Signal Boosting Beta App

[ConfusedVorlon]

Folks, I have a new beta-application for you to try.

Of all the hacks I have posted, this one is the most obscure. I spotted this one when poking around looking for more ways to save power in Power Hero.

Obviously it actually isn't a power saver, in fact, it seems to be a slight power drainer. What it does is shift the balance that the phone has to make between saving power and battery life versus getting the maximum signal strength. I found the function while poking around in the phone library. The comment by the library trap entry suggests it is putting the software into fixed origin originator linkup mode. This seems to increase the power usage of the radio, but also significantly increases the reception by between 1 and 2 bars. I'm not exactly sure about how much power this will use, so please do let us know at the forum how you find it.

Lastly, this is a new beta, so use at your own risk!

Download Here
http://www.hobbyistsoftware.com/Downloads/BarBoost.prc

enjoy,

Rob

[sassiebrat]

I'm anxious to try it... I don't get good signal here in the apartment and it would be nice to boost it a little.  And I leave my phone plugged in most of the time when I'm at home, but I'll try to pay attention to any noticeable power drains

[Mirin]

This looks great.  I'm hoping that the increase in signal will mean that my old Treo 650 will now work while I'm in tunnels on the London Underground, at least when the tunnel is sufficiently straight that there is light visible at the end of it.  Will I have to point the aerial directly at the mouth of the tunnel?

If you can work a similar miracle with GPS satellite reception, I will be forever in your debt.

Yours hopefully,
Mirin

[John Markley]

I have at least 2 bars on my vzw 755p everywhere in town except within a quarter-mile radius of my home, where it is never more than 1 bar (just lucky).  Just installed the BarBooster beta and it's up to 2 bars in my living room.   
We'll see what the battery does.

    ~ John

[STBXXL]

I had to try this (after a complete backup with NVBackup). Here're my first test results:

Without BarBooster:
##DEBUG#: RSSI cycles between -75 to -81
Power Hero 1.18: discharge current cycles between 280 and 310 mA

With BarBooster:
##DEBUG#: RSSI cycles between -75 to -78
Power Hero 1.18: discharge current cycles between 266 and 355 mA

So no real improvement.  But I will run another test later today in a place where I usually have a weaker signal and will post the results.

Cheers.

[trim81]

im really curious if this works or not..and battery drain

[sassiebrat]

I've not seen an increase in bar at all, and as far as power goes.. it's still plugged in

[babywayne]

Would be nice to now add a numeric signal indicator to I8 or Butler to complement this app and enable us to do a more accurate assessment of whether its having an impact rather than guessing.

[John Markley]

I had to try this (after a complete backup with NVBackup). Here're my first test results:

Without BarBooster:
##DEBUG#: RSSI cycles between -75 to -81
Power Hero 1.18: discharge current cycles between 280 and 310 mA

With BarBooster:
##DEBUG#: RSSI cycles between -75 to -78
Power Hero 1.18: discharge current cycles between 266 and 355 mA

So no real improvement.  But I will run another test later today in a place where I usually have a weaker signal and will post the results.

Cheers.

What is the ##DEBUG# you used to measure received signal strength ?  Cannot find it with diligent search -

    ~ John

[old_hatch]

Go to the phone app and dial ##33284#

Itll pop up an info menu and the very top line is the signal strength. If memory serves me right the lower the value the stronger the signal.

[rigo]

Would be nice to now add a numeric signal indicator to I8 or Butler to complement this app and enable us to do a more accurate assessment of whether its having an impact rather than guessing.

good idea.

[John Markley]

Go to the phone app and dial ##33284#

Itll pop up an info menu and the very top line is the signal strength. If memory serves me right the lower the value the stronger the signal.

Ah, very good, thank you.  Unfortunately, that must be Sprint-specific.  VZW tells me "cannot be completed as dialed."  I'll search around, see if there's a VZW equivalent.

    ~ John

[old_hatch]

Treolauncher already does this.


I tried it out while sitting im my living room. I usually have no reception problems but it seemed to stay at lowe values longer than without it. I;ll see if I can figure out a place where I get poor signal and try again.

[rigo]

The lower the RSSI level the better the signal?

EDIT- missed the answer above the first time reading through the thread.

[SolarEclipse]

I live in a rural area where I'm usually roaming and getting 1-2 bars max.  I know that if I place the phone in different areas of my office, I'll get different readings.  I installed BarBoost and left the phone on my desk, where I hover between 0-1 bars, and now I'm reading 3.  I was able to call into my voicemail without any problem.  That's pretty damn impressive!  It does occasionally drop back to 0, so it seems like I either am getting all the boost or nothing.

This is on a Sprint 650, but I'm hitting a Verizon tower.