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Mobile Signal Boosters & Speedtest.net

arthur.cerew

Casual Member
When using a Mobile Signal Booster, manufacturers claim an increase in signal strength from 1-2 bars to 4-5 bars.
That's great, but do we also get the original speedtest.net values back?
 
Don't think so, if you've got bad signal in your area the booster will just relay that bad signal.
Yeah, the phone will see 5 bars, but that's because you're near the booster.
It's like with wifi, you can see full signal strength, but the speed to internet is still bad, because your adsl sucks(or whatever).

There are some other boosters (femtocell) which use your broadband to uplink to the operator, so as in the wifi example the speed will be reliant on your dsl.. Whuch I guess is bad since you are exploring mobile broadband.

I think the solution there is proper directional antenna, but there's a learning curve.
 
I have experience with signal boosters for mobiles from my last job. It was for a clean room environment in a factory making semiconductors. That said the aim was for making calls, not data. I think there are two types of booster. Ones that are a single unit. They take in what they can get and amplfiy so the signal reaches further. But as said if the strength taken in wasn't strong then even though now getting full strength, the signal strength really is the same to the mast. However, the signal reach if further - if that makes senses - it extends it. The other type comes with two units. A receiver and a transmitter. So if you can put the receiver in the best possible place for best possible signal whilst still be able to talk to the transmitter. Then you could get that "best possible signal" to where you need it. We also had a much more comprehensive system which had a high gain antenna pointed on the roof pointed in the direction of the required mast. This was then wired back to an amplifier and several transmitters dotted around the building to improve the coverage.
At the end of the day, its about trying to receive the best possible signal you can get into the system before it extends the coverage - I think I've made sense?
 
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I have experience with signal boosters for mobiles from my last job. It was for a clean room environment in a factory making semiconductors. That said the aim was for making calls, not data. I think there are two types of booster. Ones that are a single unit. They take in what they can get and amplfiy so the signal reaches further. But as said if the strength taken in wasn't strong then even though now getting full strength, the signal strength really is the same to the mast. However, the signal reach if further - if that makes senses - it extends it. The other type comes with two units. A receiver and a transmitter. So if you can put the receiver in the best possible place for best possible signal whilst still be able to talk to the transmitter. Then you could get that "best possible signal" to where you need it. We also had a much more comprehensive system which had a high gain antenna pointed on the roof pointed in the direction of the required mast. This was then wired back to an amplifier and several transmitters dotted around the building to improve the coverage.
At the end of the day, its about trying to receive the best possible signal you can get into the system before it extends the coverage - I think I've made sense?
So basically the same conclusion: directional antenna. :)
 
Its like working IT .. I guess this is IT as well... someone has a requirement (what they want to achieve) they've already got some idea / given it some thought and started off down the path of a possible solution. So they ask a question about that possible solution. In this case I guess would a mobile signal booster mprove data speeds for 4G devices (phone or router). What you get based on that question might be enough for you. If you go back to the beginning define your requirements / what you want to achieve we might be of more help?

Example of a requirement for a project I have just done. How to get decent Internet speeds at a location where there is poor mobile signal.
 
Most of the boosters for sale aren't legal. The ones that are cost crazy money. I have wondered if the Cel-Fi ones can do MIMO or not. Still I think a directional antenna is the safest route to go down. Not that I think Ofcom would ever come looking for someone with one of the illegal type boosters, but I'd certainly keep it to myself if I went down that road.

But yeah generally speaking you're not going to be getting good data speeds using boosters. Coupled with the fact they usually don't operate on multiple frequencies so bang goes your carrier aggregation too. And again because they often operate on one frequency, if the mast changes frequencies in the future, your booster becomes a paperweight.
 
Ok, so here's my piece on this.

Most Chinese boosters are technically illegal but restrictions have abated a lot lately.

The concern is mostly around poor filtering (amplifying noise creating interference), maintaining 3G availability, and making sure the unit goes into standby when not in active use and self oscillation.

Despite what everyone else has said, you can get good speeds with boosters indoors, but there are special precautions your have to undertake.

1. There's got to be a discernable difference between indoor and outdoor antenna so the mast can tell the difference between your antenna and phone and likewise to prevent the booster from picking up it's own signal and repeating it (self oscillation)

I avoid this by using height - outdoor antenna is higher than indoor. Also by polarisation, indoor antennas are typically vertically polarised, outdoor antenna ideally would be horizontal. That way there's little chance of self oscillation and resonance.

2. Outdoor antennas have to be ideally be directional AND high gain. Basically, the more you capture outdoors, the better you can transmit indoors.

3. Indoor antennas need to be situated in the centre of rooms where possible. The prevents power from being lost from being placed to close to walls etc and minimise unnecessary reflections.

4. Multi band is possible (and legal now I think so long as a 3G band is included) so aggregation is possible.

5. There is no MIMO. 1 antenna outside = 1 antenna indoors = SISO. If you had another antenna outdoors in the opposite polarisation to the first, and the indoor antennas were opposite polarised, it still wouldn't likely work because of self oscillation.

I currently have a spare LPDA Iskra P58 outside picking up B1 and B3 and a handful of indoor antennas off a power splitter just resting on top of the insulation in the loft. This is for testing purposes only currently as if it's feasible I'll install the indoor antennas permanently in the ceiling eventually.

Speeds with the LPDA in a not ideal location are good, I've seen 40Mbps down and 10ish up. Location of the indoor antennas are key.
 
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And just to prove a point, sat in my home office with one of the indoor antennas in the loft hatch (incredibly poor location) on Band 3.

Ignore the 5G marker, the mast is 5G ENDC enabled but it's N78 and 8km away so no chance.

I cannot get B3 outside on my phone. If I do, it's usually in the 135dBm range which is as close to useless as one can get.

Hence why I've got a massive parabolics for broadband 🤣
 

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And just to prove a point, sat in my home office with one of the indoor antennas in the loft hatch (incredibly poor location) on Band 3.

Ignore the 5G marker, the mast is 5G ENDC enabled but it's N78 and 8km away so no chance.

I cannot get B3 outside on my phone. If I do, it's usually in the 135dBm range which is as close to useless as one can get.

Hence why I've got a massive parabolics for broadband 🤣
Really nice info, thanks!
Is there a booster make/model you recommend?
 
Really nice info, thanks!
Is there a booster make/model you recommend?
None specifically. There are very few brands out there that comply with UK regs.

Cel-fi do have a couple, but they're over priced. Steer clear from the single provider repeaters as they're a waste of money now considering the regs have changed. I nearly got one, £800, then found out multi provider repeaters were legal and was glad I didn't pull the trigger.

Annoyingly, there's a couple of stores that do have technically legal repeaters although they're not listed as such but the websites are dumbed down so much, I can't make sense of them and it's infuriating. E.g. you pick by provider and not bands but picking the provider doesn't get all bands.

Tried looking at Three and a B28 repeater but there were none, however looking at EE there was, even though Three uses B28 for 4G mostly.
 
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