What Is Passive DAS
How Do Cellular Boosters Work?
A cell phone signal booster (also known as a signal extender, signal sound system equipment/increaser, or cell phone repeater) works by pulling in weak outside signal, boosting it, and rebroadcasting the boosted signal into the desired areas. Vehicle Signal Boosters are designed for cars, trucks, RVs, SUVs, boats, and fleet vehicles.
Cell phone boosters are a growing market that has gained popularity (quality of being liked a lot or done a lot) during the previous few years because of people moving from cities to city based urban and rural markets. 5G signals will not penetrate buildings as well as 3G and 4G, unless the carriers use lower frequency signals that are actually not 5G.
Every so often, we get questions surrounding the ability and legal status of cell phone signal boosters. The concern is perfectly valid, especially for a device that sounds too good to be true.
A cell phone signal booster is an FCC (Federal Communications Commission) and IC (Industry Canada) certified electronic equipment that improves existing 2G, 3G, and 4G LTE networks. Some boosters are proactively 5G ready! Basically, signal boosters are legal devices that help improve call quality, weak cell signal, and provide faster data speeds with lower latency.
If you tend to have usable signal outside your home, vehicle, or office building, but weak to no signal inside, then a cell phone signal booster will definitely improve your cell service and signal strength.
The idea of eliminating dropped phone calls, slow data speeds, and unsent text messages without needing to connect to WiFi, argue with your carrier, or switch carriers has many people questioning how cell phone signal boosters works.
How does a Signal Booster Work?
A cell phone signal booster (also known as a signal extender, signal sound system equipment/increaser, or cell phone repeater) works by pulling in weak outside signal via a donor antenna, boosting the signal with a amplifier, and rebroadcasting the boosted signal into the desired areas via specially tuned antennas. They also work in reverse: the signal booster system will get the signal from your phone and send it back to the tower.
There are different boosters available that target different needs:
-In-Building Signal Boosters – They are designed for homes, office buildings, commercial buildings, and any building that needs signal.
-Vehicle Signal Boosters – They are designed for cars, trucks, RVs, SUVs, boats, and fleet vehicles.
Keep in mind that for a cell phone signal booster to work, there must be an existing signal outside your home, office, or vehicle. A cell phone signal booster improves existing signal, it does not create it.
Most signal booster kits are composed of three main components;
- An External Antenna – Used to capture the weak cell phone signal.
- An Amplifier – Used to boost the weak signal.
- An Indoor Antenna – Used to rebroadcast the enhances signal inside your home, office, or car. Specially rated outdoor antennas are also available.
Coax cables (usually 400 and 500 coaxial) are used to connect the above three system components; they are designed to deliver high-frequency electrical signals over distances with low signal loss.
For more information on coax cables, see our guide on Understanding Coaxial Cables.
How Do Cell Phone Boosters Work?
Cell phone signal boosters work to improve the coverage of existing signal, allowing your mobile phone to have better reception and service for both inbound and outbound communications. They are made of three important parts: first, the outside antenna (device that receives TV and radio signals), which receives the existing signal; second, the amplifier equipment (signal increaser, which boosts it), and last, the inside or outside antennas (devices that receives radio signals), responsible for broadcasting the louder, clearer, and more powerful signal to your phone.
If you’ve wondered whether a cell phone booster is legal, the answer is YES: one hundred percent! The US Federal Communications Commission set up guidelines for signal boosters in early 2013. These were meant to improve the quality of calls and messages in (away from cities) areas farther from the carrier tower and buildings that make signal transmission very difficult. As a general rule, sellers and providers must offer cell boosters with the three main elements talked about in the article above and within certain guidelines. Respectable providers will not sell cell phone signal boosters that will not meet these guidelines.
What elements make a cell phone signal booster system work?
1. The donor antenna: brings signal inside.
- 2. The amplifier boosts signal: Seemingly a magical bridge to better signal quality.
- 3. The inside / outside antenna: Broadcasts signal to and from your phone.
- 4. Single and Multi-Carrier Signal Boosters are available from manufacturers.
To Summarize, A Cell Phone Reception Booster;
- Boosts the 4G LTE, 3G or 2G voice signal in your car or home.
- Enhances the internet speed, text, and talk quality.
- Maintains a reliable connection throughout.
- Expands the reception area.
- Diminishes coverage problems.
On the other hand, the cell phone reception boosters cannot:
- Boost satellite and WIFI providers signals.
- Create working 4G LTE and 3G signals since it requires existing network coverage to work.
- Cannot work outside your vehicle or house but inside, unless special outdoor antennas are part of the installed system.
Reference Sources: https://www.supertechpro.com/ , waveform.com, wilsonamplifiers.com. and https://www.giganetpro.com/ .
SuperTech is FCC certified and can provide Consultation Services, as well as affordable premise cabling solutions for your Commercial Business applications.