junohome
2013-03-10 04:36:21
Hello,
I'm wondering who out there is using cell phone boosters, and how much luck you've had with them. I've heard some good things, but the (cheap) unit I purchased last year just didn't work well at all. I'm looking to get something a little better, but I don't want to waste money again if they aren't living up to guys expectations.
Thank you!
Once and Future
2013-03-10 20:39:37
My experience is as follows: I too had one of the cheap amplifiers that didn't work well. It was a gray box about the size of a pack of cigarettes. I bought a $400 unit that does better, and in the process learned part of the problem with the smaller unit, after rereading the not-so-great instructions several times.
On the small unit, if the green LED turns to red, it is indicating what they call "oscillation". Simply put, the external antenna the store sold me to go with the amplifier was on too short of a wire. Now, the amplifier box itself is designed to take the natural low-level cell signal in your area, amplify it, and broadcast a stronger version to your cell phone. So, if the antenna wire is too short, the antenna picks up the amplified signal meant for the cell phone, sends it back down the wire where it gets amplified again, and you can see where the result isn't going to be good. (Maybe you knew that was what was meant by "oscillation", but I didn't. Buying an extension for the antenna wire made it so the LED stays green now. So I get some use out of that unit, but I believe the $400 unit is still better.
Tip for your $400 amplifier installation: The instructions say to get that external antenna as high as practicable. Obvious choice is up the mast. But if your antenna wire run is over a certain distance (I think 25'), they recommend you go to low loss cable. Plan for that in advance and you will save some frustration waiting for that cable to get shipped. Also, the amplifier box is going to have to be mounted in the "dead cone zone" or whatever they call it directly below the external antenna. The re-broadcast signal from the amplifier box is directional, and if you mount the amplifier in that cone zone, you will avoid the oscillation problem on this unit.
Lastly, even with the amplifier working, my $200 Samsung phone does not pick up the signal as well as my friends' phones. And a woman I trust in a cell phone store says Motorola phones have the best internal antenna.
junohome
2013-03-11 04:46:29
Thanks for the input, the old threads were helpful, must have missed those in my search.
Yeah, that was the problem I had on my 'el cheapo' unit last year, the oscillation light would never turn to green. We were up on the roof on the roof, wrapping my deckhand in aluminum foil and making him dance in the rigging and all, but I could never get the thing to work so I shipped it back. That was with the cords they supplied.
I'll try another one this year.
JYDPDX
2013-03-11 05:30:17
"Cheapo" is not a word. You mean 'barato'.