 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion Groups General General TopicsGSMBluetoothProviders AlltelATT WirelessCingularFidoNextelSprint PCST-MobileVerizonManufacturers EricssonNokiaMotorolaCountry Specific Australian GroupUK GroupRelated Topics PocketPCPalmMore Topics ... |
Cellular Phone Forum / Providers / T-Mobile / December 2003replacing wireline phone, best options?
Just out of curiosity I was wondering if there is an ability to install a repeater or some other device on my home to boost the signal. We are considering replacing our wireline phone with a wireless alternative. The best option would be where I could have a wireless base unit and several handsets (3 to 4). I wouldn't need to boost the signal in the house if there was such a monster because the base unit would maintain the signal and the handsets should would as well as our cordless phones do right now (big assumption). Anyway, what would be the best options available and has anyone done this? The biggest issue we have is that currently our cell phones don't receive a signal throughout our home (in a valley, near the river, far from interstate, house loaded with metal). My wireless LAN works will on every floor and to some degree outside the house (not far enough for any piggy backs unless they stand on my porch *grin*). Let me know what you guys/gals think. I appreciate it.  Signature-Matt mtodd (@at) att (.dot) net Cingular has a deal whereby you can cradle your cellphone and it then lets the old wireline phones use the cellular connection. If a) Cingular has decent signal at your home b) you procure a phone capable of external antenna use, and c) you hook up an external antenna for the celfon while it's in the cradle, you're legal. However, FCC rulings and advice are firm that powered 'boosters' must be installed by the cellular licensee. As far as cordless phones at home, the EnGenius high-powered cordless works pretty well under crappy signal conditions. On Mon, 29 Dec 2003 15:41:13 GMT, "Matthew Todd" <mtoddVeRy@ObViOuSatt.net> wrote: >Just out of curiosity I was wondering if there is an ability to install a >repeater or some other device on my home to boost the signal. We are [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > >Let me know what you guys/gals think. I appreciate it. -- Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT. > Cingular has a deal whereby you can cradle your cellphone and it then lets > the old wireline phones use the cellular connection. Not really. Everybody seems to be confused about this Cingular "FastForward" cradle. The cradle is a gimmick device that simply tells your cellphone to forward all calls to your landline phone number whenever it's cradled, and cancels forwarding when you remove the handset from the cradle. It does nothing you couldn't do yourself by manually keying in the call forwarding commands, and of course, requires you to have a landline, which is exactly what the OP is trying to get rid of! You might be confusing this device with the "CellSocket", a cradle you stick your cell phone in and then can connect home phones to. They are being dumped all over eBay for under $100, but only work with Nokia 51xx/61xx phones. If the original poster REALLY wants to do this (which I think is a BAAAAD idea unless your home is utterly awash in strong cell signal!) He should buy an old T-Mo/Voicestream 5190/6190 on eBay for $10 and get the more expensive CellSocket with EXTERNAL ANTENNA option (around $90 instead of $30-50), and rig a cell antenna outside the house. Then you can plug one of those cordless phones with gazillion extra handsets into the Cellsocket and pretend you have wireline service. Be warned, however, that anything that needs an analog data connection (fax machine, credit card terminal, TiVo, DBS receiver, PC modem, etc.) will NOT work through a digital cellphone connection, period. > However, FCC rulings and advice are firm that powered 'boosters' must be > installed by the cellular licensee. Even if he ignored the rules, boosters run $500+. If the concept here is saving money, I'm not sure spending $500 to save $25/month for a phone line is a great savings! I cut the landline cord for about 6 months knowing that I would be relo0cating to a new city. Even though I was in a strong signal area, the quality of call over wireless wasn't equal to landline, and we had a lot of "can you hear me now?" type of conversations. This was through a CellSocket-like device ("The Gemini Cellular Home Base" now being closed out at Wal-Mart for $20, but only works with TDMA phones- I was with Cingular at the time.) Now I'm relocated to Denver, and I'm actually glad to use a landline again. Clear call quality, no dropped calls ever, and if I want to occasionally use my fax machine, no problem! >I cut the landline cord for about 6 months knowing that I would be >relo0cating to a new city. Even though I was in a strong signal area, the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >at Wal-Mart for $20, but only works with TDMA phones- I was with Cingular at >the time.) I have been without a land line phone since May of 2002 and have had absolutely no problems at all. I am 3-1/2 blocks from the nearest base station. For almost a year I used my mobile phone just as it is and almost no one knew that I didn't have a regular phone. For the last year and a half I've been using a Cellsocket and absolutely no one knows that I don't have a regular phone. One of the local TV station's news crew just did a "scare" story about giving up your land line because police and fire couldn't automatically determine where you live with a cell phone. Must have been a slow news day (this was before the news of the annoyed cow syndrome broke.) >Now I'm relocated to Denver, and I'm actually glad to use a landline again. >Clear call quality, no dropped calls ever, and if I want to occasionally use >my fax machine, no problem! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - add .com to reply > One of the local TV station's news crew just did a "scare" story about > giving up your land line because police and fire couldn't > automatically determine where you live with a cell phone. Seems to me that this is still a valid consideration. There's also the possibility of your battery dying at an inopportune moment. Many people still need a landline for fax and/or dial-up/DSL internet connectivity. SignatureJohn Richards >> One of the local TV station's news crew just did a "scare" story about >> giving up your land line because police and fire couldn't [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >moment. Many people still need a landline for fax and/or >dial-up/DSL internet connectivity. Just what did 911 do before they had E911 to determine your number and address? They got along somehow. If you are that worried about having your phone for 911 access get a land line. I'm not a nervous nellie about it. Anything can happen even with a land line. A land line is not a 100% guarantee of your safety either. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - add .com to reply >Just what did 911 do before they had E911 to determine your number and >address? They got along somehow. If you are that worried about [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - > add .com to reply 911 systems display the calling number, address of the phone, and the person's name that "owns" the phone. This information is provided by the local phone company, and appears with the first ring. It is called ANI/ALI I believe, or something very similar. That applies to all landlines, be they coin phones on the side of the street or the phone on your desk. They have done this for years. This is not Caller ID, you cannot block it, if you dial 911 on a landline the police/fire/emergency communication center gets that information. With a cell phone, they are LUCKY to get the Caller ID info. This has lead to several people dying because the caller could not be located. As a side note, I know of a frustrating 2 hours a good number of officers spent trying to locate a supposed injury accident, when in fact it was a moron with a cell phone running them ragged and getting a kick out of it. The caller was in a position where he could observe the officers, and kept changing his directions while they looked for a non-existant car that had NOT run off a major highway and into a forest. I do agree that a landline is no guarantee of being able to reach help if you need it. But then again, neither is a cellphone. > <yeltrabnhoj@email.com> wrote in message > If the original poster REALLY wants to do this (which I think is a BAAAAD > idea unless your home is utterly awash in strong cell signal!) He should [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > those cordless phones with gazillion extra handsets into the Cellsocket and > pretend you have wireline service. Sounds interesting. > Be warned, however, that anything that needs an analog data connection (fax > machine, credit card terminal, TiVo, DBS receiver, PC modem, etc.) will NOT > work through a digital cellphone connection, period. I don't use any of those things. I have a cable modem, and use onebox for incoming/outgoing faxes, works fine for 4 years for me. And if I was really hard pressed to dial-out I could use an IR and my cell phone to get the free gprs :) > Even if he ignored the rules, boosters run $500+. If the concept here is > saving money, I'm not sure spending $500 to save $25/month for a phone line > is a great savings! Actually with Verizon it's about $65 a month for unlimited long distance and local calling. Trim it down a bit and I loose all the features my wife doesn't use anyway but would kill me if they went away (caller ID, *69, etc). And to be honest, I would find it interesting to no longer have a home number.... I could put my onebox phone number as my home number on everything (it goes straight to voice mail) and thereby avoiding telemarketers and annoying calls. The only people who would reach me were people who already have my cell phone number. Hmmmmm. I would save nearly $50 a month getting a home cell phone and adding it to my family plan and it would be unlimited for me to call home. I was reading the repeaters discussion that took place early in december... very interesting reading. > Just out of curiosity I was wondering if there is an ability to install a > repeater or some other device on my home to boost the signal. We are > considering replacing our wireline phone with a wireless alternative. Take a look at the device that Cingular has - I havent had chance to research how it works (yet) but it may be a good solution for your home phone needs. --- dan SCHEIN http://www.dschein.com Somebody told me that Hello Direct sells this type of device. Mike Schumann > > Just out of curiosity I was wondering if there is an ability to install a > > repeater or some other device on my home to boost the signal. We are [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > dan SCHEIN > http://www.dschein.com |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.