Hey, remember how excited you were when you got your first 3G phone? It might have been an Android, iPhone, or (eek) Blackberry. 3G technology was all the rage in the late 2000s. Back then people were just starting to use data on their phones and 3G promised “blazing fast” internet speeds. Real-world download speeds were an “amazing” 5 megabits per second. Remember when we were all so amazed to get internet on our phones that 5Mbps seemed awesome?
Around the time smartphones got popular for the first time, another technology was on the rise: cell phone signal boosters. The booster industry was just starting to grow at that time, and it got turbocharged in 2014 when the FCC issued formal rules for booster use that required carriers to accept them. Cell boosters were expensive in those days, and until the early 2010s, 4G and LTE weren’t really a big concern. So, the cell booster companies of the day created a lot of boosters that only worked with 3G voice and data.
Back then, we used to offer boosters like the YX510 you see here. They were simple, relatively low-powered devices that only worked with 2G and 3G frequencies. They simply did nothing for 4G or LTE frequencies, but most people back then didn’t care.
Maybe you had something like this in your home. Maybe you still do. These devices have proven to be very reliable over the years, and since they “just work” without you having to do anything, it’s possible you’ve had one quietly doing its job for 10-15 years now. Is it a dinosaur that needs to be replaced, or is it any good?
We all know, 3G is no more. Yes it was the darling of the late ’00s but times change. Today we’re all about 5G, which actually delivers speeds 500-750 times faster than 3G. You can’t use a 3G phone anymore, you can’t use any 3G devices since all the 3G towers have been turned off. There’s good news hidden there, though. 5G uses three different frequency ranges, and one of them is the range that was originally used for 2G and 3G.
So yes, that means if you have a “3G” booster it is going to boost some of your 5G signals as well! A cell booster doesn’t “understand” what kind of signal it’s boosting. It just boosts whatever it finds in that frequency range. So, even though a booster was designed for 3G, it still works with some 5G signals as long as they are in the same range as the old 3G signals.
If you have a 3G-only booster, you’re not boosting 4G/LTE signals. While 5G is usually faster than 4G/LTE, there are some real-world cases where LTE gives better results. Generally speaking your phone will use 5G or LTE, whichever is stronger and faster. You don’t notice the difference, you just notice great data speeds and clear voice calls.
If you have a 3G-only booster, you’re not getting that benefit. You’re relying completely on 5G and that may not be the best option for you. If you’re happy with what you have, that’s great… but if you feel like you’re not getting the best voice and data performance it might be time to replace that old 3G booster.
You can generally reuse old cable if you want to, but the rest of the booster system should be replaced. The antennas must be designed for all the frequencies used for both 4G/LTE and 5G.
Choosing a new, modern cell booster system will mean that you’ll get access to all the 4G/LTE frequencies, plus the 5G frequencies that were used by 3G originally. That’s the best way to make sure that you get the performance you’re looking for from your phone.
Check out the great selection of weBoost products at Solid Signal! If you’re not sure what you need, here are some resources that can help:
Buyer’s Guide for Vehicles
Buyer’s Guide for Home
Buyer’s Guide for Office
You can also call our team at 888-233-7563 or fill out the form below and we’ll be happy to recommend the right booster for you!
The post Can you use a 3G-only cell booster now that 3G is gone? appeared first on The Solid Signal Blog.
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Around the time smartphones got popular for the first time, another technology was on the rise: cell phone signal boosters. The booster industry was just starting to grow at that time, and it got turbocharged in 2014 when the FCC issued formal rules for booster use that required carriers to accept them. Cell boosters were expensive in those days, and until the early 2010s, 4G and LTE weren’t really a big concern. So, the cell booster companies of the day created a lot of boosters that only worked with 3G voice and data.
Back then, we used to offer boosters like the YX510 you see here. They were simple, relatively low-powered devices that only worked with 2G and 3G frequencies. They simply did nothing for 4G or LTE frequencies, but most people back then didn’t care.
Maybe you had something like this in your home. Maybe you still do. These devices have proven to be very reliable over the years, and since they “just work” without you having to do anything, it’s possible you’ve had one quietly doing its job for 10-15 years now. Is it a dinosaur that needs to be replaced, or is it any good?
Great news for people with old boosters
We all know, 3G is no more. Yes it was the darling of the late ’00s but times change. Today we’re all about 5G, which actually delivers speeds 500-750 times faster than 3G. You can’t use a 3G phone anymore, you can’t use any 3G devices since all the 3G towers have been turned off. There’s good news hidden there, though. 5G uses three different frequency ranges, and one of them is the range that was originally used for 2G and 3G.
So yes, that means if you have a “3G” booster it is going to boost some of your 5G signals as well! A cell booster doesn’t “understand” what kind of signal it’s boosting. It just boosts whatever it finds in that frequency range. So, even though a booster was designed for 3G, it still works with some 5G signals as long as they are in the same range as the old 3G signals.
But is that enough?
If you have a 3G-only booster, you’re not boosting 4G/LTE signals. While 5G is usually faster than 4G/LTE, there are some real-world cases where LTE gives better results. Generally speaking your phone will use 5G or LTE, whichever is stronger and faster. You don’t notice the difference, you just notice great data speeds and clear voice calls.
If you have a 3G-only booster, you’re not getting that benefit. You’re relying completely on 5G and that may not be the best option for you. If you’re happy with what you have, that’s great… but if you feel like you’re not getting the best voice and data performance it might be time to replace that old 3G booster.
You can generally reuse old cable if you want to, but the rest of the booster system should be replaced. The antennas must be designed for all the frequencies used for both 4G/LTE and 5G.
Choosing a new, modern cell booster system will mean that you’ll get access to all the 4G/LTE frequencies, plus the 5G frequencies that were used by 3G originally. That’s the best way to make sure that you get the performance you’re looking for from your phone.
Choose weBoost cell phone signal boosters
Check out the great selection of weBoost products at Solid Signal! If you’re not sure what you need, here are some resources that can help:
Buyer’s Guide for Vehicles
Buyer’s Guide for Home
Buyer’s Guide for Office
You can also call our team at 888-233-7563 or fill out the form below and we’ll be happy to recommend the right booster for you!
The post Can you use a 3G-only cell booster now that 3G is gone? appeared first on The Solid Signal Blog.
Continue reading...
