Another tech question: Mobile phones in the shop....

[ford141]

Here is my tech question of the week. As I have already mentioned, I really don't know what I'm doing when it comes to "technology". My problem is that I get horrible mobile phone reception when I'm in my shop. The shop is a pole building with steel siding and steel roof, so it is like a big shield around me. I get great reception in the driveway, and even during the summer when I have the doors open I get pretty good reception in the shop. During cold weather, however, with the doors shut, my phone barely works. I actually had a emergency use land line put in just in case someone has to reach me quickly because my mobile phone usually doesn't work.

I've heard of cell phone boosters that can be installed to improve reception inside a building, but I don't know much about them. Does anyone have experience with them? I don't mind spending a little money up front to make this work, but I don't want to have to pay a monthly fee for something, especially when I'm already paying $50/mo for a phone that I don't use very much. Any thoughts?

[TC]

Try searching "Cell Phone Booster (name of provider, verizon, at&t, etc...)" on Ebay........

Like I put in "Cell Phone Booster Tmobile" and a bunch of boosters that are compatible with Tmobile's network came up........

[TC]

Might want to look into the Wilson brand......

[TheSilverBuick]

Our IT department installed them in our buildings here at the mine because reception is sketchy and the results are mixed. We did some testing by unplugging it and plugging it back in while watching our phone's reception bars, and the results were mixed to say the least. Some people's reception would go up while other's went down and vise versa. If the boosters are cheap I'd try one at home.

[squirrel]

lousy cell phone reception is a blessing in disguise...

[Deaf Bob]

lousy cell phone reception is a blessing in disguise...

Untill there is a genuine emergency....

[ford141]

lousy cell phone reception is a blessing in disguise...

I agree that it can be at times.... but it sucks when you have to stand out in the snow when you do have to make a call.

[ford141]

If the boosters are cheap I'd try one at home.

This is the problem. The ones that Verizon sells are around $260, and they say that they only boost voice service, not digital or data service. Most of the time when I do use my phone it is to send or receive a text. I don't talk on it much. Like I said, I'm not up on the technology, but it sounds like Verizon's booster won't help my text message service...

[DanStokes]

No real input but I have the same issue in my shop, which is all steel (frame and all). And it comes and goes - sometimes it's OK and other time terrible and sometimes in-between. Outside the shop all is fine. Go figure.

Dan

[pdub]

I guess "Boosters" and "Repeaters" are the same thing technically. I know where I work they use "repeaters" for the on-site radios, and when they go down nobody can talk to each other.

And there must be a cell phone "booster" in the admin building building because you've got one bar or none until you enter that building and then you've got a whole rack.

And where I used to work in SC, there was one conference room that was a technical dead zone. We always wondered what was up with that. We invented rumors that the room was lined with lead, I mean DEAD. Might even be true, given the time frame the building was constructed, during the Cold War.

[jmm]

It doesn't look like you ever got much of an answer, so here goes!

If you get cell reception outside, but not inside, a cell phone signal booster is exactly what you need. A booster has an outside antenna that takes the signal from the strongest place, usually on the roof, sends it to a bi-directional amplifier, and then broadcasts it over an inside antenna to fill the space with a signal. Boosters, repeaters, and amplifiers are just different words for the same thing.

To figure out the right cell phone signal booster for you, you need to look at how large of a space you need to cover and how strong the outside signal is.

If you get a decent outside signal and only need to cover about 500 to 1000 sqft, you should look at the Wilson SignalBoost DT. It's a fairly flexible little unit and will work over a small area.

If you want to cover a larger area (up to 2500 sqft if you get a really strong signal outside), take a look at the YX545. It's the best selling signal booster out there right now.

There are lots of other options too. If your shop is more than 2500 sqft, a Wilson DB Pro with a Yagi antenna is a great system and is what I use in my house, but I use it because it's great in situations where the outside signal isn't as powerful.

If you have questions, go to UberSignal.com and either chat or call them up. I called them a few times before buying my DB Pro and then once more while installing it and was really happy with how everything went. You learn a lot in the process so I wanted to share. I hope this helps.

[Russell]

I got high speed internet fot $30 a mo. You can send text from the computer. Not sure about receiving. Never used one but majic jack is cheap, might work for a shop phone. Then you will have internet and save $20/mo.

[ford141]

I already have high speed internet in the shop. Its mostly a matter of convenience. I know that I can use the computer to send text, but that is very cumbersome. If someone wants to get a hold of me they call my phone, but my phone doesn't work if I'm in the shop, and I'm in the shop all evening from 4:00 to 10:00. The boosters that jmm are exactly what I'm looking for, although I was hoping to spend a little less than the ones he posted. I'll do a little shopping around.

[Russell]

Well check out majic jack its a cheap. Does your cell phone have call fowarding? But that will not help with in coming text. I am like some one else i dont want to touch my phone while in the shop

[milner351]

My shop does the same thing - even FM reception is sketchy - I have a booster antena near a sky light in the roof.

I will keep up on this thread - let us know what you find out and what works for you. I would love internet in the shop - someday.