Latest Wireless Device FCC ID Listings

This is a guest post from RepeaterStore. RepeaterStore.com provides amplification solutions to improve wireless cell and data reception in buildings, homes and vehicles. We’ve helped over 25,000 customers large and small improve their signal since 2007. Our headquarters are in beautiful Laguna Hills, California.

Our last post outlined how signal boosters work and how the FCC regulates them. Most booster kits typically contain two antennas: one that communicates with the cellphone tower, and another that communicates with the cell phone/other devices.

Installing a standard consumer signal booster kit isn’t especially difficult. Most people with minimal DIY experience should be able to do it. But it does have some challenges. Renters, for example, might not be able to drill to run cable through a wall (shorter cable length reduces signal loss). People also usually need to access their roof, because outside antennas should be placed as high up as possible, in the area receiving the best possible signal.

Two signal booster manufacturers have just released products that aim to address some of these challenges. The FCC has just approved the EZ-4G from SureCall and the eqo booster from weBoost.

Both products are plug-and-play boosters aimed at consumers in apartments, condos or rentals that don’t have access to the roof or can’t mount an external antenna. They are designed to install in under 15 minutes. The kits have two parts–a signal booster with a built-in external antenna, and an interior antenna to send that signal throughout the home. Consumers just need to place the booster/antenna unit in an area that has signal (like a window), plug it into an electrical outlet and connect the interior antenna, then watch the signal improve.

One of the big challenges with these boosters is preventing oscillation. As we mentioned in our previous post, the FCC was very concerned with oscillation and requires every signal booster to have built-in protections to prevent oscillation from happening. A cellular booster system works best with a greater distance between the two antennas. If they are too close together, it can cause oscillation, or “feedback.” Feedback occurs when the outside antenna picks up the signal from the inside antenna, and attempts to feed it back into the system. The result is very similar to the feedback effect you see when you a move a microphone too close to speakers that are rebroadcasting the signal: sounds get trapped in a loop, causing a high-pitched noise. In a cellular network, this is seen as noise by both devices and cell phone towers, and degrades the overall quality of service for users.

To prevent oscillation, the “path loss” between the two antennas needs to sufficient (or more exactly, the path loss needs to be greater than the gain of the amplifier itself). In traditional signal boosters that path loss is achieved by placing the donor antenna on a roof. But these new devices don’t have exterior antennas on the roof, and as a result the amplifier unit and the inside antenna need to be at least 20 feet and ideally 30-35 feet apart so that the system has room to work effectively.

The eqo and the EZ-4G  boost signal for 3G/4G/LTE across all US carriers. They are much less powerful than many other SureCall and weBoost boosters. Their lower coverage area of only 1-2 rooms making them a great choice for an apartment, but consumers who need a bigger coverage area will want to look at the bigger traditional kits.

This is a guest post from RepeaterStore. RepeaterStore.com provides amplification solutions to improve wireless cell and data reception in buildings, homes and vehicles. We’ve helped over 25,000 customers large and small improve their signal since 2007. Our headquarters are in beautiful Laguna Hills, California.

Signal boosters, also called amplifiers and cellular repeaters, are hardware devices that are “bi-directional amplifiers”. They amplify the signal being sent to and from the nearest cellphone tower. They are designed to extend and improve wireless coverage (2G voice, 3G/4G/LTE data, and wifi) to areas that would otherwise have weak signal and unreliable coverage.

Signal boosters can be installed in a home, office or vehicle. Booster kits typically contain two antennas: one that communicates with the cellphone tower, and another that communicates with the cell phone(s). The outside antenna receives an outside signal and transmits it to the amplifier. The amplifier boosts the signal and rebroadcasts it inside via the inside antenna, eliminating dead coverage zones.

Booster kits include antennas, amplifier and cables to connect the system.

Wireless signal boosters are regulated by the FCC because they operate on cellular frequencies. The FCC’s concern was that malfunctioning or improperly designed or installed signal boosters could interfere with wireless networks and so cause interference to communication services. The past seven years have seen a lot of changes to RCC regulation of wireless boosters. Several parties filed petitions with the FCC seeking clarification of or changes to the FCC’s rules to address the proper use and regulation of signal boosters. In January 2010, the FCC released a Public Notice seeking comment on these various petitions. In April 2011, the FCC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comment on how best to facilitate the development and deployment of well-designed signal boosters. In February 2013, the FCC released a Report and Order which laid out new regulations for wireless signal boosters.

Manufacturers of consumer-grade signal boosters can submit their products to the FCC for approval. Once a device has been approved by the FCC, consumers who purchase and install it also need to register with their wireless service provider. The leading wireless service providers (Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T), and many rural cellular carriers that are members of the Rural Wireless Association (RWA) and the Competitive Carriers Association (CCA) have committed to provide blanket approval for signal boosters that meet the FCC standards.

What are the FCC standards for wireless signal boosters?

The FCC stipulates a range of technical specifications designed to protect against interference:

All devices must comply with technical parameters (e.g. power level, emission limitations, and frequency tolerance) for the applicable spectrum band, and RF exposure requirements for the type of device (i.e., fixed or mobile).

Self-monitoring features. All consumer signal boosters must detect and mitigate oscillation (such as may result from insufficient isolation between the antennas) in both the uplink and downlink bands.  A booster that goes into oscillation will either stop the oscillation or shut down before it can cause harmful interference to nearby wireless networks. Boosters must also ensure compliance with applicable noise and gain limits and self-correct or shut down automatically if operating in violation of those rules.

Power down, or shut down, automatically when a device is not needed, such as when the device approaches the base station with which it is communicating.

The E-Label Act , also known as the “Enhance Labeling, Accessing, and Branding of Electronic Licenses Act of 2014” is a change in the way devices need to be labeled for FCC Compliance. With all FCC Applications, there is currently a document titled “Label Location”, this new act will bring changes to the labeling procedures.

The act will move many manufacturers to providing the FCC identification information in a digital format on the devices display screen, thus making the back of the device less logo/text ridden.

The main reason to this electronic labeling is cited as “[while] devices become smaller, compliance with physical label requirements can become more difficult and costly.”

The act set forth a timeline for regulation to come out regarding E-Labeling within the next nine months. We will keep you posted when the full details of this act are available and what changes they may have to the application detail process. There’s no word yet as to if Industry Canada will be following suit.

The Zen Thermostat , an indiegogo project, just got approval with the FCC, a good sign to the backers that raised over $65000. From the FCC application, it appears the product matches what the IndieGoGo presentation provided. Some more details can be found in the User Manual.