Living in central Idaho, there are allot of places without cell service... I have both the Wilson sleek and two of the 801201's( AC/DC adapter). The big ones are far more powerful coupled with a Yagi (directional) antenna.... The antennas are important and the more gain the better.
Almost all of the time I can usually get out a text message some where close but solid calls in the boonies are another matter.I'm told by some back country residents since they went 100% digital they lost the ability to make calls they used to be able to make on there amplified bag phones with external antennas on the analog network.
Boon docking requires cell boosters around here if you want to keep in touch even if it's a text message with signals fading in and out with the wind.