SOUND OFF: How many bars does your phone have right now?

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It’s time to fess up. You’ve been spending so much time in your home lately, right? And yet for some of you, your cell service still, frankly, stinks.

The image at the top of this article is from my work-from-home office. I turned off the cell booster so you can see what I’m really dealing with here. Of course with the booster on, I get full bars, but that’s the point, right?

How bad is it for you?

One bar? No bars? It’s pretty common for people to have bad cell service at home. The phones have very small antennas, because we like it that way. And let’s be honest, pretty much everything in your house is conspiring to make sure that you get the worst possible service. Brick and stucco block signals two different ways. Wiring in the wall scatters weak signals even more. Energy efficient windows block UV rays and they also do a pretty good job of blocking cell signals. The bottom line, it’s amazing you can make a call at all.

Just because you leave the house a little more…

…doesn’t mean you should stop thinking about a cell booster. Cell boosters take signals from outside and blast them in your home. They’re the permanent solution for bad cell service. They’re better than Wi-Fi calling because, even though you might be inviting guests back into your house, you still might not want to invite them onto your Wi-Fi. With a cell booster, everyone who comes in can get great service and you don’t have to do anything.

If you were waiting to install a cell booster because you were afraid of going up on the roof, dude I totally hear you. Last thing you want is a trip to the hospital when you don’t need one. But for a lot of us, it’s beginning to feel like it’s a little safer now. I’m still not suggesting you go up on the roof if you’re not comfortable, but if you were waiting because you were super afraid of contagion, I think you might be able to rethink your perspective there.

Be honest

Leave a comment below and be honest. How many bars do you have? If you have an Android and a free app to check signal strength, how bad is yours? We’re all friends here. And friends help friends, which is why your friend Stuart is telling you to shop for a cellular signal booster at Solid Signal.

 

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.