Sprint readies Sprint Airave signal booster for July 15th launch
Sprint is getting ready to launch to launch their Airave signal booster on July 15th. The box, which should be available from your local Sprint store for $99, plugs into your broadband router, providing you with an added signal boost aided by your home internet connection. The service, similar to T-Mobile’s Hotspot@Home, is targeted at folks that live in a fringe coverage area, but are still tied to a Sprint account for whatever reason. It’s a decent proposition, but we’re pretty sure that the pricing scheme will place it out of reach for most casual users. The service will run you $15/month on an individual plan and $30/month, but the real kicker is that it’s rumored to require an unlimited calling plan to function. Not good. Unlike T-Mobile’s service, Airave broadcasts an actual cell signal, so it should work with all handsets, not just those equipped with Wi-Fi. The bad news, however, is that the device actually has an embedded aGPS chip to determine whether you’re currently located in a country with Sprint service, effectively squashing our dreams of yapping from Mongolia on your Sprint phone. Thanks, Sprint.
Tags: hotspot@home, Sprint, sprint airave
Seriously? How does this suppose to compete with T-mobile’s hotspot @ home.
$100 vs Free (since most people interested probably have wifi in their homes)
$15
$15/30 monthly vs 0 or $15 - Why do I have to pay at all? Why can’t I just use my monthly minutes, since it’s using my bandwidth anyway…
This is not going to be a winner unless the price drops considerably. The $100 I could live with if there was no monthly fee.
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I don’t think an unlimited plan is necessary, you might be off base with that one. Femtocell 1st on Sprint
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Verizon will be the same. Verizon is going to charge $15.00 mo for Femtocell service.
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Completly two diffrent types of technologies compairing this to Tmobiles @home services is like compairing CDMA to GSM. People still don’t see the benifits of Tmobiles @home VS what Sprint is now offering.
There are many benifits of using tmobiles @home vs Sprints new signal boosters. To keep the post short I am only going to mention the biggest one. UMA will work any where there is an open Wifi network. Sprints will only work when you are in range to one of there signal bosters, there is no need to plug anytype of devices to your router with UMA.
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I don’t want to compare them because Sprint’s and T Mo’s are pretty much the same, while the former can used in one location by any device the latter needs specified areas and devices
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A few corrections -
1- Launch has been pushed back a month in retail, but will be available through care on a reactive basis for customers looking to cancel due to coverage issues.
2- Pricing is $15 for UNLIMITED TALK, and to my understanding, free for people who just want to improve their coverage.
Also, a note to the T-Mobile comparisons, this tech is much more advanced (basically a mini CDMA tower vs a customized Wireless Router), ergo the $99 price.
Also, and don’t quote me on this, but the internal communication makes it sound likely that care will be using this heavily as a retention tool, and may even refund the cost of the device. Sound any sweeter now?
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If the truth is in the previous post that’s enough for me, wish this could go with you though. Can you imagine having a Airwave in your car, with Chrysler putting wi fi in cars that would give t@home the advantage
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No you compare them. Because they are the same target market.
Yes, you do compare gsm vs cdma, because those are the 2 choices out there. What else are you going to compare cdma to? itself?
It’s perfectly reasonable to compare sprint solution to tmobile’s wifi uma service, because it does the same thing. And I’m with sprint, thinking of switching to tmobile, this may just keep me on sprint - if there is no monthly fee.
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If those really are the prices, then that’s too bad for Sprint. They need everything they can offer to stop the bleeding of customers, and with their subpar service in many areas, this isn’t exactly enticing.
That being said, it is nice that it’s a femtocell and not UMA like T-Mobile’s HotSpot, as all Sprint phones can take advantage of it and not just the UMA-equipped T-Mobile phones.
However, being a UMA Curve user myself, I do appreciate being able to get service in places where there’s only WiFi, and not cell service. In that sense, it’s more universal.
Btw, is it true that you can use the UMA overseas and it won’t distinguish that you’re roaming? The Customer Care person told me that once, but I haven’t been able to try it for myself yet. If it is, that’s seriously amazing, and I hope it doesn’t change!
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Yeah, it’s true with using UMA overseas without roaming fees but it gets even better then that. As I said UMA works on with any open wifi network so your blackberry 8320 now can work at locations where other phones can’t get signal and no I am not just talking about remote areas. Think about it, what other Blackberry could you use in Japan?. Japan has their own 3G network that is diffrent then anything we have in the US.
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Form what I’ve read so far it’s either free or $5 to use your minutes and $10-$15 for individual and $25-$30 for fams that want unlimited. Sometimes I think BGR only wants to put out negative info for Sprint because none of the errant stories ever get updated to tell the truth, like this one and the SERO/data price increase one
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@ Don Louie
If your info is right Sprints unlimited is still kindof step compaired to T-mobile @ home service. With @home a customer gets unlimited UMA calling for just $9.99 a month.
This is for single lines aswell as family plans so you can have upto 5 phones on a family plan all getting free UMA calling for $9.99 a month. So mom gets free UMA at home Dad’s getting free calls at work and the kids who are both in college are getting free UMA calling aswell.
Let’s do math. 9.99 for @home service. High speed internet for Home $50
Free High speed internet for Dad at work. $0
Free High speed internet for kid 1. $0
Free High speed internet for kid 2. $0
Monthly total $59.99
Sprint unlimited $25
High speed at home $50
Now dad and the boys can’t simply use the free wifi at school or at work. They must have their own high speed to get unlimited so that 3 X $50 for $150 a month.
Grand monthly total $225.
Now remember that’s not including the 4 boosters at $100 each they will need to have to make all this work.
I’m sticking with UMA
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Hello,
Now i could have got this all wrong, But as far as i know you need the Tmo@home wifi station … it has the built in SIM cards that make this all work.
So Dad, sister sue and lil bobby would still need to get stations to put in there backpacks if you want this to work. Its not just having wireless around?
If i am wrong i am sorry AND HAPPY!
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You are wrong and happy.
T-mobile has two uma offerings. They have @home sevices and home phone services . They first releases their hotspot@home sevices that allowed anyone with a UMA phone and wifi to make calls. The dual mode phone will use a wifi network to connect to tmobile services to make calls. The benifit of @home service is to enhance signal and get unlimited calling using wifi.
Recently tmobile has brought us their home phone service. Home phone is not the same as @home and doesn’t use wifi. Home phone services allows you to use any standard home phone to make calls. With home phone you would need special router that connects to your internet and any standard home phone. The router works like any other router except for it can support sim cards. The benifit of home phone is to save customers money by allowing them to drop their home phone line.
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I been reading the launch was pushed back to next month, guess we’ll find out Tuesday
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Seriously, sub par sprint service? I’m not going to say it isn’t the case in some limited areas, but come on people. Quit bashing sprint. Try being a techie and look at it from our stand point. Everyone who has a crappy sanyo phone, that has dropped it 15 times is going to have minimal service.
Who thought the Katana was a good phone….seriously? It’s no comparison for the Razor, which sucked anyway because it’s the biggest test phone in existence.
I’ve been with Sprint for years, and except when I had like Sanyo 8200 phone, I’ve never dropped calls. Sanyo 8300 was good, Treo was ok, BlackBerry takes the cake. I don’t drop calls. I can travel wherever I want, and I don’t have issues. I’ve ridden trains from east to west coast, and I used my cell in more farm-towns than I can count.
Everyone who had VZW or GSM was continually pulling their phone out to see if they had service. Then they would look at me…
“Who do you have? You have service HERE?” Yea, I do. I have Sprint.
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