Femtocells

[Anonymous]

Hi guys,

I live in a fairly rural part of the UK and although the area is supposed to have O2 coverage, it is in fact pretty dire here. I am tied onto o2 for another 13 months with my iPhone and unless something is done by o2 to sort the signal out I will be voting with my feet next June.
Last year o2 & vodafone trialled 'Femtocell' technology. This is an internet based plug in tx/rx device which is stand alone and provides internet based mobile phone coverage inside buildings where there is insufficient signal from normal sources. Vodafone have embraced it and people are now getting the full benefit of full 3G phone signal in their homes/offices.
Where is the o2 version?
I know I'm a little bitter having been a Vodafone customer for many years, leaving just before they announced that they were getting iPhone, but surely o2 are embracing this technology as the o2 signal outside major towns everywhere appears to be generally poorer than my previous provider.
Does anyone have any thought on this and does anyone know if there are any plans for Femtocell technology to appear on the o2 books in the near future?

[jonsie]

This has cropped up a few times on the forum and discussed at length here. From what has been said, it seems that O2 have no plans to introduce femtocells in the near future.

[Anonymous]

To summarise the threads. All the networks tested femtocells (including O2). All but Vodafone decided the technology wasn't reliable enough yet.
If you pop over to the Vodafone forums, you'll see plenty of people complaining that they don't work properly.
Perhaps when they've been developed a bit more, the networks will consider.

[Anonymous]

I moved in May, to an area shown on the O2 map as 'standard' coverage. In effect, this means that for about 10 seconds I'll get 1 bar on my O2 Blackberry, perhaps 2-3 times a day. The rest of the time, nada (not 2 or 3G). The area's not unbundled, so no chance of UMA. a femtocell would be an ideal solution, because I cannot get my company to change providers just for me. The rest of the family have opted for Vodafone, which has OK coverage (and femtocells).

[Anonymous]

I moved in May, to an area shown on the O2 map as 'standard' coverage. In effect, this means that for about 10 seconds I'll get 1 bar on my O2 Blackberry, perhaps 2-3 times a day. The rest of the time, nada (not 2 or 3G). The area's not unbundled, so no chance of UMA. a femtocell would be an ideal solution, because I cannot get my company to change providers just for me. The rest of the family have opted for Vodafone, which has OK coverage (and femtocells).

You understand you need a VERY GOOD broadband connection to use a femto cell?
Its range is limited (very limited), hence why the technology isnt used by most mobile operators.
You may also be charged by your broadband provider, so its not a good idea.
Anyway, been done to death.

[Anonymous]

In my opinion the most preferable option would be "UMA" but a femtocell may have it's place because most of the time, I need to switch off 3G/HSDPA on my Blackberry. With an inconsistent 3G signal, the battery drains much quicker on the device. The femtocell or UMA I guess would reduce the battery drain and improve the mobile experience.

[Anonymous]

If it worked.
You are right that UMA is a better solution, however it means getting a compatible handset and Orange have had some difficulty with integrating it into their network. (although nowhere near the amount of problems Vodafone have with their femtocells).

[Anonymous]

I have the Blackberry 9700 which I understand from what I have read, it is a compatible handset.

[Anonymous]

Interestingly I just got cold called by O2 asking about the service & how satisfied or not I was with it. I raised the issue of poor 3G and phone coverage in remote areas (I visit remote bits of Scotland a lot) and the guy said that O2 does have a femtocell solution in the pipeline. He couldn't give me a date but reckoned it would be "soon".

[Anonymous]

I have a contract with both O2 and Vodafone, my Mum is on Orange and we tested the so-called UMA technology - absolute rubbish and no way is it in the league of femtocells. I have a Vodafone Sure Signal at home where I live in a high rise building with thick concrete walls - the sure signal has been awesome. Definitely has set Vodafone apart from the competition in my experience. It's so simple, plug it in, register it and off you go - full signal all over the house. I might as well ditch the fixed line now! By the way it hardly uses any broadband at all, voice calls use very little - so I would disagree with the previous statement. Why don't you try it? as for paying for it - femto technology is very expensive so I imagine they are already funding most of it for their customers. Come on O2 get a move on, embrace the movement!