Re: Cell phone boosters
Puddle we have installed a boat load of these, in fact I am hesitant in telling you just how many due to multiple lawsuits the cellular companies have in trying to stop them from being used. They are a bottom end amplifier the problem isn't as much when they are used in a stationary setup but more when they are used in a mobile setup as the density of cell sites has for the most part closed the bad coverage areas in the more populace areas.
The problem with them in a mobile setup is that they amplify the signal of your phone beyond what the cell sites are prepared for so while you talk on your phone the phone is sampling other sites for a stronger signal so your likely to hit three or maybe four other sites while your on your phone, now lets triple your power and were talking about 12 site sampling cool huh? No when the phone samples it ties up resources it does not need and increases the likelyhood for a busy or dropped call which is unacceptable to the carrier, the other side is that the amplifier is dirty since its always on, it doesn't turn on or off when ever you hit the send button or end button so it muddies the frequency band.
They are a big hit in the oil fields where cell sites are few and far between, but I can tell you of at least three instances where the carrier has knocked on the door of people who have these installed at home, the carrier in all three cases threatened to call the FCC if they were not turned off immediately, ironically in all three cases the carrier installed one of their own product approved spot amplifiers but note all three of these were for the persons home not a mobile application.
I have had decent luck with Wilson but I wouldn't call them a top notch quality product with I would say a 20%-25% failure rate within 1 year in mobile applications, I would think that your failure rate is telling me something is wrong like maybe you have a frequency mismatch between your antenna and the amplifier giving you too much reflected power, but if you bought the kit with the factory antenna that would be unlikely, but they are a very simply setup with no way of dealing with high reflected. I think I would call Wilson and ask for help and Warranty replacements. I have moved into another area now and have not dealt with them in 2 years or so but when I did they were always very helpful and quick to send warranty replacements, but that was 2 years ago.
I know TMI right!
