Verizon Wireless releases 'Network Extender'

From my experience, Verizon does have a pretty amazing network. There are very few places that I didn't have service with my Verizon phone. But with AT&T, that's another can of worms. I would love to get my hands on an AT&T femtocell because AT&T's network does not cover my house very well (or anywhere for that matter) so it's kind of sad to see that theirs might only be 3G-only. In my view, the 2G network is the network in need to repair, not the 3G one. The 3G network should be comparable to CDMA in terms of voice quality in low signal areas.

 

If you have a UMA compatible phone with T-Mobile, you can make calls from any wifi connection and this uses plan minutes. No setup is required. If you want, you can add a package on your line for $10 /mo to have unlimited wifi calling that doesn't use plan minutes.

While t-mobile recommends that you buy their router to make wifi calls, you don't need it. I've tested the service out and you can make calls just fine over any router provided that you have a low latency connection (not satellite internet, etc.)

 

The specs have been released on AT&T's device. In terms of connections: "it supports 10 phones or 4 3G data devices"

AT&T Femtocell Service Website Goes Live - Supports 3G, will have monthly plan -- supports up to 10 phones... - dslreports.com

 

Well that blows Sprint and Verizon away.

 

yeah honestly I would say that AT&T has the best deal

Verizon uses minutes and has no security on it whatsoever
Sprint charges a fee for unlimited minutes and only 1X
T-Mobile requires specific phones

AT&T doest too but at least most of the phones they offer now and even some of their low end phones are already 3G capable and 3G is the way we're going.....

 

It would be nice if AT&T's device was GSM compatible as well, several of my friends have 2G GSM AT&T devices, it'd be nice if they could use it while at my house if I got one. They also seem to have to "pre-authorize" phones to be able to use your femtocell. If I had a choice I'd set it so any AT&T customer visiting my home had access to the femtocell.

-Jay

 

That's what I like about the Sprint device. I can set up to 50 numbers that are allowed to use the Airave, or I can leave it open. Since my neighbors are college kids that like to have parties, I set mine to restrict but have added everyone that I know uses Sprint and comes to my house as an authorized user.

 

I leave my Sprint Airave on unrestricted mode all the time and have never had any problems. But I don't think my closest neighbors who could potentially lock on to my signal are Sprint users.

 

Moving the unit to a central area could also add to security by limiting the range outdoors. If that is an issue at all. Same for in house WiFi.

 

From the way the title sounds (10 phones or 4 3G data devices), it sounds like the 10 phones could be GSM. I should think the "data devices" could mean phones (only while on 3G), too.

 

I'd expect the AT&T femtocell's ten call voice call limit to include GSM and 3G. At 8 to 16 kbps per call (depending on codec), that's 80 to 160 kpbs both ways, upstream and down (and a little more for overhead). You might not have much bandwidth left over for the those four data connections, 3G (EDGE and GPRS, too for full backward compatiblitity). I look forward to seeing the specs and owner's manual.

Most broadband, both dsl and cable, is upstream limited. BellSouth offered DSL Lite at 256/128 kbps. It was replaced by the AT&T Southeast offering of 768/128 as lowest speed, lowest price. The satellite ISP Wildblue, as delivered to my daughter's house by the farm in Mississippi, is 512k down and 64 to 128k up, depending on time of day (due to number of users online).

I would have though an eight GSM user limit was natural, the femtocell would just need to supply one eight channel carrier. Having 3G voice built in is a good nod to the future.

My next daughter is in Cambridge, Massachusetts and her apartment is a AT&T weak spot (only works near the bedroom window). She has Verizon DSL 3M/512kbps, so this could be a good place to deploy a femtocell (within the family).

COtech

 

yeah my modem is registered at 3.3Mbps down/864 Kbps up but i prolli don't get nearly that....DSL btw

lol funny thing is i was laughing a bit about the economic stimulus program that just got through the house and a decent chunk of it was devoted to getting broadband internet to rural areas

 

i just read in the Extender manual that it can be managed to block out unwanted users

http://support.vzw.com/pdf/network_extender_user_manual.pdf

pages 10 and 11

 

OR NOT! check this out: Network Extender Management
Can I manage access to my Network Extender? Yes. Network Extender owners can sign into My Verizon to manage device settings. You can set your Network Extender for open or managed access. Open Access allows any Verizon Wireless phone within range to use your Network Extender. Under Managed Access, you have the ability to prioritize access to your Network Extender to up to 50 Verizon Wireless callers you select. Where a compatible cell tower is unavailable, callers that do not appear on your managed access list may access the Network Extender when not in use by priority callers. All callers may access the Network Extender for emergency (E911) calls.
http://support.vzw.com/faqs/Equipment/network_extender.html#item32

 

which doesnt make any sense cuz you would seriously have to have to have a family plan of 5 lines and friends over....actually i lied you would have to have a full house party where everyone is Verizon to max out the extender so that's just bull and then when someone tries to they leech off your broadband while you're trying to talk.....nah i don't buy that that whole concept is just ridic that Verizon is trying to pull something like that

i mean shouldnt that be illegal because technically that means that other unauthorized people are using your broadband internet connection

 

I guess this isn't going to be good for my sister's house, reception is ok, but not that great & since this doesn't support EVDO, that ends the hope for our LT's to get a better signal & faster usage.

She has been talking going to a Satellite internet, since her company will pay for it, the AT&T one would be a good option, but she won't switch because of her job & the cable & phone companies want to charge them close to a grand to bring the lines to her house, because it sit's back from the road.
No win situation.

 

"When the base station is set to managed access mode, unauthorized users are redirected to the nearest compatible cell tower wherever possible."

I live in an apt complex...

 

My parents had satellite internet because until a few months ago it was the only broadband available. The throughput was decent, but the ping times were often >500ms. It didn't feel much faster than dialup, although it was.

 

I would see it as a negative for all carriers because why should it use plan minutes if its going over your internet connection which you already pay for? It's BS.

 

Good point.

 

Back to my original point. If it uses your airtime minutes, what's the point of paying a monthly fee? You already pay for your minutes in your plan. Why pay for them again?

T-Mobile's idea sounds better to me: unlimited talk time. Since it doesn't use the most expensive link on the network's path (the cell tower), and you pay an extra fee, then there's no reason not to allow unlimited talk time. T-Mobile's downside is, of course, the UMA phone requirement.

 

Actually, I think at this point in time most AT&T users have a 3G phone. By this I mean over 50% of AT&T users have a 3G phone. Remember that 3G phones started to appear about 5 years ago and for the past couple of years most of the AT&T phone lineup is 3G capable. The average phone lifetime in a user's hand is about 2 years, I believe. Think about how many million new activations and upgrades AT&T has done in the past 5 years and it will give you an idea. AT&T usually does about 4 to 5 million new activations per quarter. That doesn't include upgrades. Do the math from there.

So I think they'll be ok having a 3G-only femtocell. Product adoption time into the market (which normally takes years to become widespread) will allow for more 3G phones to be out in the streets replacing the remaining ones. Also, don't forget that AT&T's 3G network has less availability nationwide than their 2G network, so when looking at that it makes sense to boost 3G with femtocell service instead of a 2G femtocell. Finally, a dual mode femtocell would simply add to the cost making it more problematic to sell.

 

Well, I would buy a combined 2G & 3G Femtocell, but I can see why most wouldn't.

-Jay

 

But with T-Mobile, you don't have to pay anything to use it... you only pay the $10 if you want all the calls from your "HotSpot" to not use your rate-plan minutes... but if you have a MyFaves plan with unlimited calling to 5 people (which, who heavily calls more people than that anyway?) PLUS unlimited nights and weekends... I certainly don't need to pay the $10 - so I don't!

And yeah, you have to have a wi-fi enabled phone with the right software, but it is just secure as your wireless network itself is because, well it is a router! If you have a complex WEP password for your wireless network, that's what you have to enter on your phone to gain access. Also, it's able to extend much further than the "5000 square feet" that Verizon and Sprint claim. So more range and more security.

Also, the T-Mobile unit --although NOT required-- is only $50 when I bought it (and FREE with the mail-in-rebate)...

But as long as you have the right phone from T-Mobile, you can get full service anywhere there is a wireless Internet connection and you know the password if any... Still sounds like the better deal to me!!

 

I like the fact that the Sprint unit works with any Sprint phone and even you're visitors with Sprints phones can automatically use it as well with no additional steps such as pass keys necessary.

 

...Yeah, I suppose it would nice to provide your company and guests with full service while at your home effortlessly... but unless all your guests have the same provider as you do, there's nothing too special about providing your friends or family with full service. After all, unless you take the time to inform them about your new level of service, they will most likely make due without their cell or make other arrangements and/or they might find it rude to actually get much use out of their cell phone while visiting you for a short while anyway)...

On the other hand, If you are housing a friend or family member for the week or so, and they happen to have the same provider, then I'm sure they will be eternally grateful for your technical wireless wonder ---and of course, your hospitality

As a side note, I sort of got the impression that there's some confusion on the number of people that can use Verizon's Wireless Extender simultaneously... it's 3 (the fourth channel is reserved for E911 calls). If anyone wishes to take the time to program in up to 50 "priority users" they can knock themselves out but if you actually have all of those people together in one enclosure, it'll be like a mini inauguration party...lol

 

I just happen to have a lot of friends and family members with Sprint so it works out great for us.

 

Haha, well that's good then, because I'm sure the service in Orange County is just terrible to begin with... But no seriously, that would work out fine if that's what most of your friends have... it just doesn't usually work out that way.

EDIT: I take that back about Sprint service in Orange County... it really isn't that great in some select spots...That's not what I would have thought, but Sprint's maps tell me otherwise.. even though it's "FAIR" on their maps, I wouldn't find that to be acceptable either... and would also look into femtocell as a good option.

 

i always preferred T-Mobile for their value, customer service, and their phone selection.....

once their 3G coverage builds out i'll switch back and the whole UMA thing is great because i'm prolli going to be making a lot of extended trips to New Zealand and femtocells can't be used out of the country so.....

 

I'm paying about $8 less per month for the same level of service/features than my friends are with AT&T and Verizon (and arguably getting more value with consideration of MyFaves vs. that of just mobile-to-mobile calling). Granted coverage with T-Mobile isn't quite as great (although it's great with UMA!)... but it's only a matter of time (hopefully) until there is national wireless broadband.... And as it is, most everywhere we go there is access to wireless Internet... whether it be home, work, school, restaurants, hotels, etc.

I mean, I appreciate the new femtocell technology, but for now I intend to stick with T-Mobile (but that's regardless of the UMA vs. femtocell technology). In fact, I think Femtocell is a smart move, but it really depends on how the providers carry it out. It's goes without saying that the choices in cell phone models doesn't even compare to the selection of UMA phones, but personally I like my Blackberry Curve And there's been lots of new UMA models added to T-Mobile since it's debut...

And also, I am the one who paid for my phone, my service with T-Mobile, and my broadband connection... so frankly, I don't really care that other people can't enjoy the same level of service at my home. My friends would probably be willing to come over to my place more often if they did have good service, but it's just as good to meet up in town where all of us have good service