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-   -   Mobile Phone Signal Booster. (https://www.diybanter.com/uk-diy/350573-mobile-phone-signal-booster.html)

mark December 18th 12 10:49 AM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

mark



John Williamson December 18th 12 11:09 AM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
mark wrote:
Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

What sort of booster? The Vodafone one for home use works for Vodafone
handsets by using your broadband to get data to and from a femtocell.

Any passive device can only help by making the signal more directional,
boosting it in one direction while making ot weaker in others, so the
answer there is probably not, due to the laws of physics. If it's not
got an internal power source, it can't boost the signal overall.

What problem are you trying to overcome? Bear in mind that some mobile
phones Coughapple have much worse sensitivity than others
--
Tciao for Now!

John.

Apellation Controlee December 18th 12 03:26 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 10:49:38 -0000, "mark"
wrote:

Do they do work? Any recommendations please.


If you mean a private femtocell, I have a Vodafone one (Sure Signal)
and it works fine.

They can be, er, difficult to get working, not least because it can
take hours (and hours) for them to communicate with Vodafone Central
and configure themselves. This means that, every time you alter
anything around your local environment, you pretty much have to wait a
day to see if the change has had any effect.

You need the unit that's supplied by your service provider, and you
also need to register each handset so that they stay private (it's you
that's paying to buy/power the device).

FWIW I got mine at no charge, but that's because of carefully targeted
whingeing. Current units cost, I think, a hundred quid.

mark December 18th 12 03:29 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 

"John Williamson" wrote in message
...
mark wrote:
Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

What sort of booster? The Vodafone one for home use works for Vodafone
handsets by using your broadband to get data to and from a femtocell.

Any passive device can only help by making the signal more directional,
boosting it in one direction while making ot weaker in others, so the
answer there is probably not, due to the laws of physics. If it's not got
an internal power source, it can't boost the signal overall.

What problem are you trying to overcome? Bear in mind that some mobile
phones Coughapple have much worse sensitivity than others
--


I have a vodaphone mobile as to others in the household. I live in a
deadspot as far as getting a signal is concerned.
Ideally I want something that'll make my mobile phone useable when I'm at
home that is independent of Broadband.

mark



John Williamson December 18th 12 03:47 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
mark wrote:
I have a vodaphone mobile as to others in the household. I live in a
deadspot as far as getting a signal is concerned.
Ideally I want something that'll make my mobile phone useable when I'm at
home that is independent of Broadband.


Look at getting either a different phone or changing networks. For
instance, I can sometimes get a signal on 3 or Orange when Vodafone
isn't working. Due to the way GSM works, it's not easy or cheap to set
up a repeater, which would be your best answer.

I've found Nokia phones are sensitive, as they are primarily phones with
computing added, as against Windows, Android or Apple smartphones which
are effectively PDAs with a phone bolted on.

The femtocell will, at least, give you a reliable signal for your
mobile. Unless you're on a restrictive broadband contract, you'll not be
using a big perecentage of your bandwidth allowance, and most people
don't notice the slowdown that it may cause when you're talking.

The "phone signal extenders" consisting of a flat plate that you attach
to your phone are, IMHO, snake oil.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

Dave Liquorice[_2_] December 18th 12 05:03 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 15:29:05 -0000, mark wrote:

I have a vodaphone mobile as to others in the household. I live in a
deadspot as far as getting a signal is concerned. Ideally I want
something that'll make my mobile phone useable when I'm at home that is
independent of Broadband.


Divert to the landline when at home? That's what I do, sides steps the
'orrible mobile phone delay and Donald Duck impressions as well. I just
have an "At home" profile in the phone that does it all automagically,
biggest drawback is remembering to change the profile back to "Normal"
when going out.

--
Cheers
Dave.




Andrew May December 18th 12 05:19 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On 18/12/2012 17:03, Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 15:29:05 -0000, mark wrote:

I have a vodaphone mobile as to others in the household. I live in a
deadspot as far as getting a signal is concerned. Ideally I want
something that'll make my mobile phone useable when I'm at home that is
independent of Broadband.


Divert to the landline when at home? That's what I do, sides steps the
'orrible mobile phone delay and Donald Duck impressions as well. I just
have an "At home" profile in the phone that does it all automagically,
biggest drawback is remembering to change the profile back to "Normal"
when going out.

One feels that this is the sort of thing that the should be an app for
on a smartphone. Probably something simple like if it can see your WiFi
then divert the phone to home. Remove the diversion when it can no
longer see your WiFi. Voila.

Simon Cee[_2_] December 18th 12 05:50 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 10:49:38 -0000, "mark"
wrote:

Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

mark


A freind has one in his remote house - works fine. Dunno what make,
bought from China for £80 ish. Not strictly legal tho.

Bill December 18th 12 07:22 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
In message , Simon Cee
writes
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 10:49:38 -0000, "mark"
wrote:

Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

mark


A freind has one in his remote house - works fine. Dunno what make,
bought from China for £80 ish. Not strictly legal tho.


Decidedly illegal!


--
Bill

Dave Liquorice[_2_] December 18th 12 08:18 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:19:46 +0000, Andrew May wrote:

One feels that this is the sort of thing that the should be an app for
on a smartphone. Probably something simple like if it can see your WiFi
then divert the phone to home. Remove the diversion when it can no
longer see your WiFi. Voila.


It would be the sort of itch I'd scratch to learn how to program a
'droid. But as I don't have a smartphone I don't have the itch...

Wouldn't be surprised if there isn't something out there already, not
having a smartphone I haven't looked.

--
Cheers
Dave.




Andy Burns[_7_] December 18th 12 08:24 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
mark wrote:

Do they do work?


The ones that amplify the GSM signal ... they work illegally.

The picocell/femtocells that plug into your broadband and give you local
coverage do so legally.

The Other Mike[_3_] December 18th 12 11:03 PM

Mobile Phone Signal Booster.
 
On Tue, 18 Dec 2012 15:29:05 -0000, "mark"
wrote:


"John Williamson" wrote in message
...
mark wrote:
Do they do work? Any recommendations please.

What sort of booster? The Vodafone one for home use works for Vodafone
handsets by using your broadband to get data to and from a femtocell.

Any passive device can only help by making the signal more directional,
boosting it in one direction while making ot weaker in others, so the
answer there is probably not, due to the laws of physics. If it's not got
an internal power source, it can't boost the signal overall.

What problem are you trying to overcome? Bear in mind that some mobile
phones Coughapple have much worse sensitivity than others
--


I have a vodaphone mobile as to others in the household. I live in a
deadspot as far as getting a signal is concerned.
Ideally I want something that'll make my mobile phone useable when I'm at
home that is independent of Broadband.


Buy a phone with properly designed and engineered RF stages like a Nokia 6310, a
Nokia CARK-91 (handsfree car kit) and a suitable GSM external aerial something
like this:

http://www.rfsolutions.co.uk/acatalo...GSM_YAG11.html

Fit the aerial as high up as you can like the top of your TV mast and connect
with the lowest loss cable you can afford. Point the aerial at the nearest base
station.

http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/search

If you still can't get coverage then move to another mobile provider or if that
doesn't work then move house.

If you can't move house buy a satphone or fit a femtocell as it's the only other
solution that will work with the added bonus of near zero risk of you ending up
like Rod Hull.



--


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