Did you know you can increase your phone range
Submitted: Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 05:55
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pepper2
i was advised that large external aerials cannot be fitted to current smart phones etc,by telstra and others. I have a new samsung galaxy smart phone.
However on checking with jaycar i was shown that the samsung galaxy has two seperate ports inside the back cover (one for 4g and one for 3g ) that are provided for simple connection to a large external aerial .(jaycar supplies the correct connecting wire for about $16,it connects the phone to the aerial wire to the phone,simple )
i was advised that this feature is available in many new phones,many people would not be aware of this simple modification.
Just wanted to let people know this is available.
Reply By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 06:27
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 06:27
You can still get Telstra phones with external connectors. For example I think the Telstra easy touch.
Most of the Samsung Galaxy phones have average at best reception. The Galaxy S3 and Note 2 for example. I have a note 2 and love it but reception is down compared to other phones.
Yes there is a RF port that you can get to if you remove the back cover and locate the small plug. This will work but the connector is only designed for testing in the workshop. You may wreck it if you keep plugging and unplugging.
I have an old Motorola Defy plus for when I travel in remote areas. As good as it gets and also has a similar connector ( but I don't care too much if I wreck it).
AnswerID:
520274
Follow Up By: Doug H3 - Friday, Oct 25, 2013 at 19:22
Friday, Oct 25, 2013 at 19:22
I have an old Nokia and use a 5db antenna plus a small plug link cable. Works on both the phone and laptop USB dongle.
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800782
Reply By: rooster350 - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 10:19
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 10:19
Telstra "Frontier" has a socket for an external aerial and it is also a "blue tick" phone, have not had it for very long but so far it has been quite good (and you can buy it unlocked)....cheers
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Follow Up By: wizzer73 - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 14:52
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 14:52
Had
mine for a while and doesn't out perform my wife's old htc in the reception area. Hers isn't a blue tick. However I haven't tried an external aerial yet. The are only $149 outright now. Pretty good value for money I rekon especially since its a 4g phone.
wizzer
FollowupID:
800710
Reply By: Echucan Bob - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 10:47
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 10:47
Pepper, you don't necessarily need a plug on your phone. Proximity to a re-radiating antenna works for me. Primary antenna is a 3G mast up on the pack rack. The re-radiating antenna is a flat plastic thingy that can be stuck to the windscreen, but I stick it to the phone mount. On a recent trip the iPhone started downloading data about a 100 km out of
Bourke on the
Bourke Hungerford Road. I pulled over and was able to make voice calls too. A bit further along the signal faded out. Even the best system in the world will only increase your range by a few kms. Just wait a few minutes until you are a bit closer to town! If you are stationary just outside the normal operating range, then a Yagi antenna with line of sight to the tower might be worth a look. The lower frequencies, like 850MHz, are less line of site dependent than, say, around 2 GHz. Make sure your antenna matches the frequencies that your phone uses.
Bob
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: George_M - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 17:26
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 17:26
You may
well have been very close to a tower, Bob.
George
Telstra mobile towers between Bourks and Hungerford
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Follow Up By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:10
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:10
A Re-radiating antenna is great for simplex transmission like GPS where the signal is focussed for reception. But it won't help 2 way conversations of phones. Must be a local cell.
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Follow Up By: Echucan Bob - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:31
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:31
George, Boobook
I think you are right about there being a local cell out there. The
Telstra coverage map that I saw shows a service at Enngonia which might reach the B-H road.
Where is the map that you posted from George?
There was no service at
Hungerford (as suggested by your map), and there was only the brief window that I mentioned.
I also have the option of switching on a (2 band duplex) booster in an emergency situation. Whilst these are perfectly legal all over the world, they are frowned upon in Oz.
Bob
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Follow Up By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:58
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:58
Bob, I hope you aren't talking about an active booster that you can buy on ebay.
Not only are they frowned upon, but they are illegal. I think you will find they are illegal in almost every country. They are not compliant and block the network.
You may get better reception, but everyone else on that cell will get no or poor transmit capability. You should bin it as they are dangerous to others and screw the system.
Please do not turn it on. Normally I'm not a law nanny but these are bad.
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Follow Up By: Echucan Bob - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:57
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:57
Boobook
Yes I hear what you say, but this
mob seem to think its legal.
Bob
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Follow Up By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 20:28
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 20:28
It might be if it's a fixed location, and the installation is approved by the carrier.
ACMA - repeaters
They swamp the input of the towers if they are not correctly set up.
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Follow Up By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 20:31
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 20:31
"Penalties
It is an offence under the Act to operate an unlicensed radiocommunications device, or possess this device for the purpose of operation. A person found guilty of this offence may be imprisoned for two years for each offence. A body corporate may receive a penalty of up to $255,000 (1,500 penalty units) per offence (sections 46 and 47 of the Act). Other penalties may apply, such as the interference offence provisions at Part 4.2 of the Act. "
I know they go to town looking for these when the carrier gets input flooding, they know it's fingerprint straight away.
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Follow Up By: George_M - Friday, Oct 25, 2013 at 09:48
Friday, Oct 25, 2013 at 09:48
I used
this website, Bob.
There are a number of others, and this one is mind-numbingly slow.
George
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Reply By: Brian 01 - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 12:12
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 12:12
The plug receptacle in the back of those phones is designated a technician only connection.
The attachment to the printed circuit board is very fragile and Samsung advises that any damage caused to the board as a result of using that plug would not be covered by warranty.
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Reply By: George_M - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 12:48
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 12:48
This company sells patch leads and replacement back covers for a wide variety of mobile devices to allow this type of connection.
This will give much greater range (relatively speaking), however it is still an individual matter of whether it is worth it or not. There is the durability of the connection to consider, as
well as your individual travel pattern - if you're 500klm from a cell phone tower it doesn't really matter if your device has a range of 50klm or 100klm.
George_M
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Reply By: TerraFirma - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 13:18
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 13:18
Check out the Smooth Talker cradles, they work a treat. I have tested them offshore in comparison with a Telstra phone with external antenna and couldn't split the difference. I have used both the Iphone 4 and 5 with success.
Google Smooth talker and the company is called Strike.
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Follow Up By: Parso - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:07
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:07
I too have a Smoothtalker cradle for my iPhone 4S. It definetly increases the range as my wifes phone (the same model) drops out whilst I still have two or three bars.
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Reply By: Garry S3 - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 15:51
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 15:51
does it work on any iphone? i can't really imagine what you guys are talking about. any sort of picture you guys can share?
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Follow Up By: TerraFirma - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:17
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 19:17
Gary, Its a cradle that holds the phone and couples with the antenna on the phone. There are different cradles to suit different I phones, the cradle has an antenna port and usually a CIG lighter plug for power and charging.
Google Smooth talker cradles there are plenty of pictures. They work trust me. Around $129 for the iPhone 5 cradle, around the same for the 4 and 4s
smooth talker
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Follow Up By: Gronk - Saturday, Oct 26, 2013 at 09:41
Saturday, Oct 26, 2013 at 09:41
I have a car comm cradle for my Lumia 920 and it doesn't get me any extra signal ( running a next G aerial on the bullbar ).
It's a nice fancy charger and cradle, but doesn't do what I bought it for !!
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Follow Up By: TerraFirma - Saturday, Oct 26, 2013 at 14:57
Saturday, Oct 26, 2013 at 14:57
Not sure what cradle you have Gronky but the Smooth Talker cradles work perfectly.
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800820
Reply By: Member - Wamuranman - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:10
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 18:10
I think most new vans come now with an antenna built on the roof of the van. Ours came with this Next G antenna on the roof and a plug in the van. But I did have to go to Jaycar to get the connector from phone to caravan plug (they call them patches).
It does give you better reception.
Cheers
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Reply By: Member - johnat - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 22:30
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 22:30
But ... part of the value of being on the road is the fact that the office is unable to contact you, surely?
I believe that it is only necessary to have phone coverage when stopped, and that could be for morning coffee, lunch or whatever. In fact, I turn off the phone when traveling. Turn it back on maybe once a day (providing I remember).
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Reply By: Member - bungarra (WA) - Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 23:17
Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 at 23:17
check my post 90154 Jan 2012........explains it all back then
Update...... I still do it with the S4 and contrary to dire predictions no dramas with the
test port failing......secondly I tested the Telstra Frontier side by side and it is very good ...and has someone has already stated..it has a dedicated external patch port
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