First poster:
>> I'm living in a rural Alaskan town and traditional cell service is
>>> spotty to none, even with an old bag phone and roof antenna so I was
>>> thinking that this could be an interesting approach to local mobile >>> phone service.
Sorry, if it uses frequencies illegal for use in the US, its use is illegal. Indiscriminate use of the "230-450MHz" band described for that device elsewhere:
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trash a lot of navigation devices. How well received would you be if you trashed a nav beacon, in AK where bush pilots are a necesssity?
I would be *very* specific with anyone selling such a device that you want to know what frequencies *specifically* are used, and have them show you in the FCC regs how they are exempt. Ask them for the 'FCC ID' number for the equipment. Then, check with the FCC field office, or confirm at the FCC website:
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> I highly doubt that it is legal in the U.S. However, modifying your
>> 802.11 gear and using say a PalmOS type machine with an 802.11 card
>> you could probably cobble together a VoIP solution that has a linear
>> range of 11 miles or so, depending on what type and pattern of
>> radiator you decide to use.
However, aga> Other then costs and time involved in getting a tech class ham
license, can someone estimate what the costs and legalities involved
> in setting up a mobile radio system with a (pseudo-encrypted) PSTN > gateway?
Encryption or pseudo-encryption is not allowed under FCC regs for the amateur bands. Although inverted-modulation is permitted in GPRS devices, phone patches for them are not.
Then I could 'legally' do what these devices do. The
> terrain is pretty open and flat and I have a barn that I could mount
> my equipment on which is above the treeline. At least if i'm going to
> burn additional dead dinosaurs I can have a higher 'gee-whiz' factor.
> Or should I just say forget this idea and go back to Iridium?
There's another possibility which would be cheaper and more reliable than anything else mentioned so far; better antennas for your bag phone. Just because the antenna's on the roof does not mean it's got adequate gain for what you need. Here's one high gain store-bought antenna:
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And, if there's a mountain in the way, set up a passive repeater in a location which can see both your home and the cell tower you're trying to hit. A passive antenna is just two antennas, attached to each other, with no electronics; one aimed at your home QTH and another at the cell tower you are trying to hit. Then, aim the home antenna at the passive repeater.
[TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: Mike Sandman has a similar antenna device in his catalog
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and I have one of them but never much need it these days. Its an indoor antenna mounted on a tripod which you set next to a window then plug it into the external antenna jack on your cellular phone. Back in my early days this time around here in Independence, when I was using the AT&T phone which always seemed to look for a Tulsa-based tower whenever it could, that external antenna on a tripod helped quite a bit. Mike also has a device which is mounted outdoors somewhere with a good clear line of sight to the base, then it 'repeats' its signal all around your home or office. PAT]