cell phone signal repeater

[herm0016]

looking at getting a cell signal repeater with an outdoor antenna. we have good service if you can stick your arm 20 feet up in the air, or walk up the hill, but not at ground level.

we are on Verizon but multiple bands would be best, as we have family on at&t.

any suggestions? we do use wifi calling but it seems to miss calls for some reason.

 

[bmaverick]

Best to work with the lower bands for the furthest coverage. Thus, 900Mhz, 2.4G, 3G all do excellent. Once you hit 4G and 5G, there are no good gains because the transmitting wave is soooooo tiny, it's basically useless for a repeater to do well enough.

GSM 900Mhz 2G 3G Cell Phone Signal Booster Mobile Repeater Kit Cell Phone Signal Booster Amplifier - Walmart.com

4G & 5G are meant for speed, not for wide area coverage. So, repeaters and boosters work well in all the lower bands.

 

[herm0016]

Best to work with the lower bands for the furthest coverage. Thus, 900Mhz, 2.4G, 3G all do excellent. Once you hit 4G and 5G, there are no good gains because the transmitting wave is soooooo tiny, it's basically useless for a repeater to do well enough.

GSM 900Mhz 2G 3G Cell Phone Signal Booster Mobile Repeater Kit Cell Phone Signal Booster Amplifier - Walmart.com

4G & 5G are meant for speed, not for wide area coverage. So, repeaters and boosters work well in all the lower bands.

that should be fine, as our wifi is great for data. if my phone picks up one bar of 4g though, will it still use a lower band for text/calling if its a stronger signal? sometimes i have one bar of 4g and sometimes i have one bar of not 4g.

 

[bmaverick]

that should be fine, as our wifi is great for data. if my phone picks up one bar of 4g though, will it still use a lower band for text/calling if its a stronger signal? sometimes i have one bar of 4g and sometimes i have one bar of not 4g.

Chances are when the 4G drops, the 2.4G is the default a phone will use. Seldom is 900Mhz even found anymore.

The repeater/booster needs to be located at the "best" signal strength in your area as possible. Then and only then can you reap the benefits of having much higher bars on your phones and devices.

You might need a squirrel and weather proof box with the repeater in it in a tall tree that is in the best signal area. Getting power up there is another question.

WeBoost has a product too.

This can be installed on the roof peak of the home.

 

[herm0016]

i get much much better service when standing on the roof, so at the peak on the end of the house pointing towards town / between the hills would work well I think. we can see about 40 miles in that direction on a clear day. should have plenty of access to run the line in the attic.

thanks.

 

[ning]

i get much much better service when standing on the roof, so at the peak on the end of the house pointing towards town / between the hills would work well I think. we can see about 40 miles in that direction on a clear day. should have plenty of access to run the line in the attic.

thanks.

There are apps (I forget the name) which can show you where nearby cell towers are and their signal strength. Chances are you're served by more than one and when setting up antennae choosing the right one may make a lot of difference.

 

[k0ua]

Please don't confuse the X "G" with a frequency band. 4G DOES NOT mean 4 Gigahertz, nor does 5 G mean 5 Gigahertz. 3G 4G and 5G refer to technology advancements, and the G stands for Generation. NOT Gigahertz. Many of the newer technology's use even lower frequency's for instance 5G uses some frequencies in the 700 Mhz band.

 

[slckeys]

May want to research ones that do 4g minimum..I read at&t, Verizon will be dropping 3g service eventually in favor of new technology. If I find the article, I'll link it.

Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service

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www.fcc.gov

* Edited to add link

 

[k0ua]

From the FCC website. Not only does 5g utilize 600 and 700 Mhz bands (much lower than conventional 3G phones), but it will also utilize much higher frequencies never utilized before. And yes 3G days are numbered and the time is short.

America's 5G Future​

Spectrum​

The FCC is taking action to make additional spectrum available for 5G services.

• High-band: The FCC has made auctioning high-band spectrum a priority. The FCC concluded its first 5G spectrum auctions in the 28 GHz band; the 24 GHz band; and the upper 37 GHz, 39 GHz, and 47 GHz bands. With these auctions, the FCC is releasing almost 5 gigahertz of 5G spectrum into the market—more than all other flexible use bands combined. The FCC is also working to free up 2.75 gigahertz of 5G spectrum in the 26 and 42 GHz bands and it has initiated a proceeding to make more efficient use of additional millimeter-band spectrum in the 70/80/90 GHz bands.
• Mid-band: Mid-band spectrum has become a target for 5G buildout given its balanced coverage and capacity characteristics. With our work on the 2.5 GHz, 3.5 GHz, and 3.7-4.2 GHz bands, we will make more than 600 megahertz available for 5G deployments.
• Low-band: The FCC is acting to improve use of low-band spectrum (useful for wider coverage) for 5G services, with targeted changes to the 600 MHz, 800 MHz, and 900 MHz bands.
• Unlicensed: Recognizing that unlicensed spectrum will be important for 5G, the agency is creating new opportunities for the next generation of Wi-Fi in the 5.9 GHz, 6 GHz and above 95 GHz band.

 

[herm0016]

weBoost Home MultiRoom + High Gain LPDA Antenna Bundle - 470144-LPDA

The weBoost Home MultiRoom 470144 is a great cell phone signal booster for those who need a multi-carrier, targeted cellular signal coverage up to 5,000 sq. ft. but do not want to deal with drilling holes, a complex outdoor installation, or running cable. This cellular signal booster features a...

www.wilsonamplifiers.com

thinking about this set up. i'm willing to put some money into a quality system.

i should have line of sight to 5 towers about 8 miles away, i would have to get a couple hundred feet up to get line of sight to other towers about 5 miles away. that super yagi antenna should do better at a long distance with line of sight.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Wilson Signal Booster | Shop the Best Cell Phone Boosters

Shop the complete selection of weBoost cell phone signal boosters, WilsonPro commercial boosters, weBoost antennas, and accessories. Best prices. Free shipping. Satisfaction Guaranteed.

www.wilsonsignalbooster.com

 

[ponytug]

+1 on the Wilson products which are all good to great.
Weboost seems to get variable reviews, but it could just be poor installations.
CellX has the highest amplification, but are locked to a single carrier. Since your visitors could use WiFi calling, I personally wouldn't sweat it.

Locally, the cell tower maps are quite inaccurate, both as to location and signal strength, and at the end of the day, your best signal may be bounced off a hillside and coming from an unanticipated direction.

Just to set expectations; you can turn one bar into four or five, but not zero into something. That's where having signal on your roof is great. To get the best signal, you want your external antenna as far away from your inside antenna as possible given the cable lengths it came with, and you want them pointing opposite directions ideally. (E.g. Rooftop antenna pointing east to the city, inside pointing west.) That arrangement lets the amplifier turn itself up to the maximum power, and not be limited by feedback, like someone with a microphone stepping in front of a speaker. If you can tolerate the hassle of tuning the antenna by slowly turning it and checking signal strength, you will get a better signal in the house. If you only have one bar at the roof, I would strongly recommend a (highly) directional antenna, a log dipole/Yagi style or parabolic. (Fiddly to align, but worth it.) Finally, don't expect great coverage inside, as the inside antennas are low power since they are close to people. Directional indoor antennas will project signal farther.

All the best,

Peter

 

[bmaverick]

weBoost Home MultiRoom + High Gain LPDA Antenna Bundle - 470144-LPDA

The weBoost Home MultiRoom 470144 is a great cell phone signal booster for those who need a multi-carrier, targeted cellular signal coverage up to 5,000 sq. ft. but do not want to deal with drilling holes, a complex outdoor installation, or running cable. This cellular signal booster features a...

www.wilsonamplifiers.com

thinking about this set up. i'm willing to put some money into a quality system.

i should have line of sight to 5 towers about 8 miles away, i would have to get a couple hundred feet up to get line of sight to other towers about 5 miles away. that super yagi antenna should do better at a long distance with line of sight.

Careful on saying a few hundred feet up. Federal rules on antenna towers are legal 200 feet or less with an FCC license. As for non FCC license being required, 60FT on a pole or tower is the limit. BUT, there are other ways to get higher. Not with a balloon either. LOL Natural structures are exempt so long as the antenna top will not poke above them. There are plenty of Ham radio people on the forum here that could help on how to legally locate and reach the maximum height you need.

 

[herm0016]

Careful on saying a few hundred feet up. Federal rules on antenna towers are legal 200 feet or less with an FCC license. As for non FCC license being required, 60FT on a pole or tower is the limit. BUT, there are other ways to get higher. Not with a balloon either. LOL Natural structures are exempt so long as the antenna top will not poke above them. There are plenty of Ham radio people on the forum here that could help on how to legally locate and reach the maximum height you need.

yea, i'm not putting up a tower. as far as natural structures, there are none. i think our chimney is the highest thing not made of rock/dirt on our property. and certainly the highest thing within 100s of feet of the house.

we have about 1 bar most of the time, so i think we are good candidates for this.

 

[ning]

yea, i'm not putting up a tower. as far as natural structures, there are none. i think our chimney is the highest thing not made of rock/dirt on our property. and certainly the highest thing within 100s of feet of the house.

we have about 1 bar most of the time, so i think we are good candidates for this.

Around here there's a wifi ISP that regularly puts various sorts of antennae way up in trees. Could be an option if you have much of that nearby (hire a tree climber).

 

[herm0016]

got an app that shows towers and were you are connected, its showing the group of towers 8 miles away that are line of sight.

called "network cell info lite" works great.

 

[34Willys]

We have WeBoost and it works great. We recently bought a 5th wheel and moved back onto our burned out property. My Wife needs cell service to work from home, and service here is marginal at best. As PONY said, 0x0=0. We got the RV Destination because it comes with a telescopic antennae and we will be taking it with us when we move to our new property.
It took some tweaking and several tech support calls, but the call and data quality are awesome. The main voice quality problem was the 'enhanced calling' setting on our phones needed to be turned off. According to their High Tier tech, we are using a tower 23 miles away on Mt Konocti, not line of sight. He was amazed. So, 8 miles line of sight should work great.
Good luck.
Patrick

 

[Piston]

I have been thinking of buying one of these boosters, GO G32 - Cel-Fi Is anyone familiar with it? We have barely no signal, but can sometimes get a text message out in the right spot outside, so there is 'something'.

 

[ponytug]

I have been thinking of buying one of these boosters, GO G32 - Cel-Fi Is anyone familiar with it? We have barely no signal, but can sometimes get a text message out in the right spot outside, so there is 'something'.

I looked really closely at it, and nearly bought it. It has the best gain of anything out there. My $0.02 would be to be prepared to upgrade the antenna, (parabolic) and do think about how you are separating the indoor and outdoor antennas. (Walls, roof, etc., more is better)
If you can, set your phone to report dbi instead of bars, and try to get where you are putting the antenna to give you an idea of what you are up against. If the signal is really weak, you may need to consider a parabolic antenna. It is all about getting the dbi to a reasonable level to survive amplification and transmission in your house. Cel-Fi has some great documents various places to help evaluate signal strength.

Why didn't I buy it? Three things;

1. we had 110-120dbi signal at the house (which is really too weak),
2. Starlink and
3. WiFi calling.

Since the signal was so weak at the house, it seemed unlikely that a package deal from Cel-Fi was going to work out of the box. To get a decent signal that we could reasonably amplify we were going to have spend thousands on a radio tower, running power and signal hundreds of feet to maybe have signal, and if it didn't work, it would have been a $3,000 upgrade to a commercial system that could send the cell signal over fiber. With Starlink being "close", it meant that we would be spending all that money to cover us for a year or two. Once we had Starlink, we could do WiFi calling and be all set. Cell service was a nice to have, but at $2-10,000 for a year of service, not that nice.

YMMV.

All the best,

Peter

 

[bindian]

About 8 years ago, I got rid of my land line and installed a Wilson Electronics repeater inside and an outside antenna. I only had one problem with it and rebooting cured that problem. Antenna is on a collapsible, 30 foot pole.
hugs, Brandi