4G signal boosters. Should I buy?

TenLeftFingers

I'm considering buying a signal booster for mobile data (Maybe voice if that turns out to be poor too).

I'm getting 2 bars 4G currently which can do choppy but acceptable Zoom calls for personal use. I'll need much better than that for work though since I'll be tethering my laptop to this device.

The ones I'm considering don't have any kind of return policy or cooling-off period so I want to know; do they typically work well regardless of circumstances or are the situations where they don't improve the signal?

babelfish1990

TenLeftFingers wrote: »

I'm considering buying a signal booster for mobile data (Maybe voice if that turns out to be poor too).

I'm getting 2 bars 4G currently which can do choppy but acceptable Zoom calls for personal use. I'll need much better than that for work though since I'll be tethering my laptop to this device.

The ones I'm considering don't have any kind of return policy or cooling-off period so I want to know; do they typically work well regardless of circumstances or are the situations where they don't improve the signal?

It completely depends on whether your service is "choppy" due to congestion at busy times, or weak signal due to distance from base station or insulation in your home. If your problem is congestion, no amount of boosting will improve it. You need to change operator to one that is more reliable. If your problem is weak signal, a "booster" might help - but you will likely need an external antenna to get a stronger signal. Mobile broadband is no substitute for fixed line broadband, particularly when it comes to the consistency of connection needed for working-from-home. Many employers refuse to allow staff work-from-home over mobile connections, for this reason.

TenLeftFingers

babelfish1990 wrote: »

It completely depends on whether your service is "choppy" due to congestion at busy times, or weak signal due to distance from base station or insulation in your home. If your problem is congestion, no amount of boosting will improve it. You need to change operator to one that is more reliable. If your problem is weak signal, a "booster" might help - but you will likely need an external antenna to get a stronger signal. Mobile broadband is no substitute for fixed line broadband, particularly when it comes to the consistency of connection needed for working-from-home. Many employers refuse to allow staff work-from-home over mobile connections, for this reason.

Very helpful, thank you. I can see from the coverage map that we are about 100 meters outside of stronger degree coverage (out of 5 on the legend) so I think the location could be a part of it.

I'm self-employed, but I still need to have a good quality and consistent 1 to 1 video meeting ability.

Eir say on their map that we'll have fibre in 6 months but i don't know how accurate the that is.

smuggler.ie

TenLeftFingers wrote: »

Very helpful, thank you. I can see from the coverage map that we are about 100 meters outside of stronger degree coverage (out of 5 on the legend) so I think the location could be a part of it.

I'm self-employed, but I still need to have a good quality and consistent 1 to 1 video meeting ability.

Eir say on their map that we'll have fibre in 6 months but i don't know how accurate the that is.

As above, it will depend on location and factors related to ISP masts/congestion in vicinity. It will also depend on equipment you get and set - just good LTE router might give you 40DL off peak/5DL peak time, but in combination with good external antenna might provide you 200 off peak. Even in peak time you might get 40-50DL. UL speed would be important for internet calls as well , but usually its less of a problem as long you can maintain ~10Mbps or more. Consistency with mobile is a luxury.
Jump onto Midband forum for more info.
And i don't recommend to rely on "coverage maps" from any ISP - lots of BS in many cases.

smuggler.ie

Its doable in some setups...