your phone to the femtocell, then from the femtocell to the carrier via your broadband internet connection.
Now let's get down to the purpose of this article. The easiest way to conclude which product is right for you is to take a look at the comparisons below.
Connectivity
- Booster: Dual Band models work with virtually all carriers except Nextel and other iDen push-to-talk networks, although there are boosters made specifically for Nextel.
- Femtocell: Only works with one exact service provider. Ex. You are a Verizon Wireless subscriber. provided there is dinky coverage by all carriers in your current location, installing a Verizon Network Extender will help you out but don't plan on your At&T friends raving about exquisite coverage when they stop over to watch the game.
Data
- Booster: Dual Band models work with data plans for all carriers using 850/1900 Mhz for their data. This is most carriers, but does not contain T-Mobile 3G
- Femtocell: Supported data rates vary by carrier. Some femtocells do not retain data at all. Ex. Verizon's Network Extender currently only supports 1X Cdma, not Evdo or 3G. Generation 1 of Sprint's Airwave only supports 1X Cdma, not Evdo or 3G. At&T's microcell supports 3G data, but only works with 3G phones.
Multiple Users
- Booster: Most dual band wireless models retain more than a handful of users so every person can be talking or surfing at the same time.
- Femtocell: Depends on the carrier. Sprint's Airwave allows up to 3 simultaneous users. Verizon's Network Extender supports up to 3 simultaneous users. At&T's Microcell supports up to 4 simultaneous users.
Bandwidth
- Booster: N/A
- Femtocell: prepare to allot everywhere from 40Kbps to 300kbps of your upload and download bandwidth depending on the estimate of active calls / data sessions.
Cost
- Booster: Basic Dual Band home coverage kits can start as low as 5
- Femtocell: everywhere ranging from free (with a subscription to unlimited calling), to with a /mo fee, to a 0 one time fee.
Installation
- Booster: facility of most cell phone signal boosters can be completed in everywhere from 1 to 4 hrs.. Mounting the face antenna, mounting the inside antenna and running the cabling between all is the most time consuming. Amplifier and internal antenna placement are thoroughly flexible.
- Femtocell: Physically easier to install - requiring just a simple Ethernet connection to your existing router. However, most wish a Gps lock in order to activate and confirm location, so it is advised to install next to a window. However, it is also advised that they be settled in a central location for best coverage. Raise your hand if you have windows settled in the center of your home?
Boot Up Time
- Booster: N/A - once the amplifier is powered on you can make and receive calls.
- Femtocell: Some femtocells wish up to 60 minutes to set up and stabilize for the first time. Subsequent power cycles take 10-15 minutes to stabilize.
Call Hand-Off
- Booster: N/A - a cell phone signal booster is an extension of the face tower so you are essentially already related to it when production and receiving calls. There is no hand-off to take place. If you are related to a tower as you're driving up your street, you'll be related to the same tower once in your home (just with a stronger signal)
- Femtocell: Seamless call replacement to the tower as you leave the femtocell coverage area, but you're going to have to hang up and re-dial if you're entering the coverage area.
In summary, if you live in an area with absolutely no cell coverage, only affiliate with citizen who are using the same carrier as you, don't mind giving up some of your already-paid-for broadband bandwidth, will never have a need for 3 or more citizen to be on the phone at the same time and don't mind saying "I'll have to call you back, I'm at home now" then a femtocell might just be the clarification for you. However, if you want to contribute great cell and data coverage to just about anyone who enters your home (regardless of carrier), value your already precious bandwidth, and don't mind rolling up your sleeves for a few hours to do the installation, then an installed Cell Phone Signal Booster may be the right clarification for you.
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