Extends cellular coverage for single or multiple users in homes or offices--provides up to 2500 square feet of coverage
Dual-band device works with 800/1900 MHz frequencies from all major carriers--AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, Alltel, Cricket, and more (not compatible with Nextel)
Omni-directional signal antenna receives signals from multiple cell towers
Antenna can be installed outdoors above the roofline or indoors in the attic or near a window
Extends phone battery life--uses less power when signal is stronger
Rating: - Works as advertized, just follow the directions
I went from nearly zero coverage in the house to 4 out of 5 bars (both AT&T and Verizon, haven't tried Sprint PCS yet). Mounted the antenna in the attic and put the base on a second floor table. Coverage within 1000 sq. ft. of the base is quite good but drops off quickly after that.
Rating: - Works well with careful installation and location of the antenna
After reading a lot of the reviews and then the instructions from the kit I located the strongest signal on my roof, which was about 2-3 bars on my Blackberry, and put up a five foot mast made out of wood. That located the antenna about ten feet above the base unit and about 15 feet away horizontally. Turned the unit on and I had four to five bars in the room where the base unit was, but the signal fell quick as I left the room. This is at a cabin on a river where you couldn't keep a call going with the one or two bars available on the ground. I can use my cell and use my phone as a modem to connect to the wireless internet. This allowed me to cancel my 40 dollar service and dial up provider. I am looking into getting a better indoor antenna that will boost the signal more in the house, maybe giving the unit a bit more range. All in all I am happy, have good coverage in the cabin and don't have any more dropped calls.
Rating: - works perfectly but very dependent on local conditions
From the varied reviews you can see it works for some people and does nothing for others. It is highly dependent on your particular conditions.
In other words, it works perfectly though it doesn't work everywhere. So when reviewers give it a low rating, what they are really saying is it either didn't work in their location or they couldn't make it work. There are two things to consider that may influence your purchase decision. The product manual does a good job of stating up front that your cell phone signal strength meter is a very relative measure. Some phones will operate fine on one bar though they will use more power than if they had 4 bars. Other phones will have connection problems with one bar. This is relevant because it doesn't really matter how many bars you have outside of your home, what matters is whether or not you can make and receive normal quality calls.
First, the product description makes it sound like you can just plug it in and go. While that's true in some cases be prepared for some experimentation in positioning.
One thing that's made clear in the manual is that the separation between the receiving antenna and the amplifier is very important. There needs to be VERTICAL separation, 15' at least, the more the better. If the amp and antenna are too close the amp will automatically lower its gain (it won't amplify as much) to prevent feedback (so as not to feed the amplified signal back into the antenna which in turn is amplified and etc.) You can lose a lot of performance this way. If there are walls and floors between the amp and antenna, blocking the amplified signal from feeding back into the antenna, you may not need 15'. I had only 10' but a concrete wall so there was no reduction in gain. It tells you on startup if and how much gain is reduced.
Second, you simply need a good signal to amplify. A better way to think of this product is that it pipes an outside cell signal to inside of your house. While it does do some amplification it won't turn a useless signal into a great one.
If there is a signal outside of your house and you can't make this system work there are a few options. They all add to the cost of the system but is just a question of how much you want to be able to use your phone in your house.
a. A directional antenna. There is a trade off with a directional antenna but it can pull in weaker signals if properly aligned.
b. A better higher performance omnidirectional antenna. More money and requires its own power source.
c. A very high mounting place. The manual suggests mounting the antenna in your attic. That might work. If it doesn't you may need a seriously tall pole. This may be beyond your abilities but again, it is a question of how important using your cell phone in your house is to you. You can hire a satellite installation person or similar to attach a 30'or higher pole to your house with the proper lighting protection for between $50 and $100.
Due to trees and terrain I simply could not make this system work but amazon, as usual, was great about accepting a return.
Rating: - Must find the sweet spot!
It does what it promises. Every user's experience will be different. Small adjustments to placement make a world of difference. Took a 1 bar connection and it now gives us 3-4 throughout the house. Thought about returning it, but since time is money, and it seems to speed things up... I'll keep it.
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