Customer Reviews

Wilson Electronics iBooster 805201 Cell Phone Signal Cradle Booster for iPhone w/ Built-In Charger

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

The iBooster does boost the signal increadibly! I live out in the middle of nowhere and had a very hard time getting phone service and thought I'd try the iBooster. Overall, I'm not that disappointed....but for the price, I'd like ALL of the features it has to work. It does not charge my iPhone. My iPhone keeps coming up with the message that this devise is not supported by the iPhone and it will not charge. Every now and again I can get it to charge for a very short time. I bought 2 iBoosters, one for me and one for my husband and both do the same. The other thing that I noticed is that it doesn't seem to boost your signal outside of the cradle like it states it will. It also really muffles the speaker so you can't talk on the speaker phone when it's in the cradle and you need to use a bluetooth. I'd recommend it to people who need a way of boosting your signal, but just be prepared to have a way of charging your phone as this won't do it.

First, some notes on the booster:

It seems to do what it says. There's no way for me to measure, but it may very well boost your signal by 20 times. That's amazing.

Also, my favorite feature is the "pass-through" connector on the cradle, allowing you to use other accessories while it's boosting & charging (i.e., so I can plug it into my radio & listen to my music WHILE it's boosting and charging).

And, set-up and instructions are easy to follow.

Regarding the error message: "Device is not supported". This is a common error message with 3rd party accessories, and not unique to this product. Also, the error message shouldn't hinder the function of the booster. Part of the problem is Apple intentionally makes it difficult to use gear from 3rd parties - SHAME ON YOU, Apple.

So you never know if it's a real problem, or Apple just being greedy. Every time I see messages like this, I think of companies like Apple being the jealous ex-girlfriend, who doesn't like you hooking up with new brands of accessories!!!

Anyway, 4 things on the unsupported device message: (1) Friends who use phones not purchased directly from their provider (i.e., an unlocked phone) get this message much more often. If this is the case, you may need to restore it again from scratch if your accessories are not working.

(2) Make sure the connection is good (no debris, dust, etc).

(3) Sometimes the message just goes away after a few minutes. Please note that if your phone is not charging while in the cradle, it *may* start charging if/when the error message goes away. (Anyone have a comment on this???)

(4) If the connection is good, and it's an original phone, try this: When the error appears, turn OFF your iPhone while it's docked, and turning it back on. Often times (maybe 50-75% of the time), when the device reboots with the new accessory attached, it will not give you the message.

Wish I had a 100% fix on this, but like I said, Apple apparently does this on purpose so reliable workarounds are not always possible. Nonetheless, I hope this was helpful. Please leave comments if you have any new ideas...and enjoy your boosted signal!

The Wilson iBooster definitely has improved my cell and data reception and has minimized my dropped calls es[ecially when changing cell towers. Well worth the money. Two complaints though. The unit gets very hot which in turn makes my iPhone very hot. Secondly, I keep getting two error messages stating that this unit is not compatible with my iPhone. I contacted Wilson's customer service and their response was that the iBooster is compatible with my iPhone 3G S. It charges properly but I need to keep clearing the error messages on the screen. Perhaps AT&T will step up their game and improve their service but until then, there's a great solution with the Wilson iBooster.

I live in a remote area and would get no bars at all driving the 15 miles to town. Now I get signal most of the time. The terrain is very hilly. It also allows me to make calls in many remote places where I never had signal before. I used the iBooster on a 4000 mile trip across the country and back and it worked great. Very few dropped calls on the road and good signal strength. Even in remote areas of Michigan where my phone always showed "no signal" the booster allowed me to make phone calls. Notes: I have the first model of iPhone. I also bought the higher gain magnet mount antenna.

I have no problem with the iBooster charging my phone. The phone does need to be pressed firmly into the connector though. I also use the extra iPhone connector on the iBooster to plug the phone into my stereo and this allows me to play music while the phone is in the cradle. The stereo also provides power so the iBooster works with just the stereo iPhone connector plugged into the iBooster. The message about compatibility with the phone appears but this happens on every accessory I have for the iPhone. The message clears itself if I ignore it. The unit does get warm but that seems normal for a device like this.

The only dislike I have is that the cradle makes it hard to press a few of the keyboard keys on iPhone when I'm sending text messages.

This thing actually work. I have a work space inside a big concrete building and I can actually make calls without running to the windows.

FYI - you need to purchase an AC adapter if you want to use anywhere but your car. It only comes with a cigarette lighter.

This is a cradle that your iphone slips into and docks with. The Wilson charges your iphone while boosting (amplifying) both the sent and received signal. Typically I can see an additional 3 bars of signal shown when docked over when not docked. If this iPhone uses standard S meter calibration it equates to about 18 dB overall gain using the booster and external magnetic mount antenna furnished. That is about what you would expect by putting a quarter wave ground plane outside your car instead of inside the iphone and inside your car's leaky metal shielding (see Faraday cage in Wikipedia for example) plus a 10 to 12 dB boost in signal and some loss in the mini coax to the antenna. And no, you do not need to drill a hole in your car's roof or anywhere else. Just route the coax through the door weatherseal (rubber seal gasket) and it works fine. If you need more signal still you can add an accessory antenna and better coax to increase signal further (accessory co-linear verticals produce gain by flattening the imaginary donut of signal sent and received by your antenna over a 1/4 wave ground plane antenna) and better grades of coax can reduce signal loss which is a problem at ultra high frequencies such as cellular operates on. It has a standard SMA connector so you could connect any kind of directional high gain antenna for fixed location operation as well (such antennas are highly directional and therefore not good for mobile use). Operationally This "booster" makes the difference between a connection in marginal places over the dreaded "unable to activate cellular network" message and far fewer dropped calls. Wilson is also a name I trust in VHF/UHF electronics from experience with commercial and amateur products. Works fine for me out of the box took maybe 10 minutes to read the instructions and set it up. I also have a different model for a Blackberry and it works about the same but does not dock/charge the Blackberry but otherwise similar performance. Save your money and stay away from the "passive antenna" gadgets all over the net (stick-on or inside the car to outside the car wiring)and buy a commercial grade product that will do the job.

I have followed the directions as given and my iPhone reception is reasonable. Has it improved with the use of this device? I cannot really claim to have seen a difference. I still get an occasional dropped call, or show minimal reception bars even when the phone is in the cradle. I have used my phone both with and without the device, and while not observing _strict_ scientific method, I am not sure that I notice a difference either way.

My test was performed in the car on the I-5 between Sacramento, CA and Los Angeles, CA, at points as desolate as points running through Arizona or New Mexico.

The good things I like about the booster are all of the ergonomic form factors - fits my phone even in the case, charges the phone while cradled. On the flip side - I cannot connect my phone to my car stereo via the USB port and have to use the Aux input which limits my ability to control the phone via the stereo, yet another thing to plug into my single car electrical outlet (leaves me wondering where to plug in my GPS).

Ultimately, it seems my cell reception varies with and without the device and my benefit from using this signal booster is questionable, enough so that I would not recommend that anyone spend the $200+ unless they are in dire need of a signal booster. P-)

While I spend most of my time within the city limits there are times I venture out to the coast or to the mountains and find my signal to be less than fantastic. This iBooster does boost the signal significantly and I can get service in areas I hadn't. Unfortunately there are a number of quirks that you have to deal with to get this thing to work. First off all it does take some time to install, you've got a separate antenna and cables you have to run. It's not trivial to set it all up and get it mounted.

My iPhone also barks that it's not a supported device, so I keep having to dismiss the messages every time I plug in my iphone. But I do really like that it's wide enough to fit my iPhone with its protective case on it. Many devices don't support this and it's a nice touch.

The most unfortunate thing is that no matter how strong your reception is there's nothing you can do when AT&T's has service issues. I had a couple dropped calls from within the city and I know that this iBooster was doing its job.

If you live out in a rural area and signal is a major issue, the iBooster is going to be a godsend. It may be overkill and too much hassle for people who are more city bound.

There are several spots on the commute to/from work that we always have problems with dropped calls and it's in an area where if you break down, the next person might not come along for a bit so I always worried about our safety. This product has eased my worries and it really does work in boosting the signal. We tested it in those areas and it reliably boosted it where we could make calls without a problem. For that peace of mind alone I give it 5 stars. The set-up was easy, with clear and concise instructions and I appreciate that, I'm a person who admittedly has no patience for detailed, long-winded instructions. Often times you get a product like this and it's a let down when it doesn't work so I'm stoked that wasn't the case with this and it actually does what it claims to do.

It really does work. In an area where I got no reception, I now get good reception. In an area where the phone used to go in and out, I now get great reception. However, I am not finding that the phone gets such good reception when removed from the cradle. They say it should within a certain area, but I find sometimes this is not the case. I think the best way of using the booster is keeping the phone in the cradle and using a blue tooth.