bobjohnson
Premium
join:2007-02-03
Titusville, FL
1 edit | $100
$100 would be a great price.. Sprint just tried to sell me a signal repeater for $349.. I think femtocells are a good idea if you use your phone at home alot like I do.. |
|
NY Tel
Premium
join:2004-04-09
Smithtown, NY
 ·VOIPo
| Yup this will benefit consumers and allow them to further "cut the cord" and ditch their landlines. Take the 50 bucks a month you pay for unlimited dialtone and out it towards an unlimited cell plan for $99.00 if the situation is right for someone.
Not for everyone, but it is a good alternative option. |
|
en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA | reply to bobjohnson
A signal repeater will work where ever you need the signal 'repeated'.
A femtocell requires an internet connection.
--
Canada = Hollywood North |
|
KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
 ·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
 ·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| reply to bobjohnson
I thought Femotocells reroute your at home calls via your internet connection (VOIP) and so don't burn your minutes.
If AT&T wants you to pay for the minutes AND pay for the hardware, well, that's just a rip-off. That's making you pay for what you should already get.
--
"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) |
|
djrobx
join:2000-05-31
Valencia, CA | It's not a rip off if you just want your cell phone to work reliably in your house. I'd happily pay $100 for such a device. I barely use up my minutes anyway. |
|
KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| Yes, that's a rip off. If you have cell service, and it doesn't work in your home, and it's going to use your minutes, they should *give you* a repeater to make the service work.
Now, if this femtocell is like T-Mobiles and will save you minutes, well, I can see offering them for sale to those who want them.
--
"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) |
|
GOLFnSUN
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
 ·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Comcast
| reply to djrobx
said by djrobx  :It's not a rip off if you just want your cell phone to work reliably in your house. I'd happily pay $100 for such a device. I barely use up my minutes anyway. If Verizon offered a femtocell service, I'd seriously look at it and then dump my land line altogether.
--
My BLOG .. .. Internet News .. .. My Web Page |
|
bobjohnson
Premium
join:2007-02-03
Titusville, FL
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to KrK
said by KrK :Yes, that's a rip off. If you have cell service, and it doesn't work in your home, and it's going to use your minutes, they should *give you* a repeater to make the service work. Now, if this femtocell is like T-Mobiles and will save you minutes, well, I can see offering them for sale to those who want them. T-Mo hotspot service is not femtocell it's just your phone using wi-fi with voip... femtocell is like a miniature cell tower using your internet connection as a backhaul line so you can use it with any GSM phone. |
|
KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| said by bobjohnson :T-Mo hotspot service is not femtocell it's just your phone using wi-fi with voip... femtocell is like a miniature cell tower using your internet connection as a backhaul line so you can use it with any GSM phone. That's why I said "like T-mobiles." It's not quite the same tech, but it's the exactly the same idea. IE reliable Cell service in your home, going out on your broadband. I like this idea, provided AT&T doesn't still try and charge you for minutes. If the calls go out on your own internet, then there should be no minute charges to your plan.
Now, if they DO use your minutes, then they shouldn't charge you anything for the hardware. It should be free.
--
"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) |
|
bobjohnson
Premium
join:2007-02-03
Titusville, FL
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·RoadRunner Cable
| said by KrK :said by bobjohnson :T-Mo hotspot service is not femtocell it's just your phone using wi-fi with voip... femtocell is like a miniature cell tower using your internet connection as a backhaul line so you can use it with any GSM phone. That's why I said "like T-mobiles." It's not quite the same tech, but it's the exactly the same idea. IE reliable Cell service in your home, going out on your broadband. I like this idea, provided AT&T doesn't still try and charge you for minutes. If the calls go out on your own internet, then there should be no minute charges to your plan. Now, if they DO use your minutes, then they shouldn't charge you anything for the hardware. It should be free. Oh, ok I got ya... They will just charge you for an unlimited plan for the minutes at home like everyone else has so far i'm sure |
|
djrobx
join:2000-05-31
Valencia, CA
·PHONE POWER
 ·AT&T U-Verse
·AT&T CallVantage
·Time Warner VOIP
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to KrK
quote:
If you have cell service, and it doesn't work in your home, and it's going to use your minutes, they should *give you* a repeater to make the service work.
That would be nice, but IMHO, that's an unrealistic expectation. No cell company guarantees coverage.
Plus, I really can't fault AT&T too much for my poor reception - they built a tower about 3,000 feet away. The terrain is simply not good for any sort of radio reception here. I've considered buying a repeater, but the ones I've seen are way more than $100, and I'd want something I know is going to work with 3G. A simpler, cheaper device that I can plug into my broadband connection sounds like a great idea to me. I have no need for cheaper/extra minutes. I don't spend that much time on my phone. I just want it to work for those few times I do need it. |
|
NY Tel
Premium
join:2004-04-09
Smithtown, NY
·VOIPo
1 edit | reply to GOLFnSUN
said by GOLFnSUN :said by djrobx :It's not a rip off if you just want your cell phone to work reliably in your house. I'd happily pay $100 for such a device. I barely use up my minutes anyway. If Verizon offered a femtocell service, I'd seriously look at it and then dump my land line altogether. They are going to offer it later this year. Details are here:
Verizon Wireless: Femtocells in 2008
By admin
Created Apr 7 2008 - 6:59am
Verizon Wireless CTO Tony Melone said at the CTIA Wireless 2008 trade show last week that the carrier would begin offering femtocell products and service plans sometime this year. The announcement follows a move by Sprint into the femtocell arena. AT&T also is said to be evaluating a femtocell offering.
What remains to be seen is what Verizon will charge for the femtocell device and the service plan. Sprint charges around $50 for the product and $15 per month for service. Verizon's commitment, broader than Sprint's thus far and the only one by a U.S. telco that has both local wireline and wireless networks, may well bring femtocell deployment to its tipping point in the U.S. market. |
|
en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA | reply to djrobx
Are you on Seco Canyon ?
There are plans to build a couple of sites on Seco in 2009
--
Canada = Hollywood North |
|
