Cell phone booster

[Clinch]

My dad has a 12A deer tag here in AZ at the end of the month. Had the same tag last year and cell reception in the area was non except for one hill about 10 miles from camp that offered spotty reception at best. The only other option was Jacob lake, but that was 24 miles one way. Made for a lot of driving to check on my pregnant wife. I am in the market for a signal booster. I don’t expect miracles and don’t mind driving a little to make a call but if I can make spotty service manageable a little closer to camp it would be nice. Any suggestions?


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[captchet]

Garmin InReach


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[Clinch]

I’ve looked at those, but they are a little pricey for something I might only use every couple years. Thanks


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[loggerchas]

We sell these at the radio shop I work at. WeBoost (formerly Wilson) is somewhat the standard. A big issue to keep in mind is the service in the area you are in. Some older boosters (which may be in-stock at some retailers - buyer beware) do not do 4G, and a lot of rural areas are still 3G with some providers. Similarly, with 5G-LTE in some areas there are boosters out there that only do 4G and below and your phone may default to a bad 5G signal by your home provider rather than a stronger 4G signal roaming.

All that being said, realize no service is no service, most boosters only bump 1-2 bars. Sometimes really weird things happen where a "1x" signal instead of being amplified to a better signal, draws in a 1 bar LTE signal that wasn't as good as the original 1x but since your phone prefers the LTE it defaults to that.

Cradle boosters work better than donor antennas in most cases. I use one in SE CO in my camp trailer and love it.

 

[sportsmans challenge]

We sell these at the radio shop I work at. WeBoost (formerly Wilson) is somewhat the standard. A big issue to keep in mind is the service in the area you are in. Some older boosters (which may be in-stock at some retailers - buyer beware) do not do 4G, and a lot of rural areas are still 3G with some providers. Similarly, with 5G-LTE in some areas there are boosters out there that only do 4G and below and your phone may default to a bad 5G signal by your home provider rather than a stronger 4G signal roaming.

All that being said, realize no service is no service, most boosters only bump 1-2 bars. Sometimes really weird things happen where a "1x" signal instead of being amplified to a better signal, draws in a 1 bar LTE signal that wasn't as good as the original 1x but since your phone prefers the LTE it defaults to that.

Cradle boosters work better than donor antennas in most cases. I use one in SE CO in my camp trailer and love it.

Have the we boost as well and it has done well, just watch a you tube or 2 about mounting. I slip the inside antenna/booster up the side of the passenger seat as high as i could to get the signal rite at console area.

 

[Napperm4]

I use the weboost 4GX and a trucker antenna. Works awesome and brings me up from 1 bar to full in a lot of areas

 

[muddydogs]

I’ve looked at those, but they are a little pricey for something I might only use every couple years. Thanks


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Do you want something that might work and probably require driving around to still get somewhat of a signal or do you want something that's going to work from anywhere you want to send a message with no messing around? What if there is a problem with the wife and kids, your going to be hours late to the party by the time you call, with the Inreach the wife can contact you.

Get an Inreach and be done with it. Whats a booster going to cost, couple hundred bucks? Spend the little extra on the Inreach, sign up for the month to month safety plan and shut the plan down when not needed.

 

[cuttiebrownbow]

Boosters are frustrating most of the time. Just get an inreach and be done IMO.

 

[Scrappy]

X3 on the inreach

 

[Dos Perros]

I’ve looked at those, but they are a little pricey for something I might only use every couple years. Thanks


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You can rent them.

 

[mtnrunner260]

Like Dos said if it's only a every other couple year deal renting a satellite phone might be your best bet.

 

[Clinch]

I think I’ll look into renting a sat phone. Thanks.


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[JAMES77]

Thank you for this information. A cell signal booster would help. https://www.myamplifiers.com/en-au/ - more information about phone signal boosters. Or you can rent a sat phone. .

 

[NebraskaKID]

Garmin inreach or possibly renting a satellite phone.

 

[nthn.mrtndl]

We have been running automotive weBoost and SureCall units in our work fleet trucks for a few years now, and both work great.

 

[Sccritterkiller]

I’ve looked at those, but they are a little pricey for something I might only use every couple years. Thanks


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Weboost is $600 plus installation, inreach is half of that. How much do you actually need booster the rest of the year?
Some of the boosters say they are 5G ready but I have yet to see how they will work in the high frequency 5G band with DSS.
I build cell towers for living and I am not ready to invest $600+ on booster that will at least need an upgrade in 2yrs if not totally obsolete.