Review & Testing of weBoost Connect RV 65 Cell Phone Signal Booster
Jun 19, 2020
In video below, see review of weBoost RV Connect 65 cell phone signal booster after its installation. It is tested to see how much it improves signal reception before and after installing the cellular amplifier kit in an actual recreational vehicle (RV).
Testing the signal.
In above video, we put the Connect RV 65 to the test and see how well our cell signal improves. We currently have our inside antenna, the booster, and the 25-foot telescoping pole with directional antenna set up outside.
Let us begin the test.
First we're going to start with our booster off and see what type of existing signal we have. We're going to do two different types of tests. First is going to be a speed test, and then we're going to do a decibel reading. First, we're going to use a speed test app to test the existing cell signal. Here outside Crestview, our download speed without our booster on was 1.16 megabytes, and our upload speed was only 0.54. Therefore, it is really, really terrible cell signal.
Now we're going to test it with the booster on. Upon turning it on, almost immediately, we see a dramatic improvement in the download speed. Originally without the booster on, we had about 1.1 megabits per second. Now with our booster on, we're actually getting 9 to 11 megabits per second download, which is ten times more than we did without the booster on.
Getting a decibel reading.
Now that we completed our speed test, we're going to put our phone into field test mode, and get a decibel reading. Decibel readings are actually the most accurate way of measuring cell phone signal. Right now, we have our booster off. We're going to put our phone into the field test mode and test how strong the signal is.
Therefore, in our main menu, we're going to LTE. Then we're going to Serving Cell Measure. Then we're going to be reading the RSRP0 number. Right now with the booster off, our number is around -117. Once you get into the -120 range, your cell phone signal is actually unusable. Now, we're going to turn our cell phone booster on and see how much the sound signal actually improves.
Almost immediately, when the cell phone booster was turned on, my cell signal went from -117 to -94, which is a dramatic improvement.
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5 comments
A field test is the only way to do things if you are trying to check the cell signal strength where you’re standing (unless you have a signal meter). Using your phone’s signal bars isn’t useless, but the signal bars are notorious for being unreliable. Excellent advice here about the field test mode and if you can’t find it on your phone, there are apps for Android and iPhones.
Hey Cameron, you shouldn’t worry about longevity with getting a signal booster. This 4G model will be good for the next 5 years to say the least because 4G networks are not going anywhere for the next few years.
Hey Cameron. You ask “should I get a booster” despite your plans to upgrade to 5G next year. Let me share my story. Excuse the length of my response, but I think you’ll appreciate the details.
I decided to buy a 4G signal booster after not only after hours, weeks but months of research. Here’s what I found out:
Most of the US carriers will use mmWave for the 5G cell phone network:
n260 band (based on 37GHz to 40GHz frequencies) – used by Verizon Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobile.
n261 (27.5GHz to 28.35GHz) – used by Verizon Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobile.
Since the coverage of the mmWave is very small, the carriers need to invest huge amounts of money to build dense 5G base stations to achieve substantial amount of coverage, This makes expansion and thereby popularization of 5G very, very, very slow.
To put this matter in perspective, rural areas will practically never cover “high-band mmWave 5G” (we’re not talking about T-Mobile’s 600MHz Band 71 which is sub-6 5G). Sub-6 includes mobile data with frequencies under 6Ghz – that includes “mid-band” and “low-band” frequencies. The terms “high-band” or also referred to, as “wide-band”, “ultra wideband”, “millimeter wave (mmWave, MWV)” all generally refer to data on frequencies over 24Ghz.
That means 4G will coexist for a long time along with the 5G while it is developing, expanding.
In addition, mmWave 5G signal booster exists, but ordinary consumers cannot afford it, because at this stage, the price of mmWave devices is quite high. See for example this 5G booster that includes T-Mobile 5G on 600 MHz is already at $7k: https://www.signalbooster.com/products/surecall-force-8-5g-signal-booster-for-3g-4g-4g-lte-5g
While boosters for T-mobile Band 71 600MHz, and AT&T Band 5 850MHz are around $7000, consumer mmWave 5G signal boosters are anticipated to take 2-3 years to launch!
Like I said it took me months to find out all this – so when I did, I bought 4G booster as soon as I could :)
I wouldn’t mind getting a cell phone booster. What’s the shelf life on a model like this? I have a 4G phone but will probably upgrade to 5G next year. Should I get a booster?
When I try to validate a brand’s claims, I always go to people who have utilized the service or product, simply because they can give me an idea of how their experience relates to what I am looking to do. I might need plumbing work done so I’ll see how they did hiring Plumber X. I might need a new coffee machine so I’ll see how they did. This video of the Connect RV 65 Cell Phone Signal Booster is a good place for me to start my search process for a cell phone booster. Next I’m going to read the reviews and see what people say with an eye on whether the reviews seem realistic (i.e. no plethora of five-star reviews).