GSM/GPRS site survey - General Topics

I happen to own a PDA2K, but for this job I'd be prepared to buy any other bit of kit that was suitable
What I want is to stand at some place on the earth, and get as much information as I possibly can about what mobile networks have coverage there.
I'm prepared to agree to fit the device with a "foreign SIM", which has roaming rights on many local networks, if the device can make use of that.
I'd also like the most "live and responsive" possible display of GSM signal strength so I can test out the best location for an aerial.
So what hardware and software can I get my hands on to help?
I'm aware that I could tackle the job with a signal strength meter - but I've never found one that can tell me more than "strong signal at X MHz" ( unless it's been carefully set-up and configured for the country in question first ) A signal strength meter which could decode the operator name from the GSM signal would be a wonderful idea, but I haven't seen one.
David

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Big Brother watching you via your phone

This is what I found on a local papers. My God, Big Brother watching you via your phone
IBM revealed in its Next Five In Five study that one of the biggest innovations that will change our lives in the next five years is mobile phones that can read our minds.
The study said that advanced "presence" technology, which IBM is testing with Norway's biggest telecommunications group, will allow mobile devices and networks to learn about users' whereabouts and preferences as they commute, work and travel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i would not put much trust it that source
when
1 they dont name the norwegian isp
2 norway have pretty strict privicy laws
What exactly is new about this?
At least in the US (I think in other places too by now) all mobile phones are required to have a GPS chip by law so they can be tracked in case of emergency or "criminal situation".
Believe me, if big brother wanted to watch you, they would not advertise the technology. I think this is more of a "phishing trip" (thats phishing whit "ph" as in internet scam) so cell companies can shove targeted commercials up your @@@ and make more money.
Rudegar said:
i would not put much trust it that source
when
1 they dont name the norwegian isp
2 norway have pretty strict privicy laws
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They say Norwegian telecoms group, not isp. That would probably indicate Nokia...
also
Privacy is one thing, but "features for customer benefit" are another... remember what was said when people wanted to put CCTV in city centres? These days you just kinda accept that they will be under constant scrutiny...
not exactly the same, but it would be the "customer benefit" that eventualy outwieghs the more sinister uses for the technology.
Already some of us are using MSN live search, or Google Maps and seeing the advantages that brings... as soon as the more widespread acceptance of these new uses is apparent people will let it slip to the backs of their minds that the evil people in the shadows could use this information to great effect for anything they wanted....
When im rich, im buying an island and building a huge farraday cage around it so they cant read my brain with microwaves and lasers. heeheh
nokia is from finland not norway
no mobil producers i know of are based in norway
a norwegian telcom company is telenor though that could be a player i doubt it though it's not really atune with the nordic system to test out a big brother system least of all in norway
and normal mobils dont! have gps's in them but they connect to antennas and the antennas know who are connected to them and from what direction they are connected from thats all
if the operater let people this can be used as a pretty crude form of gps but it's prob closer to a 1km pricision then a 1m or what ever gps is today
Hmm, I distinctly remember reading something about GPS1 even in normal phones but i could be wrong.
Just wanted to make a point that if they want to find you they will, though making this point is hard to do without sounding paranoid.
P.S. Not too relevant, but I am fairly sure (don't have a link to prove it) that commercial GPS (like those in PPCs) are accurate to about 10 meters and the nav software compensates by assuming you are in a car on a given street.
There is a something called DGPS (differential) that is accurate to less then one meter but it relies on ground stations in addition to satellites and is only available in certain areas.
we are traceable as is via our phones and there are no such things as private calls
9yrs in the militray and 11 in the gov security uk/overseas
trace over phone ... do you know "gsm cell id" ... in the future, all provider in austria must store "cell ids" and connection data for 6 months. the first steps to build a visible user are done!
in the uk people have already been located in court case for serious crimes ,using the monbilephone to give times and locations within feet

Equipment Tests Signal Strength Of All Carriers Simultaneously

Didn't think this was possible but the manufacturer says you can test the signal strength of all US carriers simultaneously right where you stand. They claim not even the carriers have this equipment.
Never heard of it before. I was actually trying to find info on the sealed Opticell car batteries (trying to find out if they are lead or gel based) and this popped up in Google results.
Here is the .pdf http://acceleratedconcepts.com/docs/opticell-users-guide.pdf Pretty neat seeing the carrier names on a unit testing THEIR signal strength.
Manufacturers home page doesn't seem to show cost or way to buy but if it were cheap enough definitely wouldn't mind having.
http://acceleratedconcepts.com/

[Q] Suggestions for signal boosters

Hi, Wasn’t sure on the best place to post this so please feel free to move, I’ve had a search but not really any help… so, just moved to a new house (53.365816,-6.995974) and the mobile signal outside and in is rubbish, I’m on Vodafone IRE but tried Three, o2 & Metor. Sadly rural Ireland isn’t great for comms.
Looking at askcomreg.ie under side ID KE020, I appear to be about 4Km as the crow fly’s from the nearest mast site. The main building is about 20m above the rest of the buildings so I was looking at buying a booster and mounting it inside the roof or outside.
Has anyone got any recommendations or suggestions?
As most of the buildings are either log or standard bricks & mortar…
Thanks
(Dohh! didn't know post count was so low! hence no links)

Comparison of cell phones by antenna strength?

I looked in the smartphone comparaison we can find everywhere around the internet about this single thing,
i thought it was pretty usual when reviewing a phone to check if it can at least connect easily to the network but I WAS SO WRONG.
Except the different band used by the smartphone, there is litterraly none of these fancy youtuber that dare to check the antenna strength ...
Why would anyone care if its phone can actually make descent call, as long as it runs PUBG fine :good:
God, the smartphone business has become such **** since a few years.

personal hotspot devices that aren't garbage

i live semi-off grid, and rely on mobile internet. this has been fine most places i've been, and it's still pretty much fine where i am now, i can get about a 10Mbps HSPA+ connection through my S7, though annoyingly, it's more like 25Mbps slightly up the hill from me.
i thought i would try a huawei e5332 mifi box, connected to an external antenna on the roof. i didn't realise that the receivers in these mifi boxes are garbage compared to what's in a decent phone, so even with the antenna in the optimum position, the best i can get is just over half the speed i get through the S7.
so what should i be looking for in a personal hotspot to find one that has a receiver anywhere near as good as the one in my S7? like what are the specs i should be looking for?
i'm specifically looking for decent 3G/HSPA+ connectivity, there's no 4G/LTE where i am anyway, though i guess anything with a 4G receiver would also be a better 3G receiver?
I have one of these bundles : https://www.motorhomewifi.com/product/4g-huawei-e5577-mifi-window-mount-antenna/
Which I used while travelling around France and Spain in 2018/19. It's a Huawei (can't remember the model number), with an extra aerial connection. Possibly similar to what you already have?
I'll admit I never tested the speeds in play, but I invariably got a much better signal with it than I did using a Sony Xperia Z5C as a hotspot.
Just here to support this thread beacuse for the life of me I can't seem to understand why mobile hot spots are grabage in today's world. Will there ever be a time we look back on this and 'wonder how they made it' while in my life time.....

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