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CraigY

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#195391 19-Apr-2016 09:45
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We live in a topographic bowl where we do not get any cellphone service (no bars on HTC One).  But, if I go up to our 3 bay implement shed (about 80 meters distance) I get two bars on the phone.  What I want to do then is install a high gain yagi or dish antenna on the shed to boost the signal considerably, but then I now need some method to get that signal down to the house.  I think there are two options:  a) setup some type of cellphone repeater so that a boosted signal is now visible to the cellphone at the house, or b) somehow transfer the cellphone signal to a wifi signal and use a DECT type portable phone at the house that can now use the cellular system.  I do have a buried CAT 6 cable from the shed to the house and there is power at the shed.  I also have a buried phone line cable from the shed to the house that is available.  In the house I have the cellphone but I also have a Gigaset C610A IP which currently has a VOIP service connected but no land line.  Maybe another alternative is to use the high gain cellular service to add Vodafone RBI broadband and use a Vodafone sure signal box to relay the signal down to the Gigaset box.  That way I can select either the existing VOIP line or the cellular line.

 

Suggestions?

 

 

 

Craig

 

 





Craig


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sbiddle
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  #1535391 19-Apr-2016 10:28
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There are no legal DIY boosters for Vodafone.

 

There are solutions approved by Spark and 2degrees (cel-fi being one).

 

 




tripp
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  #1535394 19-Apr-2016 10:32
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be careful about cellphone repeaters in NZ.

 

A quick search will show up some info that people have already asked

 

 

 

http://www.geekzone.co.nz/forums.asp?forumid=39&topicid=193798

 

http://www.cel-fi.co.nz/


tripp
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  #1535396 19-Apr-2016 10:32
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Vodafone does have 

 

http://www.vodafone.co.nz/mobile/3g-sure-signal/




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  #1535473 19-Apr-2016 11:38
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I have removed non-approved links. Very few cell phone boosters are legal in New Zealand.

 

 





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shk292
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  #1535502 19-Apr-2016 12:03
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Could you use your VOIP number as your main number and use a service that rings both your home (VOIP) phone and your cellphone when you get an incoming call?  Then it doesn't really matter if your cellphone is out of coverage because you'll receive calls on the home phone


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  #1535527 19-Apr-2016 12:25
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I might not understand your problem but could trying out Skinny be an option? It is possible spark has better coverage in your micro location?

 
 
 
 

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ghettomaster
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  #1535538 19-Apr-2016 12:34
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A friend of mine had a similar problem. He used a vodafone suresignal but found it rather frustrating. The call quality wasn't great and when he arrived home in the middle of a call, he had to stay up the top of the drive as the call would not switch to the suresignal when arriving home.

 

 

 

In the end he resorted to forwarding his mobile to his landline. You would a generous or unlimited minutes plan on your mobile to do this of course.


CraigY

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  #1535546 19-Apr-2016 12:45
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I looked at Cel-fi but they don't seem to offer an external antenna .. they have a box you put outside with an internal antenna (in the box) but I don't think that will be big enough to capture a 103dB signal.  Then I still have to somehow get the signal from there down to the house.  I don't think the range of the wifi will be long enough.  But I will contact them to see if they have a solution.





Craig


CraigY

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  #1535549 19-Apr-2016 12:49
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The problem with SureSignal from Vodafone is that it uses a vodafone broadband service on the internet to 'feed' a local pico-cell (I think) which then allows the cellphone to think it is connected to a cell tower.  The problem is if our internet voip line was reliable enough we would just stay with that.  But the other day we needed to talk to a doctor at the Waikato hospital and they could not understand us because the voip service kept dropping in and out.  This is why we need to setup a backup service and cellular seemed the best option.  So if the internet is dogged down and voip is not reliable, then at least for emergencies and such we can always use the cellular service.





Craig


CraigY

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  #1535553 19-Apr-2016 12:53
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If Vodafone does not have a 'repeater' option available, we can setup a Spark account.  Also, not sure, but I think at this location the Spark cellular signal is a bit stronger.  I am only guessing this because the contractors working here reported their Spark cellphones could get service, but limited, whereas the Vodafone cellphones never did get signal.  So I can go either way.  We already have a Vodafone account hence starting with that on this post.





Craig


CraigY

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  #1535590 19-Apr-2016 13:15
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One possible solution is offered by Cellutronics, their Passive Repeater product.  It uses an external yagi antenna .. so that's good, which then connects to an indoor passive radiator.  The video shows about a 30dB gain, which takes a -107dB signal to a -78dB signal on the phone.  The setup seems to be you place a phone (Spark or Vodafone) on the passive radiator and then connect it to their XDect phone system using Bluetooth.  From there you can then put a repeater down to the house and have the portable phones down there.  So I think this might work.  Does anyone have any experience with it?  The cost is about $600 including two XDECT portable phones.





Craig


 
 
 
 

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Batman
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  #1535629 19-Apr-2016 14:07
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CraigY:

 

If Vodafone does not have a 'repeater' option available, we can setup a Spark account.  Also, not sure, but I think at this location the Spark cellular signal is a bit stronger.  I am only guessing this because the contractors working here reported their Spark cellphones could get service, but limited, whereas the Vodafone cellphones never did get signal.  So I can go either way.  We already have a Vodafone account hence starting with that on this post.

 

 

I wouldn't move lock stock and barrel to Spark straightaway but you should say get a prepaid sim and try it out for a month or at least a week


kiwigander
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  #1536060 19-Apr-2016 21:41
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I am in a somewhat similar geographic situation.

My solution is a yagi (from Tennatron in Motueka), a Huawei B315 box (from Vodafone) and a SIM (from 2^, but a Vodafone SIM would work just as well).

You don't want a rural broadband plan for this endeavour - just buy the B315 outright.

Plug a standard analogue phone into the RJ-12 port of the B315 and remember to dial the area code for every call.

To carry the signal 80 m from the yagi to the house you'll want some beefy coax. I suspect LMR400 would give the best results but you might be able to get away with RG213.

Geekzone member oxnsox may be able to offer some more detailed advice.

Batman
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  #1536191 20-Apr-2016 07:05
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kiwigander: I am in a somewhat similar geographic situation.

My solution is a yagi (from Tennatron in Motueka), a Huawei B315 box (from Vodafone) and a SIM (from 2^, but a Vodafone SIM would work just as well).

You don't want a rural broadband plan for this endeavour - just buy the B315 outright.

Plug a standard analogue phone into the RJ-12 port of the B315 and remember to dial the area code for every call.

To carry the signal 80 m from the yagi to the house you'll want some beefy coax. I suspect LMR400 would give the best results but you might be able to get away with RG213.

Geekzone member oxnsox may be able to offer some more detailed advice.

 

If somehow you get really good Spark signal you can get Skinny broadband ... I think ...


CraigY

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  #1536226 20-Apr-2016 08:12
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I see .. so any modem/router that has a GSM input w/external antenna and supports a handset would work.





Craig


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