How to Get Better Cell Phone Reception

Cellular reception is one of the many things in this world that we take for granted. When you have cellular reception you think nothing of it, but the second that it fails you desperately wish that you had it.

Depending on where you are in the world there are different types of cellular service that may be in use, but before we delve into that information it is great to possess a basic understanding of how cellular towers work. Cellular networks consist of a large network of towers roughly every few miles. These towers then transmit radio signals that communicate with small cellular devices that can be carried in peoples pockets. In fact, the word "cell" phone comes from the cells created by this large network of cellular towers.

Now that we know a little bit about how a cell system works, it is possible to learn a little bit more! Many carriers in the US use what is called CDMA to communicate with the towers, this is a form of digital service that allows for medium bandwidth. In Europe, as well as much of the rest of the world, GSM is the standard signal transmission method. New modern methods of signal transmission include but are not limited to TDMA and EVDO. What do all of these terms mean to the end user? Not a lot, some of the newer specifications offer higher quality transmission and more bandwidth, but the average end user would probably never notice.

One of the most important things to remember is that cell phones made for different carriers are not inter compatible with one another. This means that many phones that were made to work in Europe are unable to work in the US no matter what is done.

When many people are not receiving proper reception there are a lot of "folk tales" about what could be done to fix it. Some of these folk tales involve doing a handstand, putting your hands on the antenna, or even standing on your roof! Despite the fact that some of these may work, there is a much easier way to gain reception. On most Verizon telephones all you have to do is dial *228, and your phone will automatically be updated with the latest tower information. This service is free, and should be done at least every three months in order to obtain optimum service. Some people may be skeptical to use this feature until they learn that Verizon spends 6 billion dollars a year upgrading their wireless service and functionality. Without this simple update, your phone will not benefit at all from the 6 billion dollars of upgrades.