New York — More cellular-signal boosters have won certification from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) under new regulatory and technical standards to prevent cellular-network disruption.
Wilson Electronics of St. George, Utah, said its entire line of consumer cellular signal boosters has now been certified with the certification of the MobilePro and DB Pro 4G products.
For its part, San Diego-based Nextivity said its Cel-Fi Smart Signal booster, designed for use on the AT&T network, has been certified. The booster is the only provider-specific booster that complies with the new FCC rules, the company claimed.
Nextivity’s $575 Cel-Fi covers up to 13,000 square feet and enables up to 60 simultaneous users and 42Mbps data speeds.
Wilson’s $549-suggested in-door DB Pro and $229 Mobile Pro, designed for in-door and in-vehicle use, will ship “shortly,” the company said. The DB Pro amplified 2G, 3G and 4G signals for all carriers but Clearwire. The Mobile Pro amplifies 850/1900MHz 2G and 3G signals.
Boosters extend cellular-signal range, reduce the number of dropped calls, improve voice quality, deliver fewer dead zones, accelerate data downloads, and improve cellphone battery life. Boosters must meet the FCC’s standards by April 30.
The new FCC Part 20 rules address both carrier-specific boosters and wideband boosters, Nextivity said. Provider-specific boosters, which are designed to work on a specific carrier’s network, are allowed higher system gains of up to 100dB. Wideband boosters operating over multiple carriers’ frequency bands are capped at 70dB for 700MHz spectrum and 72dB for 1.7/2.1GHz spectrum. As a result, Nextivity said, provider-specific boosters offer 1,000 times the gain of wideband boosters and much wider coverage within a building.
