Boosting Cell Phone Signals in Strange Places? 40
hedgemage asks: "I work at a retirement home and we have trouble with the cell phones that our nursing and maintenance staff use. The problem is that our nursing home area is built into a lower level that was originally constructed as a fallout shelter in 1960. There's a lot of solid concrete in the walls and ceiling. We have paid out tens of thousands to try and get an on-site mobile to work using NEC Dterm PSII phones, but they have proven absolutely unreliable (not just in the bomb shelter but throughout the campus) and the only solution our telecom provider has is to install several thousand dollars more in transceivers. If we could use ordinary cell phones, it would be ideal for everyone. Is there an off-the-shelf solution that could boost regular cellular signals in our bomb shelter?"
Here's a solution (Score:3, Insightful)
Propose management to relocate the retirement home to a nicer place with, for example, windows and sunlight. Jesus man, who the hell make older folks live in a former fallout shelter? It's really sad. Tell me where it is so I know never to send my mother there...
Re:Here's a solution (Score:5, Insightful)
What, you weren't planning on visiting the facility to which you'll send your mother, first?
Cultural Differences (Score:2)
It's worth pointing out that you think these folks are cocksuckers for sticking old folks underground yet a Chinese person would probably say the same thing about you planning to ship your mother off when she gets to be difficult.
yep (Score:4, Informative)
Wilson Electronics (Score:4, Funny)
Wilson Electronics has some way-cool products as far as cell phone antennae & signal boosters are concerned: parent: They are expensive ~ $300 - $100
I assume you meant "$300 - $1000", but for a communications device that is meant to be used by tens [and possibly hundreds] of people, in a business setting, that strikes me as decidedly inexpensive.
Or maybe I just haven't been keeping up with telecomm prices these days [isn't the Apple iPhone supposed to start at $499.99?].
PS: The real "expense" will be the time you invest on ladders above hung ceilings, or in attics, or crawling around basement crawl spaces, pulling RG-6 coaxial cable.
[Or paying the illegal aliens to do it for you...]
More examples (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I presume however, you are in the USA...
Re: (Score:2)
I'm pretty sure that the FCC's original "big idea" for the layout of cellular coverage involved businesses, high rise buildings, and apt complexes buying repeaters and installing them to boost coverage.
Obviously, that never materialized & the cell companies had to build their networks out instead.
Here's an article for submitter to read [slate.com]
"Why does the much cheaper device do a better job? Perhaps because the more expensive one tries harder
Wifi (Score:2)
Or if you don't need cell capabilities and don't mind a bit crappier phones you can get Wifi phones for Skype and Vonage.
Ads by Google (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:1)
Leaky coaxial cable (Score:3, Informative)
wifi phones (Score:5, Interesting)
Passive Repeater (Score:3, Insightful)
It's not a great solution but it's cheap and simple.
Use 800 MHz and Passive Repeater (Score:3, Insightful)
Here are a few more details to help with this:
(1) Make sure your service provider is one of the cellular carriers in the 800 mhz band. While this will work for both cellular and pcs frequency bands, generally speaking the 800 mhz will have a slight advantage for penetration within buildings. At this point you will probably need every edge you can get.
(2) Locate
Re: (Score:2)
I don't know what universe you live in, but in mine my wireless phone provider can barely explain my bill, and technical support consists of: 'Power it off, then power it on again' repeated ten times, followed by 'your phone is broken you have to buy a new one', all in an Indian accent. If I were to ask about a 'micro-cell' they would reply that nothing is on sale at this time. If I were
Re: (Score:2)
Get one of these (Score:4, Informative)
http://www.jdteck.com/repeaters-consumer.htm [jdteck.com]
Yea they cost a few hundred bucks, but they look really simple.
Re: (Score:1)
Good luck.
Re: (Score:2)
http://www.signalwide.com/ [signalwide.com]
However, the product that you would want (the "WorkBase") has been "Coming this fall" since the middle of last year.
An alternative solution (Score:3, Insightful)
Directional antennas on a rooftop that points directly to the nearest celltower(s).
Omnidirectional antennas indoors at strategic location, one indoor antenna per external antenna.
Use low-loss cabling between the antennas. The cabling and installation of the cables may be the most expensive issue. As this is a completely passive solution you shouldn't have any trouble with FCC.
There are certainly disadvantages with this solution too, and it may not work or be feasible for your situation.
Use older technology. (Score:3, Insightful)
Enhanced Full Rate mode on? (Score:1, Interesting)
Talk to the Carriers (Score:3, Interesting)
have you worked with your provider? (Score:2, Informative)
hmm..... (Score:4, Funny)
What, like the back of a Volkswagen?
Original Title (Score:1)
A bit more Info (Score:1)
Also, the truly bunkered-in sections are our maintenance shop, break room, and storage, so whil
Again, Wilson Electronics (Score:2)
You ended your original comment by saying: If we could use ordinary cell phones, it would be ideal for everyone. Is there an off-the-shelf solution that could boost regular cellular signals in our bomb shelter?
Again, as I mentioned above, if you want to go the route of "regular cellular signals", then I'd take a long, hard look at Wilson Electronics [or an equivalent competitor]:
The interconnections are made with RG-6 [RG-58] co
It doesn't seem that difficult... (Score:2)
Would VOIP phones be viable? (Score:1)
Femtocell (Score:2)
It was all the rage at the recent 3GSM trade show in Barcelona. I happen to work for a company developing such a product.
They're not ready for primetime today, and even if they were, your cellular operator would have to offer it as part of their service -- you couldn't use one independently. But in the next year or two, they will begin to be a commodity.
Sorry it won't help your problem *today* - but maybe it's a consolation that a product is being developed to meet your
Tiger direct catalog (Score:1)
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchToo
I've done this. (Score:2)
It works well. There is now excellent coverage throughout for cellular phones (specifically, 800MHz cellular A and B for Alltel and Verizon). There is also a separate, parallel system installed for the local public safety agencies 2-way radios, which really was the main point of the project. Adding more cellular carriers would be reasonably straight-forward at this point, now
Sticky Antenna (Score:2)
Back when I was in college, I stuck a passive cellphone booster antenna on my window. It helped. You might be able to stick a passive cellphone antenna outside, and run a wire inside.
I hate to say this, but you can watch the movie "Panic Room" for a Hollywood example of what I described.