Frenchy
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Chris
- Joined
- Mar 15, 2020
- Threads
- 164
- Messages
- 7,544
- Reaction score
- 10,753
- Location
- Elizabeth, Colorado
- Vehicle(s)
- 2012 Nissan Frontier, 1994 F150 XL, 2022 Ford Transit
- Occupation
- Field Service Technician
- Thread starter
- #1
So for about the last month I have had the chance to run the WeBoost Drive Reach Overland on my truck. For a while it is something I was wanting as I saw the benefits while traveling. Well I'm now glad that I have it and I can explain the positive and negative things about it.
Now of course this is installed on my Frontier, but it should apply to any vehicle you put it on. For me what I did was mount the module under the rear seat, the interior antenna on the center console and the exterior antenna on the rear roof rack at the back. For power I decided to use the cigarette lighter port on my dash as it has power all the time and the plug for the WeBoost has an ON/OFF switch.
During the setup I made sure I registered the WeBoost with my cell carrier so they at least know I'm using it. Verizon probably couldn't care less, but it should be registered with the cell carrier you are using(thankfully it's at no extra charge.
Right after setting the WeBoost up I did a quick test at the house. Over there I usually have some very spotty signal. It's bad enough that it competes with CenturyLink to see who is slower! Well once I started the WeBoost and let it do its thing, the phone picked up signal and I could load web pages much faster!
The next test was heading to my Chiropractor down in Colorado Springs. On the way down and back it was hard to say if it made any difference. Yes the signal was good, but I can't remember how it was before right off.
Next was on the way to work. I have the lucky(not really) chance to service one of the Amazon Facilities here in Denver. Well in the parking lot the cell service simply sucks. Well with the WeBoost it did fix that as long as my phone was within range of the interior antenna.
My last test was a bit more fun as it covered this last weekend. I ended up going up to Wyoming to do part of the Backcountry Discovery Route there. I ended up doing sections 1 and 2 over the weekend. Well on the way to Baggs Wyoming we took I-70 to Silverthorne and started heading up to Kremmling going to through Steamboat and Craig. During that time I would say I had cell reception for about 90-95% of the time. If I didn't have the WeBoost I would have been lucky to see cell service for about 50-60% of the time.
After getting to Baggs it was fun for the trail. Since it was late we found vamp fast and stayed for the night. Surprisingly we had good service on the trail at first camp near Baggs. I'm sure the WeBoost would have helped, but it wasn't necessary there.
The following day we started our way down the trail and enjoyed the views along the way! Later we got close to Boyer Ranch and had to take pictures!! Well when I got out of the truck my cell service was there, but very minimal. Once I got back in the truck the cell service went back up! Simple proof that it was doing its job!
Now of course I was still getting spots that had no such thing as signal. This was expected while being remote and I was ok with that. If anything this simply helped keep service for longer periods as needed. When we got to camp #2 I might have had cell service when we pulled in, but the moment I got out of the truck with the phone, I lost service and wasn't able to get it until leaving camp the following day. It was certainly proof that you can't boost a signal if you don't have one! Overall I'd say I had service for about 50% of the time at best when it could have been much closer to 25%. Still an improvement!
With all that said you might be wondering if it is worth getting. Well if you are like me and simply like traveling by car/truck/SUV then I say get it. Even for going to another town on the pavement you can see improvement in cell service. Just understand that you will still have weak spots in areas that aren't as populated. On the trail you can see improvement as well. For me I used it to get my weather radar on my Garmin Tread and it helped quite a bit!
Just know that if you are one of those that run a business and need Internet everywhere you go, this may not be for you.
Now of course this is installed on my Frontier, but it should apply to any vehicle you put it on. For me what I did was mount the module under the rear seat, the interior antenna on the center console and the exterior antenna on the rear roof rack at the back. For power I decided to use the cigarette lighter port on my dash as it has power all the time and the plug for the WeBoost has an ON/OFF switch.
During the setup I made sure I registered the WeBoost with my cell carrier so they at least know I'm using it. Verizon probably couldn't care less, but it should be registered with the cell carrier you are using(thankfully it's at no extra charge.
Right after setting the WeBoost up I did a quick test at the house. Over there I usually have some very spotty signal. It's bad enough that it competes with CenturyLink to see who is slower! Well once I started the WeBoost and let it do its thing, the phone picked up signal and I could load web pages much faster!
The next test was heading to my Chiropractor down in Colorado Springs. On the way down and back it was hard to say if it made any difference. Yes the signal was good, but I can't remember how it was before right off.
Next was on the way to work. I have the lucky(not really) chance to service one of the Amazon Facilities here in Denver. Well in the parking lot the cell service simply sucks. Well with the WeBoost it did fix that as long as my phone was within range of the interior antenna.
My last test was a bit more fun as it covered this last weekend. I ended up going up to Wyoming to do part of the Backcountry Discovery Route there. I ended up doing sections 1 and 2 over the weekend. Well on the way to Baggs Wyoming we took I-70 to Silverthorne and started heading up to Kremmling going to through Steamboat and Craig. During that time I would say I had cell reception for about 90-95% of the time. If I didn't have the WeBoost I would have been lucky to see cell service for about 50-60% of the time.
After getting to Baggs it was fun for the trail. Since it was late we found vamp fast and stayed for the night. Surprisingly we had good service on the trail at first camp near Baggs. I'm sure the WeBoost would have helped, but it wasn't necessary there.
The following day we started our way down the trail and enjoyed the views along the way! Later we got close to Boyer Ranch and had to take pictures!! Well when I got out of the truck my cell service was there, but very minimal. Once I got back in the truck the cell service went back up! Simple proof that it was doing its job!
Now of course I was still getting spots that had no such thing as signal. This was expected while being remote and I was ok with that. If anything this simply helped keep service for longer periods as needed. When we got to camp #2 I might have had cell service when we pulled in, but the moment I got out of the truck with the phone, I lost service and wasn't able to get it until leaving camp the following day. It was certainly proof that you can't boost a signal if you don't have one! Overall I'd say I had service for about 50% of the time at best when it could have been much closer to 25%. Still an improvement!
With all that said you might be wondering if it is worth getting. Well if you are like me and simply like traveling by car/truck/SUV then I say get it. Even for going to another town on the pavement you can see improvement in cell service. Just understand that you will still have weak spots in areas that aren't as populated. On the trail you can see improvement as well. For me I used it to get my weather radar on my Garmin Tread and it helped quite a bit!
Just know that if you are one of those that run a business and need Internet everywhere you go, this may not be for you.
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