AT&T 3G MicroCell unboxing and impressions
By Darren Murph 
posted September 28th 2009 1:19PM
posted September 28th 2009 1:19PM
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It's sort of tough to believe that Sprint's own femtocell hit the national scene over a year ago, and just as we were impressed with that Samsung-sourced device, we're equally impressed with this Cisco-built box. We've already heard reports that the unit simply works, and without getting all long-winded on you, the long and short of it is this: yeah, it really does work.
Upon unboxing the 3G MicroCell, we were immediately struck at just how large this thing is. It's nearly twice as big as our WLAN router, and it's shockingly white. In other words, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Of course, it provides a nice blanket of AT&T 3G for your phones, but there's really no hiding this thing. AT&T also recommends that you place it near a window and over a foot away from your wireless router, though an incredibly short Ethernet cable is included (go figure). Initial setup was a breeze; you simply head to AT&T's setup website, login to your AT&T account, punch in your device's serial number and then add or delete AT&T mobile numbers that can be used on the device. Got a friend that comes over often and likes to make calls? Adding him / her is no problem, and numbers can be added or deleted at any time after the initial setup, too.
Once the online portion is complete, you're instructed to plug the device into your router (or broadband modem) and power it up. From there, the manual states that a 90 minute initialization period is needed before you can actually use it. Thankfully, our setup only took a half hour, and immediately after it was ready, a text message was sent to our iPhone 3G notifying us that a) our phone was connected to the 3G MicroCell and b) we could now make calls / access 3G data over the device.
Once it's connected (which happens automatically), the only difference you'll notice when using your 3G handset is clearer calls and stronger 3G reception. Our web surfing and emailing was buttery smooth over 3G, and calls were as clear as ever. We huddled down in a corner that's notorious for killing our signal and made a few test calls, all of which maintained signal throughout and garnered praise from everyone on the other end. Of course, you'll still feel the pain if your ISP tends to drop from time to time, but as long as your internet connection remains strong, you should be good to go. Just so you know, we tested our calls on a basic, no frills cable internet connection that sees uploads capped at around 40Kbps. Oh, and we did test two simultaneous calls (up to four at once are supported), and both of 'em went over great.
All told, AT&T's 3G MicroCell works exactly as advertised, though we were slightly disturbed by how toasty the top got. We generally saw anywhere between 1 and 4 bars of 3G at our testing facility, and after the MicroCell installation, we never saw it dip beneath 5 bars of 3G. One huge benefit of the 3G MicroCell over Sprint's AIRAVE is data support; the latter still doesn't provide EV-DO data, meaning that you'll still be forced to struggle through emails and web surfing at home if your handset doesn't handle WiFi. With AT&T's solution, users can expect strong 3G downloads anywhere in their home, which may or may not be a deal-maker. So, is this thing worth the coin? If you're dying to have an iPhone 3G / 3GS (or any of AT&T's 3G handsets), and you get horrible coverage at home, sure. Yeah, you could bicker that users shouldn't be paying to patch holes in AT&T's coverage areas, but that's exactly what your monthly payments go to (in theory) anyway. For those out there who are hard-up for an iPhone 3G or 3GS, another $150 from the savings account probably won't stop them. Oh, and for those of you dreaming of taking this overseas for a bit of gratis international calling, fuhgetaboutit. As with Sprint's AIRAVE, the internal GPS chip has to certify that you're within US borders before it'll work. Lame, but impossible to avoid.
We dig that AT&T will let users buy the box and then keep using it sans any monthly fees (unless you opt for a $20 per month unlimited calling plan), and we're hoping that the pricing gets increasingly more attractive as new test markets are rolled out. You see, the 3G MicroCell was priced at $150 regardless of plan selections in Charlotte, but in Raleigh, AT&T is testing out something a little different. Customers can purchase the device for $150 straight-up, but if they choose a $20 monthly plan to get unlimited calling, they can look forward to a $100 mail-in rebate bringing the grand total to $50. Additionally, Raleigh-area AT&T DSL and U-verse users (new subscribers only, though) get an extra $50 rebate, bringing the net cost of the femtocell to $0.00. It's not perfect, but it's progress, and we could definitely envision these flying off shelves at a breakneck pace should the MSRP stoop below the magical $100 mark.
Update: AT&T pinged us to say that the $100 rebate for choosing the $20 / month unlimited calling option is in effect for both Charlotte and Raleigh, though the extra $50 rebate is for Raleigh-area users only. And no, you can't buy this in Charlotte or Raleigh and take it back to San Jose; right now, AT&T will only enable MicroCells to operate in its test markets.
How do I prevent my neighbor's from using MY Femtocell on MY broadband connection? If they connected through my Femtocell, would they be using MY minutes?
It very clearly says in the article that you register specific handsets to work with it (e.g. not your neighbor).
You specify the phones that the MicroCell will recognize.
Let me preface this by saying that I'm in the why the hell do I have to pay to patch AT&T's crappy network in my apartment in the middle of San Francisco camp...I literally have zero reception not only in my apartment, but out in the street in front of my apartment. again, I'm in the middle of San Fran-freakin'-cisco.
Question for anyone with the patience to be looking this stuff up: What's the deal with the pricing? I get that it's $150, or $100 if you opt for the $20/mo unlimited plan...but what's limited if you just pay the $150? Are they seriously capping how many minutes I can use the unsubsidized device that eats up my electricity and my bandwidth and that I paid for to fix the holes in their network? really?
For visitors to my house that I've authorized to use my microcell, will their use count against my minutes?
No... its a mini cell tower, it knows the difference between the phones connected to it. your minutes are tied to your phone, like always.
One word: Skype
I'm glad I live where I do I guess, I've always had full service with AT&T at home. EDGE for a while and recently with 3G. My coverage here at home is better than Verizon as I have literally have full 3G just about everywhere I go (Central MA).
They should give this to you when you renew your contract as an apology.
I don't think my beloved T-Mobile or any other network would try some shit like this.
What AT&T does not tell you is that if you live in an apartment, they
will not sell you one. While they are testing it in Raleigh, they will
only test it at non apartments. What a bunch of crap that is.
Darren,
THE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION UNANSWERED. Can I go into a store in a test state, purchase the box and take it to another state, set it up and use it? In other words, if you had access to the box, would it work in another state?
No, not right now. The way AT&T has its GPS lock setup, it'll only work in the test markets that it dictates.
I have one in use in the Raleigh-Durham area, and you can add approved addresses at which to use it.
I tried several other addresses in Illinois and California. It accepted most and few it didn't, saying AT&T didn't have coverage there, e.g. west central IL. Whether the box would actually work in any of the places it did accept is another matter.
I have heard lots of people are trying this, and they are all getting the same result. It is not working. During setup, the device turns on the GPS, finds it is outside of the registered trial area and shuts down. Every single one of these outside the authorized area does not work.
I love all the hate for this device. There are people who have no earthly knowledge of how this would be a good thing, or would rather kill bunnies with a hammer than have to pay for such a device.
The truth is that there are people who would love this device for very practical reasons. I live on a mountain and can get cell coverage about 1/2mi from my house (the end of my driveway). Sometimes, if I stand in just the right place, I can get enough coverage for my bberry email to update.
But that is only for AT&T. None of the other carriers come close. It sucks that I only find out about my missed calls and vmail when I head to town. Same for my 100 or so neighbors who have even worse coverage.
This device, as well as the Verizon and Sprint devices for my neighbors would be a huge benefit. I'm dying to get my hands on one.
It's not practical for AT&T to put up a tower for our 100 houses.
And no, it's not to replace my land line since we don't get cable up here, but have to use DSL.
Now I'll sit and wait for some appartment/basement dweller to say "just move", like it was cheaper and easier than spending $150.
Thanks for your intelligence James.
Finally, someone logical.
To be fair, some would rather kill bunnies with a hammer than do just about anything.
Well I have to agree with 99.9% of people on here - while this is cool - you shouldn't have to pay for this.
I believe they should either beef up their network or give these out free to those who live in areas of poor service.
So whats stopping me from jacking the serial connection from the gps? unless its on the soc die?
I wouldnt mind getting this to improve my cell phone signal but why would AT&T expect me to pay them an ongoing monthly fee? After all they are just allowing me to redirect the cell phone signal over my existing broadband which i already pay someone else for. I can see a one time fee for the actual device itself but an ongoing monthly fee makes no sense. It must be for all the equipment that AT&T needs to maintain on their end to actual route phone calls over the internet.
Oh, I Want One! I Want One! I Want One!
I love my iPhone, but it works everywhere except in my house. Please get that into Ohio homes soon.
Or fix your crappy service.
Cool, but I don't think 3G MicroCell will have a big success anyway.
I just bought one yesterday - took about 90 minutes to setup and once done I had five bars everywhere in my ~4,000 square foot home. So far the experience has been great. Before I had three bars in the house and I have tried every kind of repeater and amplifier, but this unit sets the new bar for me - five bars everywhere in the house and unlimited calling on my iPhone - awesome. I got rid of the second line in my house and am now saving $10/month with the new service.
What else do I like:
1) Very little performance impact on my network so far - I am on Time Warner Cable and I get about 6Mb/s down and 512Kb/s up and the Micro-Cell has not impacted the performance greatly
2) Power utilization - I am going to measure it next week, but I do not expect it to be very high. Not sure, as the unit does get hot on the top, so it is burning some juice
3) Cost - at $20/month it is a deal. Also, the $150 purchase price is offset by the $100 rebate, let's see if it actually comes in
4) No ugly antena or other dongles like many of the repeaters. This is key, as it is installed in my wife's office now as it is on the highest floor in the house so we get better coverage and if there was an ugly dongle or cable it would have to go somewhere else.
What I don't like:
1) When I go outside, or get in the car it always drops my call. My guess is the cell phone is having a problem, or the cell tower, can not support handing off the call between the micro-cell and the cell tower. Need to do some research on this one.
2) Brick house is causing the signal to scatter, so going outside means I lose the signal from the Micro-cell. I am guessing that the Micro-Cell has a bunch of power to cover a 5,000 foot radius, but not enough to go through solid brick. Oh, well, it is good enough for my purposes in the house.
3) I still don't know why the vendors of these devices like to get all stylish with them, it may help sell them, but in the end, it is going into a closet or under a bed. I would like to be able to remotely manage the device and get status information - a widget would be nice for my Mac, like I have for my router. I hate having to dig out the device from my wiring closet to see the status lights - major pain, even though I hope to not have to do this every week.
Has anyone figured out if they make an external antenna for this bad boy? There is a connector on the back. If they do make one, what does it get you? Any extra coverage area?
Funny question that I was asked when buying it, "Is this going to be installed in an apartment?" They do not sell them to apartments as any 2G device will not get a signal and it is only for "up to four phones" There are all kinds of limitations for the device. I wonder if they are going to put some kind of MAC Address locking on the Micro-Cell so only "registered" devices can connect.
That's about it from here.
I have a one of these devices in Charlotte and have been using it for about a week. My impression has been that it works fairly well. Before I got this device I had a standard 1 to 2 bars throughout my house. Voice calls were of low quality and I frequently had to go outside for an important call. With this product I get a standard 5 bars thougout the house.
I first had it placed next to my wifi router and found that interference of some sort effected call quality. After moving it to another room call quality improved and is now much clearer. Still get some VOIP choppiness from time to time.
The only big negative I have seen so far is transferring from the femtocell to ATT regular. On the fringe of the signal call quality drops and it does not seem to transfer well to ATT regular signal. So far every one of my calls have dropped upon leaving the house and driving away.
My plan is to keep the box with hopes that future updates will help its few negative areas. If you are like me and have spotty service in your home you may want to wait. If you have no service in your house and love your iPhone it will be a good purchase.
I have one question..!!
What does 3G phone needs particular software update??
Also, is it possible that MicroCell supports AT&T 3G phone?????
I went to the ATT store to buy one, but decided not to when the clerk told me that the Microcell would give me wonderful 3G reception, but would block any other cellphone signal within its range. In other words, my wife's 2G phone would not work, nor would a CDMA phone. I clearly cannot have that in my house; my non-ATT guests would criticize me.
WHy do you even need a box in the forst place?
T-Mobile have had Hotspot@home for ages. Anywhere I can access a WiFi point I can make calls from me cell phone routed over the internet - and that includes anywhere in the world :)