Date: Sun, 24 Jun 2012 11:32:15 -0400
From: Tony Blake
Subject: Subject: Cell phone reception
Depending on your internet connection, there is a device technology called a femtocell, which uses your internet connection (A minimum broadband speed of 1 Mbps is usually required), a GPS antenna (mostly for e911) and a micro cell (I believe 3G+ phone only) to provide cell phone reception at your house or place of business. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Femtocell
I have one from at&t and it provides me full service (5 bars) within a small footprint around my house. It also allows my phone to home simultaneously on the femtocell and Wi-Fi so data comes in over the Wi-Fi. It is restricted to (as I recall) cell 5 phone numbers you configure. When I am on a call the device will “hand off” from the femtocell network to the regular cell phone network, but I have not had handoff success in the opposite direction (cell network to femtocell)
I put a longer cable between the femtocell and the GPS antenna so I could locate femtocell away from the window and to a more hidden location in the house (IMO femtocells are in general ugly).
http://compare.ebay.com/like/120804554786?var=lv
The femtocells are carrier specific and usually available for a couple hundred bucks from your carrier. I suspect (but don’t know) if you wanted to switch carriers based on coverage this might be used as leverage in negotiations to reduce that price. Verizon calls their femtocell a “Network Extender”, at&t calls theirs a “3G microcell” http://support.verizonwireless.com/faqs/Equipment/network_extender.html#item47
http://www.att.com/standalone/3gmicrocell/?fbid=k2bZvz1AQE9