Major carrier T-Mobile has released two new in-home 4G LTE signal enhancement devices with relatively little fanfare. The devices popped up in T-Mobile’s support pages, but there was no press release about them. They are both essentially small LTE towers, but they have vastly different specifications and use cases. The one by the name of 4G LTE CellSpot V2 can create signal where there is none by using a customer’s home internet, while the 4G LTE Signal Booster Duo picks up T-Mobile’s existing 4G LTE cell signal better than any phone or tablet ever could, and is capable of duplicating it throughout your home and in targeted areas that usually experience bad signal, such as basements.
Getting your hands on either device is as simple as telling T-Mobile that you need one. It’s worth noting, however, that the company will only send these devices to postpaid customers. The 4G LTE CellSpot V2, an update of a model released back in 2015, is completely free to qualifying customers. The 4G LTE Signal Booster Duo requires a $25 deposit up front, but is otherwise free. Both devices will see users incur a fee if not returned on demand or when cancelling service. Returning them is done via a prepaid shipping label provided by T-Mobile. Both devices are available for customers as of this writing.
Both devices have some basic requirements for their use, the most basic of which is that customers are within T-Mobile’s service area. Even though the 4G LTE CellSpot V2 beams out a customer’s home internet as LTE signal, T-Mobile still needs spectrum licenses for that area in order to have its equipment operate. It covers LTE bands 2 and 4, along with some UMTS bands, but does not support 2G. This means that customers who do not have Wi-Fi calling or a VoLTE capable device won’t be able to use its output to make and receive calls or SMS messages. Conversely, the 4G LTE Signal Booster Duo does support Band 12 LTE, but retains the CellSpot’s lack of 2G support. The devices support not only phones and other mobile devices native to T-Mobile’s network, but unlocked GSM devices that are compatible with the proper cellular bands as well, from LTE-enabled laptops to IoT gear.
