The manual is somewhat sparse, but considering I just put up the antenna, connected everything- all 3 everythings- and it worked, that's fine for now. I have yet to look at SureCall website, I am sure I can find as much geeking out as I want there. Included in the printed matter is a link to an app which detects technical specs on your tower’s signals, but it was for Android only and I have yet to find an iOS one as in depth.
But, solid reception inside the house- and actually a large perimeter is hard to argue with.
So the story- I'd gotten a Sony Xperia phone to review, one of it’s biggest shortcomings is a really poor antenna so I knew a booster antenna would be a must. I checked all the others carefully, and it didn’t take long to realize the ones around $100 just couldn’t do it. I waded through the reviews, after a short time it seemed many of them were fake 5 stars, so it was mostly the Verified Purchases that steered me to this unit, it seemed the best choice.
I downloaded the recommended tower info app, and was so helpful I was about to get the “pro” version. I had been on the roof and discovered my nearest antenna was probably 2 miles away and in a different direction than I had believed, and atop a canyon rim to boot. But as so often it does, bad luck found me. While I was relocating to check for a stronger signal and a new booster antenna location, I stepped on a small pile of marble shaped pebbles on a gravelly hillside- with the Sony in my pocket. After I was done sliding and got most of the bleeding stopped I dared to have a look at the phone. Amazingly, the glass was intact, but apparently a large pebble had put a dent in the rear case that rendered some of the screen unusable, although to its credit, it seemed as if things were still working, only I could not see or hit the top row of the unlock keypad. The touchpad is on the backside, so the fingerprint ID was wiped out as well.
Oh, the irony. I hate irony, but I succumbed to an old desire and went for my first iPhone. And surprise- the antenna was so much better I could get signal almost anywhere in the house.
But the SureCall was still in my office, so one fine day I dug up a 6’ mounting pole, 1" steel IPS - not the best choice, but good for a test. Found a place on the peak of the roof nearest the tower, (if you can call it “near”) and set about running the coax. I wasn’t sure how much I needed, so I'd picked up a 100’ roll for the test.
Placed the booster on the attic floor near the center of the house, connected the coax and power, and within a few minutes the indicators stabilized and I saw about a 75% increase in bars- I know they say straight up that doesn’t mean as much as solid calls, but it is so much better I can’t complain. I think after I find an app that provides more detailed tower info and I understand the trim pots a little bit better I may be able to improve the results
The app recommended for iOS provides hard-core data from the tower, or at least what parts you are getting, and it's arcane to say the least. I am slowly catching on to the verbiage and what it signifies, and cell buffs are laughing. But apart from minute adjustments to the rceiver position, once the antenna is installed I doubt they are of much value. But then, you'd need to be educated on same while you were planting the outdoor antenna in the first place. (third photo)
Next up: putting up some EMT, a clean install of the included 50’ cable and finding a semi-permanent location for the unit. It was about 99° when I tested it, and the big heat sinks on the booster aren’t for looks, it runs hot to the touch, so a cooling fan may be called for.
(I finally did all that but added a foot to the mast, and after it settled down and I tweaked the gain, all lights were spot-on and the signal improved.)
Very impressed, YMMV of course, but go the extra $200, get what you need: set and forget.