Old Wilson 801201 cell booster

[AstroRig57]

Forgive if this is redundant and someone finds the old thread but I'll be darned if I can find it...even archived.

We have a Wilson 801201 MobileWireless amplifier that was removed when we got rid of our Class-C motor home.

On the Class-C, I had a 50 foot run of Ultra Low-Loss Coaxial Cable that ran from the amplifier to the Wilson Cellular Trucker antenna that was mounted at the top of the ladder. The cable dropped through the floor, then ran under the coach, and up to the top of the ladder. It was a clean, and robust, installation and when we got rid of the old rig it was spur of the moment and I just didn't take the time to remove the cable.

When we got our Class-A, I had inquired (here I thought) as to whether or not it was even worth installing the system in it since the system is dated and doesn't support the latest cellular protocols (4G, LTE, etc.)

We have now purchased a WiFi Camp Pro Kit w/ Suction Cup Mount and I've realized that I could use the suction cup mount, with a PVC pipe extension as demonstrated on the product video, to mount the Wilson Cellular Trucker antenna without going to the hassle of a long cable run. We'd never need to use the WiFi booster and cellphone booster at the same time since, in our experience, if we are in a park with WiFi the cell signal is always adequate. However, it might be nice to again have the cell booster available when we are in our remote astronomy sites with sketchy signal.

Again, I just know if it's worth the trouble. I know the old Wilson system will support my old 3G flip phone, but I don't know if it will support my wife's iPhone (if only on 3G)? Does anyone know?

We are on AT&T and my wife currently has an iPhone 6 (specs) and an almost new iPad Mini and I have the old Motorola flip phone (kept because, with it's little nub antenna, it will often get signal where nothing else will.) My wife claims that the iPhone 6 will NOT work under 3G yet I read that it will, however, all of the articles that say how to enable it do not resemble the options and settings on her phone. Does anyone have experience with this?

[htwheelz67]

I had the same setup and replaced it with this......4g booster the only difference betwwen the rv model is the rv model comes with an additional 12v cig plug adapter and the refurbished model has the same warranty as new but saves about 130 bucks. I get 1 bar outside and 4-5 inside the trailer and you can be anywhere inside unlike the old wilson unit. This unit has a directional antenna though, you can use an omni directional antenna but with not as much gain, this unit uses std 75 ohm cable like on your tv. I have tried verizon,att and sprint with it and it works well on all of them, there is an app you can download to your phone called "open signal" and it will point you to where the closest cell towers are.

[AstroRig57]

pauldub wrote:
It might be different with AT&T since LTE is a Verizon feature; but Yes, the iPhone works on 3G when there is no LTE service. You can even force it to 3G by turning off LTE in settings. Under settings, pick "Cellular" then pick "Cellular Data Options", then pick "Enable LTE" and pick "OFF". If it doesn't work that way on her phone, she probable hasn't installed the latest iOS or because a phone configured for AT&T is different than Verizon.

LTE is not a Verizon only feature. It's in use by all of the major carriers. I think I just answered my question by looking up the the specific AT&T iPhone specs on the AT&T site rather than on Apple's. It lists the iPhone6S wireless technologies as:


4G-LTE Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, and 29
4G HSPA+ with enhanced backhaul
3G – UMTS 850/900/1700-2100/1900/2100MHz
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900MHz
World phone Quad-band
Wi-Fi connectivity 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi?Fi with MIMO

Given that, and seeing the 3G frequencies noted, the iPhone should be able to benefit from the boosted signal at least for voice and text which is all we want when out on the boondocks.

Some posts on the Apple support forums say that the issue of not having 3G available on a late model iPhone is an AT&T issue and should be addressed with them. Others say that the option to turn 3G on will only appear in the Settings when no LTE or other 4G is available. It sounds like a visit to both the Apple Genius Bar and the AT&T store may be in order to get the straight scoop.

[GordonThree]

Buying a new amp, it's safe to exclude the 1700mhz band? It does seem to add a lot of cost.

[MrWizard]

Correct, but not one automatically needed
If you have a weak 700khz signal, the 1700khz signal is going to be even weaker
At the same location for the same amount of tower broadcast power,

The effect upon actual users, might be nothing more than a placebo
Still working on the 700lte band because not enough signal level on the 1700 mhz

[GordonThree]

Just another band not covered by the old 3g amplifier

[MrWizard]

Strange as it seems
xlte is just a spin phrase, for the 1700mhz aws band 11
The phones operate on the 700~800 lte band, and if it has xlte, jumps up to 1700 band if the tower signals for it to do so because of congestion
Electronically is not faster or longer range, but slightly less congested until a few more phones are sold,

[GordonThree]

I have an old Wilson amp installed in one of my buildings, and the new phones do not use it. Network preference is if 4g is available, even weak, the phones all use it, and ignore the much stronger 3g signal. Doesn't seem to matter which carrier.

One of these days I have to get my radio guys in to rip out the old 2g/3g stuff and put in a new XLTE compatible amp.

[ktmrfs]

I doubt seriously that any new phone would NOT work on 3G. the reason is that there are still lots of areas of the country where 4G or LTE is NOT available.

I know my newest samsung phones will work on 3G, there are still places in our metro area where you get 3G.

the older wilson amps will likely work just fine for phone and 3G data. the phone and 3G use lower frequency bands and the are common between GSM and CDMA. It is the 4G LTE that is different between GSM and CDMA carriers.

I have two older wilson amps in two applications and they work just fine with any phone I've used for voice and 3G.

[Crabbypatty]

Call Wilson they are very helpful.

[JiminDenver]

I have devices on all four carriers and they all have LTE.

[pauldub]

It might be different with AT&T since LTE is a Verizon feature; but Yes, the iPhone works on 3G when there is no LTE service. You can even force it to 3G by turning off LTE in settings. Under settings, pick "Cellular" then pick "Cellular Data Options", then pick "Enable LTE" and pick "OFF". If it doesn't work that way on her phone, she probable hasn't installed the latest iOS or because a phone configured for AT&T is different than Verizon.