O2 Boostbox

[Ben]

O2 is, as far as I am aware, only the second mobile network in the UK to be officially selling a femtocell solution. Three are also offering one, called Home Signal, but I believe these are supplied at Three's discretion. O2, on the other hand, will sell you one, but you must be a business customer with 10 or more connections, unless you're on the trial. The only femtocell solution that any Tom, Dick, or Harry can go out and buy at this time is Vodafone's market-leading Sure Signal.

boostbox.JPG

Despite a very different exterior, I believe the Boostbox to be the same basic femtocell as Vodafone's Sure Signal, the current generation manufactured by Alcatel-Lucent. I think the Boostbox looks nicer, but in all honesty the Sure Signal isn't a bad looking box these days either. If anything the Boostbox may have slightly better range... perhaps that's something to do with the enclosure. There's not much in it, though.

What was a bonus for me was that the Boostbox connected within a couple of hours without any intervention. Sure Signal, on the other hand, wouldn't connect over my fibre internet connection for weeks until Vodafone added my ISPs IP range to a whitelist.

I have a large house with thick walls, and placed in the centre the Alcatel-Lucent box comfortably covers it all. Would I like another box for my garage and another to cover some of the garden? Sure, but that's a frivolity for another day.

Unfortunately there's still no call handover on these femtocell products, so when you wonder out of range your call will drop. It's mildly annoying, but will only affect you if you're wondering in and out of the house while you're on a call.

Visual Voicemail works, for anyone interested, and the box is broadcasting on 2100MHz as expected.

O2 doesn't have any sort of administration interface for the Boostbox, much like Vodafone when it launched Sure Signal. Now, however, Vodafone has a comprehensive online administration page where the owner can add and remove numbers instantly and at a whim. A telephone call to O2 is the only way to add new numbers to the Boostbox.

So there you have it. A mobile network (well, technically two for me now) in your house. A modern day miracle. I really do love technology when it works like this... I live in the woods, with fibre internet and 3G mobile coverage from O2 and Vodafone, and all because the market has provided it, not the state.