Posts Tagged wi-ex

Raise your hand if your cell phone has ever dropped a call.

That’s what I thought.  If you own a cell phone, your hand just went up.

Frankly, it amazes me that cell phones work as well as they do, with their low power, minimal antennas and tall buildings, trees and hills getting in the way.

But with a Wi-Ex Cell Phone Signal Booster in your home, car, or workspace (or all of the above), you’ll have far fewer of those frustrating, one-sided conversations—when you’re still jabbering on, but no one is on the other end because the call has dropped.

For travelers, the zBoost YX230 will boost cell phone signals inside your car—up to 10 times, according to the manufacturer.  It sets up a “cell zone” inside your car and works for multiple calls at the same time.

The YX230 will extend the range of your cell phones and reduce the dreaded dead zones.  My experience shows it significantly improves the signal inside cars while driving.

The part of Texas where I live is known for an abundance of pine trees, which can really limit cell-phone coverage.  But the Wi-Ex turns weak signals into usable ones.

A friend of mine who works for a television network was covering Hurricane Ike when it battered Galveston last year.  None of the crew could make cell calls because towers weren’t working on the island.  But standing near a photographer’s car which had a Wi-Ex, they were able to get a signal from the mainland and complete their calls.

How much is it worth at times like those?  Priceless.

The list price is $299.99.  But there are substantial discounts and a rebate available at Amazon.com through August 29. After that who knows, but check the current price here.

Of course, you don’t have to be chasing hurricanes to benefit from having a Wi-Ex in your car.  I’m also going to recommend it to a friend who regularly makes a 16-hour drive to a second home.  During the trip, his wife checks e-mail and keeps in touch using an air card on her laptop computer.  The Wi-Ex should considerably improve the experience.

Installation is quick and easy.  The kit includes small signal amplifier that plugs into a 12V cigarette-type power adapter, an magnet-mount antenna that will mount outside the car and an internal patch antenna.

The beauty of the system is there is nothing to hook up directly to your cell phone.  You won’t even know it’s there—except when you’re able to use your phone in places it didn’t work before.

And when you upgrade and replace your phone, you won’t have to change anything to keep using the zBoost, which protects your investment.  It works with all phones and carriers, except the Nextel and iDEN networks.

I also tested the zBoost zPersonal YX300, designed for a single user in a small, personal workspace.  My home office is in a marginal signal area, surrounded by a lot of trees.  Dropped calls were common and I would often walk outside during a call hoping for a better signal.

The zPersonal performed solidly—no more dropped calls, period!  And its compact size and ease of installation (just plug it in to AC power and connect and place the antenna) lets you easily use it in hotels, meeting rooms, or wherever you are traveling.

The list price is $169, but current street prices are substantially less.

Wi-Ex also makes zBoost models for your home or office that will cover much larger areas, up to 10,000 square feet, and allow multiple users.

One other advantage you will notice is much-improved battery life on your phone. That’s because a weak signal raises the transmitter power on your phone and chews up batteries faster.  With a stronger signal to work with, your batteries will last longer.

Wi-Ex takes a great invention—the wireless phone—and makes it even better.  It’s the next-best thing to living (or driving) beside a cell-phone tower.

YX230 Car Cell booster at Buy.com

YX 300 zPersonal at Amazon