Question Cellular reception booster/repeater/amp kits

[tcsenter]

I did not know these were a thing, at least not affordably! A family member has poor cellular signal at their home. Zero bars in the house, one bar outside the house. Poll of some neighbors reveals similar experience using a representation of late model 4G/5G mobiles from Apple, Samsung, Motorola and also the two different cellular companies serving that area seem to be using the same towers so no real differences.

They have a two acre parcel but really just want better signal/reception in their home, garage, and maybe 150 feet around it is priority.

What are the reputable brands/vendors to consider? Affordable = $600 max

 

[lantis3]

Guess you didn't search Amazon? If one unit is not enough, then install 2?

Amazon.com : cellular signal booster for home

 

[tcsenter]

What are the reputable brands/vendors to consider? Affordable = $600 max

Wondering if anyone could help with brand/vendor recommendations, sort out the copycat Chinese rebranders who are all selling the same thing (rebranded) from the actual developer/innovator brands that have relationships with the technology companies.

 

[lantis3]

WeBoost and SureCall seem to be U.S. companies.

Amazon.com : SureCall

Amazon.com : WeBoost

 

[tcsenter]

Oh it's OK if they are established reputable Chinese (preferably Taiwanese) company. Or German. Or Japanese. There are just so many brands out there now especially on Amazon that are like six people in the entire company, technical marketing and sales people. Literally just rebranders.

 

[tcsenter]

No one? Kind of looking for a company that is on the par of what TP-Link and Ubiquiti used to be, best for the money. And real companies, not 'bosunhkin' or 'mostgoody' completely unknown Chinese rebrander.

OK how about another forum where there more savvy users/enthusiasts in wireless/networking/cellular?

 

[lantis3]

TPLink/Ubiquiti products are for wifi only, they have nothing to do with modem based cellular. Wifi and cellular are completely different technologies, why do you want companies making signal boosters comparable to wifi companies?

And Amazon's reviews are useless? Don't have Amazon Prime so you can't return product easily if it doesn't work?

 

[tcsenter]

OK bro I understand all that. I was making an analogy to those companies, but seeking brands of comparable repute for cellular/mobile extenders/boosters.

if you could stop replying in a way that is NOT responsive to my request AT ALL, that would be great. It's OK if you have NO knowledge of this product segment and do not have any brands to recommend. Just leave it.

 

[cellarnoise]

I went with a cheap one. Has worked well for two years boosting a signal indoors, with outside antenna about 20' high on a pole pointed through many trees towards cell tower miles away.

Maybe more important is to know what cellular channels you are able to get from the cell tower and to make sure that the signal booster / antenna can boost those channels. Secondary is to do some homework on the kind of indoor antenna that would work best depending on the location you think the indoor will be placed as there are several different styles with different radiation patterns. Also remember that you will need power for just about an signal booster also.

On Android, I used an app named "Network Cell Info Lite" to find (it has a mapping utility build in) local cell towers available and which cellular channels were strongest to my site to focus on which channels to try and boost.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I'ved looked into these but have no experience yet so can't recommend a specific one. I would NOT install multiple, I think they would start to conflict with each other and do weird things.

You want something that has a yagi antenna that you point to the nearest tower, then run the coax down your tower to a weather proof box and put the base station in there. I'm thinking this would provide the best coverage provided the house does not have a tin roof. If it does then I'd try to get the base station inside. It will take some experimentation.

If you're not sure where the nearest tower is you could look on google maps, look for bush roads that go off the highway and you can sometimes spot the tower. You'll see 3 lines going at around 120 degrees from each other, those would be the guy wires. It makes for a rather distinct shape on the map.

 

[mindless1]

You can do a web search like "cell towers near me" to find maps of them.

 

[JackMDS]

May be this can help.

5 Ways to Find Your Nearest Cell Tower Quickly | Blog | WilsonPro

<p>Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes In a world that depends on connectivity, poor cell reception is an issue that plagues many consumers and businesses. If you experience poor cell signal in your home or office, determining where your signal comes from can be the first step toward improving...

www.wilsonpro.com

AntennaSearch - Search for Cell Towers & Antennas

Search for the locations of cell towers and antennas to determine cell reception.

www.antennasearch.com

 

[cellarnoise]

Good links!

I don't know if it is still being updated, but the App I shared for Android anyway actually shows you a map of the cell towers that your phone is able to connect to along with updated signal strengths every whatever seconds or so. If you have multiple towers around that your phone jumps around and connects to depending on signal strength it tracks that over time also and shows you what channels are being used to connect. The channels that are used are necessary when buying the booster stuff .

The live map in the App is usefull when on site and pointing the outdoor antenna to the strongest signal also.