The Master Guide of How to Boost Cell Phone Signal Strength for Free
If you live in urban areas, you may not have witnessed network failures due to poor signals. Urban areas also have an elaborate network of signal masts as compared to most rural areas. If you live in a place with inadequate network coverage, then you need to know how to boost cell phone signal strength for free. You do not have to migrate to another area with a strong network and spend a lot of money to settle down.
Signal strength varies from one phone to another. Some brands have strong signal reception, while others have inferior ones. Whichever the case, phone signals are easy to amplify using a piece of special equipment called a signal booster. The device has an antenna that almost resembles that of a television set or a WiFi booster. You may even confuse them with WiFi boosters since they share the same design.
Mobile phone signal boosters also come in various brands with different specifications. We have boosters that can cast signals over a large area while others can cover a minimal space. For example, we have signal boosters that you can install in your car and can only serve those inside the vehicle, while others can serve a whole compound with several houses. Others are limited to a few devices, while others can operate multiple devices simultaneously.
What causes bad cell phone signals?
There are various reasons why you experience poor network connections in your vicinity. They include the following.
i) Being far away from a cell tower
Cell towers are bases that help to send and receive cell phone signals within a locality. Signals become weaker as you move further from the mast. If you live far away from a cell mast, you are likely to experience poor network connections and vice versa.
The cellular towers are designed to cover a particular area and require other similar bases within specific distances to pick up the signals to serve the surrounding areas.
ii) Weather conditions
Environmental weather conditions such as high humidity, high cloud cover, rainfall, thunder, and lighting can affect signal distribution. You may experience call dropping, poor internet connection, and delayed message deliveries during such times.
iii) Obstruction by physical features
There may be a cellular tower near you, but you may not receive strong signals for your mobile device if there is a physical feature such as a mountain or a hill. Moreover, if you live in a valley, you may not get proper signals due to obstruction. Therefore, you have to consider the nature of the environment before settling down in a place.
iv) Obstructing your phone’s antenna
Modern phones are not like those we had some years ago, which had protruding antennas. Today’s phones have antennas embedded inside, and there is a way you can hold your cellphone, thus obstructing the antenna.
v) Cosmic Events
The sun usually releases gases into the atmosphere as a result of eruptions at its surface. The gases disrupt signal distribution to and from a satellite, thus affecting signals within a given place. The disruptions are due to changes in the magnetic field of the earth.
vi) Building materials
The kind of building materials of your house or office can affect signal distribution within your locality. Metal constructions are known to contribute significantly to block signals. Other materials that interfere with phone signals include fiberglass insulation, clear glass, plywood, solid wood, plaster, Bricks, thick concrete & cement walls, tinted & Low-E glass, among others.
vii) Low battery
When the cell phone battery is low, the phone lacks adequate energy to receive signals from the cell tower. You may witness call dropping or delayed message deliveries. Maintaining proper charge is good to ensure maximum signal reception.
viii) Heavy cellular traffic
Have you been to a crowded place such as a graduation square in a particular university? If so, then you might have realized that signals were poor. When many people with phones come together in one place, their cell phones start fighting for spaces in the nearby cell tower, leading to poor signals. You will experience call dropping if your service provider transfers your call to a full cell tower.
How to boost cell phone signal strength for free
There are various ways you can improve your cell phone signals. The following are some of the best ways to boost signal strength for free. Have a look.
1) Use a cell phone booster
There are various cell phone boosters in the market that you can use to boost your cellular signals for better performance. They include the following.
As I had mentioned earlier, a cell phone may serve a small area or a large one depending on its strength. A portable cell phone signal booster for your car can only benefit you when inside and may be very near your vehicle.
A cell phone booster has three main components: the outside antenna, the amplifier, and the inside antenna. The external antenna collects weak signals and transmits them to the amplifier. The amplifier increases the weak signal strength (amplifies), and then the internal antenna redistributes them to the surroundings. The three parts connect using coaxial cables.
You do not pay fees for using the signal booster. Once you purchase from the shop, you will enjoy its services for free. You may only pay for installation if you do not know how to set up the equipment. Some dealers include the installation fee in the overall price so that you automatically get some specialists to install the booster for you upon purchase.
2) Repair your phone
Sometimes poor signals are a result of a faulty device. There may be a loose wire inside your phone or a defective circuit that makes your cellphone have poor signal reception. Taking it to a qualified technician to repair it may restore your phone’s ability to have strong signals.
3) Update your phone’s software
Sometimes poor network reception is a result of outdated software. You can update your software to the current one and check whether there will be a difference in network reception. Phone manufacturers may upgrade their systems to support the existing software and leave you behind if you do not get the news.
4) Switch carrier
Sometimes it’s not about your phone having issues, but it is all about your carrier having poor signal connections. Instead of buying a cell phone signal booster for remote areas, home, your office, or your car, you can just switch to the most robust carrier.
We go by the services offered, and thus there is no need to remain loyal to a particular carrier, yet their signals are poor. Switching to a stronger carrier is free, and you may only spend on the SIM card purchase.
5) Upgrade to a new mobile phone
If you are using a very old phone, then the phone’s hardware may be exhausted so that it cannot function properly. Machines have a lifespan, and there comes a time when they cannot run appropriately. Getting a new phone whose systems are very vibrant will save you from the menace of low network connectivity.
6) Change Network type
Modern phones have various network connectivities, including 2G, 3G, 4G, and the recent 5G. Sometimes you may experience poor network connectivity because your phone is running on 2G or 3G.
You can try switching to 4G or 5G and see how it performs. 4G and 5G technologies ensure faster transfer of signals that makes calls clear and consistent. Internet connections are also strong when on 4G and 5G.
Moreover, the 4G and 5G may become congested, thus leading to poor network reception. You can try to change to 3G and see how things unfold.
7) Upgrade to a newer SIM card
Do you know that you may have poor network connections if you are using an old versioned SIM card? For example, suppose you are using a 3G SIM card in this era. In that case, there is a possibility that you will experience poor network connectivity since most carriers are currently supporting 4G and 5 G-enabled SIM cards.
8) Recharge your phone
As I had mentioned earlier, a low battery can lead to poor signal reception of your phone. Charging the phone’s battery increases the energy required to receive signals. Furthermore, there is a danger of using a low battery phone since it emits radiation to your body.
9) Hold your phone correctly
Since modern phones have antennas embedded inside, you need to hold your phone correctly to avoid obstructing the antenna. Modern smartphones do not have any issue with network reception, no matter how you hold them.
However, the phones produced a few years ago require you to avoid engulfing the top part with your hands to avoid interfering with the network reception.
10) Restore to factory settings
Smartphones are prone to malware attacks especially if do not install a security system to protect your phone. A virus may enter your device to disrupt network receptions so that you cannot make calls, send messages, or even browse the internet. Instead of taking your mobile phone to a technician who will charge you to check your phone’s issues, you can restore your phone’s factory settings.
Restoring to factory settings helps to clean all the data, including the malware in your phone thus making it operate as if it is new.
Bottom line
Poor cellular signals can result from various factors such as obstructions by physical features such as mountains, hills, trees, buildings and being far away from the cell masts. Some building materials such as metals, clear glasses, fiberglass, and plywoods can also interfere with cellular signals.
Buying a signal booster, upgrading to a new phone, updating your phone’s software as well as switching to a new carrier may solve your poor network connectivity issue.
