Cell Phone Boosters - Any suggestions?

[crl]

My DW and I travel quite a bit to places where cell service is less than great. Due to family issues we need to have cell phone access. Any experience with cell phone boosters that improve signal strength? Any recommend brands or models?

[Mustang65]

We (wife does) use the Uneden Cell phone signal booster with excellent results. Sending photos with text messages is ultra fast also.


See post #16 in this thread


It goes into detail and has pictures of the signal strength here in the mountains.


Don

My Registry

RVing with SOLAR

[Hangar11]

I use a WEBOOST 4G-M
has an "inside" antenna and an "outside "antenna" check truck stops or online.....

performance has definitely improved… but there are still some "dead" zones...

B

[smithmdsmith]

I use an older version of the weBoost Drive Sleek ($200 on Amazon). It works well in my truck and can be moved to the trailer if needed. I can get usable 4G signal with the booster in places where I have no signal otherwise (in a fringe area). There are places with no signal at all where the booster doesn't have anything to boost.

I just installed a weBoost Drive Reach ($500 on Amazon) on my dad's trailer. It works better than the sleek and allows more than 1 phone at a time. The closer the phone is to the inside antenna, the better.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by smithmdsmith

I use an older version of the weBoost Drive Sleek ($200 on Amazon). It works well in my truck and can be moved to the trailer if needed. I can get usable 4G signal with the booster in places where I have no signal otherwise (in a fringe area).

That's what I just bought, and tried it the first time last trip. I think it was $168. Definitely was able to boost the signal. Plus it's portable, if need be.

I just ordered an upgraded trucker OTR 4G antenna (to replace the small shark fin antenna that came with it), which will increase the gain, and I'm going to mount that up on the roof permanently. Hopefully this antenna will help even more.

[crl]

So my reason to hesitate is the Ned to get the coax from the outside antenna to the inside of the trailer. Just hate the thought of drilling a hole. Can’t find a booster that would not require this. Any of there? What where you solutions to get the coax insid?

[crl]

Forgive my spelling. My “e” doesn’t seem to work well. The need it drill a hole for he coax is causing me heartburn.

[smithmdsmith]

If you aren't looking for a permanent mount, you can run the antenna cable through a slide. To use my Sleek, I slap the little magnetic antenna on a cookie sheet and carry it up to my roof (the cookie sheet acts as the ground plane required for the included antenna). Then I push one of the slides in about 6 inches and push the cable between the slide wall and the sweep seals and shove enough cable through to allow me (or, preferably, someone already standing inside the trailer) to pull the rest of the cable through. Then I open the slide fully, again, as usual. Just make sure the cable has enough slack on the outside to droop down so that when it rains, water doesn't run down the antenna cable and into your trailer...you want the cable to have a little "U" shape to it just before it enters the seal. This is all easier than it sounds.

For the install of the Drive Reach on my dad's trailer, we permanently mounted the OTR "trucker" antenna on the ladder, ran the cable down the ladder with zip ties, and went into the trailer through the taillight (all of the exterior lights already have holes behind them). We didn't have to drill any additional holes in the trailer. We removed the taillight fixture, cut a notch in the plastic at the bottom of the taillight fixture to allow the cable to fit, and then pushed the cable into the trailer from the outside (in our case, the taillight hole went into unused space inside of an "end table" in his rear-living trailer). We sealed the taillight back to the trailer using white silicone exterior caulk. Wires running to the power stabilizer jacks through the same unused space were used as a constant 12-volt source for power (I think the Drive Reach maxes out at about 3 amps draw). He can move the booster itself from the trailer to his truck as needed (the power cord and interior antenna go with the booster; he uses the little magnetic exterior antenna when the booster is in his truck).

[Riverman]

I use an older Wilson Cradle type which was less than $100 on eBay. It will boost a weak one bar signal to 4 or 5 bars real quick. I just love it....

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by crl

So my reason to hesitate is the Ned to get the coax from the outside antenna to the inside of the trailer. Just hate the thought of drilling a hole. Can’t find a booster that would not require this. Any of there? What where you solutions to get the coax insid?

I asked that question the other day. I'm going to mount my antenna on the fridge vent and run the antenna cable down that passageway, then through the cabinets in the kitchen. I didn't want to put a hole in my roof either.

[crl]

Good feedback for sure. I had not thought of he tail light but will certainly be checking that option out. Slide might also be an option but I like your tail light option and it might be doable for me as well.

[crl]

I need to scope the fridge vent out and see if hat might work as well.

[smithmdsmith]

When you're planning where the antenna will go, keep the cord length in mind. The OTR "trucker" antenna comes with a 15' cord. The included external antennas have 10' cords. The power cords are 3' to 6' depending on the model. The internal antenna included with the Drive Reach has a 10' cable. You can get extension cables for the antennas, but then you're effectively reducing the amount of boost you get. 12-volt extension cords are not an issue.

weBoost's support is great. You can call them with any questions before or after the sale.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by smithmdsmith

When you're planning where the antenna will go, keep the cord length in mind. The OTR "trucker" antenna comes with a 15' cord. The included external antennas have 10' cords.

That's a good point, and the first thing I checked on the OTR antenna, as the cable on the shark fin antenna that came with the Drive Sleek, barely made it into the coach. The longer OTR cable (along with higher gain), will make it to the desired location, without any extension.

Actually ALL cables need to be verified ahead of time, depending on mounting location. The Drive Sleek has a really long cable on the internal booster that connects to the handset cradle, so that gives flexibility where the cradle holder can be placed.

[Rick 17RB]

Sprint LTE uses frequencies the fcc won’t allow boosters for. They are the only one that does. I changed to ATT for that reason.

[Jeeper90]

We use the 4g reboost, I have them in some 48 trucks, they work well.

[Jeff Evans]

Originally Posted by crl

So my reason to hesitate is the Ned to get the coax from the outside antenna to the inside of the trailer. Just hate the thought of drilling a hole. Can’t find a booster that would not require this. Any of there? What where you solutions to get the coax insid?

I recently purchased and installed a Weingard cell and WiFi booster on the roof. I haven’t been on the road with to use it yet though. I use the OTR mobile SIM card which is an unlimited AT&T data SIM card. It has one cable that goes through the roof for power. The cell part is WiFi. They supply a plastic piece designed to allow a seal around the wire then just use some of that roof sealant. I came through the roof above the fridge because theirs an open space above it. We’re leaving on a trip to Canada and the eastern USA. It doesn’t work in Canada. If you’re interested I’ll let you know how it works in the remote areas. My buddy has one and he’s boondocking in Colorado and it’s working great.

[crl]

Just finished installing our weboost cell signal booster. Was curious if I needed to contact my cell phone carrier before use. We use Verizon wireless. Notes in the directions that we should call our provider. Would like to hear how others handled.

[crl]

I was able to snake the coax from the ladder mounted outside antenna down through the roof fridge vent. Not too bad a project. My roof vent had screws instead of rivets so I was lucky there. Did a install inside the cabinet by the fridge. Looking forward to seeing how it works when we head to CO in a couple of weeks.

[crl]

Answered my own question. Found the website for Verizon in the directions and registered the booster to be sure all is ok. Easy process.