AT&T Microcell

Or am I just feeding a troll?

Could be. Come to think of it the safest place for him would be to live under a (shielded) bridge....

bobshound wrote:
Sure everybody has an opinion...

There's a fundamental difference between opinion and science. Radio was demonstrated 116 years ago. Since that time there have been tens of thousands of studies about the safety of non-ionizing radiation (which is what radio waves are). These studies have been used to establish safe levels of exposure, which are published by several government agencies in the US and many others around the world. All of the standards are similar, so there is consensus among people who have been studying the subject worldwide. These standards are built into the devices we use. It should be noted that the only biological effect of non-ionizing radiation ever recorded is local heating of tissue (the principle of the microwave oven). There are measured standards for cell phones, just as there are for TVs, radios, microwave ovens, the electronics in your car and airplane, the radio and TV broadcast stations, power transmission lines - essentially anything that creates an electromagnetic field.

Either you trust the research and established standards or you don't. If you don't you have nothing to go on, so the only safe thing to do is to avoid all exposure. Which means giving up everything electric, including your car, lights, radios, TVs, computers, cell phones...the list is long. It is disingenuous to pick and choose what you believe is safe, because your belief has no basis in fact.

Living on the eastside of Seattle we are plagued by mobile drop spots regardless of the carrier, though it appears worst with AT&T. Things have improved over recent years, but we have been extremely frustrated with half the house getting 5 bars and other half 1 bar and constant dropped calls. I purchased the $150 AT&T Microcell immediately when it became available in our area, and it has worked like a charm. Both our iPhone 3GS now enjoy 5 bars throughout the house (upstairs/downstairs through several walls) and even outside in the yard. Coupled with our wireless Belkin N1 router, everything from e-mail, video streaming with AirVideo, and internet browsing has improved. Setup was simple and only took 10 minutes for the unit to fix a GPS signal and link with the router and my iPhone 3GS immediately registered 5 bars with the AT&T Microcell network. My wife's iPhone 3Gs at first didn't get recognized even though I had registered both phones at the AT&T store. One call to AT&T tech service which was very helpful solved the issue by removing the phone number and reregistering it on the website and 30 minutes later, my wife's phone was on the microcell network and enjoying 5 bar coverage. I can now dump our landline and use the iPhone with awesome quality throughout the entire house. Unlike some others who have reported problems, I have experienced no connection issues while walking around the house using the phone. The microcell is large (slightly bigger than my Belkin N1 Vision) and style is vintage AT&T white and orange. Though a lot of people whine about poor or spotty coverage and insist on blaming AT&T, I find there are often other reasons out of their control. For example, in our development the homeowner's association repeatedly veto requests from companies to install new cell towers, so how can you blame AT&T? The Microcell gives you exceptional personal home coverage for your own use (you can add 10 other AT&T phone numbers for your friends and family) that is even better than in public places, so I personally don't mind spending the extra money for this awesome accessory.

One key point that is not clearly stated by AT&T advertisements that everyone should be aware: if you are in the house on the phone using the microcell, if you leave the coverage zone, your phone will switch to standard AT&T wireless tower without dropping the call. It won't work switching the other way, i.e. seamless swith from microcell to 3G/Edge, but no switch from 3G/Edge to microcell during calls. For example, you are at home enjoying the microcell 5 bars talking with someone, you walk to the other side of the house and the "AT&T Microcell" drops out and your phone switches to "3G" coverage while your talking. You happen to walk back to your office and lose the "3G" signal, your call will drop since for whatever reason, the phone cannot or has been locked out from transferring from 3G or Edge to Microcell. The AT&T rep was very honest and told me that some people have complained and it may not be ideal if your home has complete 3G drop zones in which case the microcell may not solve all your drop call issues. Bottom line - if you live in a huge house that the microcell cannot completely cover or have sections in your house that get 0 bars, this won't fix everything.