Verizon has announced plans to deploy network-boosting femtocells to customers this year, in an attempt to reduce coverage blackspots and avoid having to install extra or higher-powered traditional base stations. Femtocells, which usually resemble WiFi routers, act as a network bridge between a small area of cellphone coverage and a user’s broadband, with voice and data traffic carried by the ADSL or cable connection. Sprint already offers a similar scheme, where users pay $49.99 for a Samsung femtocell that hooks up to their home internet; while the femtocell unit itself costs the carrier around $200, this is nonetheless cheaper than installing new network hardware themselves.
Though yet to announce pricing or availability details, Verizon’s scheme is expected to roll out during or after the Summer, and they’re likely to look to T-Mobile’s already relatively popular offering for price guidance. T-Mobile offer unlimited home femtocell calls to users for $15 a month (which seems a little cheeky, since they’re already paying for the broadband pipe that the femtocell relies on), and we’re likely to see similar from Verizon. Femtocell trials are also taking place elsewhere in the world, for instance O2 UK’s collaboration with Ubiquisys and ShoZu.
[via CrunchGear]
If Verizon thinks I’m going to pay another $15.00/month so they can use my DSL connection they’re delusional. I would pay for the box myself just so I could use my cell phone around home or the office, but it will be a cold day south of here before I’ll pay them to deliver coverage I’m already getting charged for.
I have terrible service incompassing a 3 mile area around my house. I’ve been calling them almost every 4 months for the 5 years that I’ve been with them and all they say is, “We’re working on it.”
There are 5 cell towers within the 3 mile radius of my house. I don’t know what is the probelm. How can 5 towers not have at least 1 good Verizon signal coming from it?
To quote CMTMIK above: “it will be a cold day south of here before I’ll pay them to deliver coverage I’m already getting charged for.”
the idea of charging someone 15 dollars/mo so they can take care of your failure to provide coverage is insane. they should provide these things for free to users or at least a small one time fee.