Femtocells, for the uninitiated, are a way for carriers to fill in small areas of poor network strength – such as basements – by helping subscribers create their own, personal bubble of coverage. Hooked up to your broadband connection, they allow (pre-registered) phones to connect as if to a regular base station, but calls and data are funneled over the internet to the carrier.

Compared to the first-gen model, as well as being smaller the new Sure Signal supports more simultaneous users and can now have up to 32 devices registered as “approved” to use it. A minimum broadband speed of 1MB is required for stable use, though obviously the width of the pipe demanded will depend on how many people are using it at the same time.

Vodafone is offering the Sure Signal now, priced at £100. Some might find paying to fill in the carrier’s dead spots frustrating, but if it’s a case of paying up or being forced to step out into the cold every time you need to make a call, it’s probably worth it.

Meanwhile, a power-dock keeps the AFC running while it’s bridging your cellphone’s 2G/3G/4G connection to your WiFi router. ip.access suggests production versions of the concept could be battery powered, meaning even greater flexibility in where the palmsized femtocell could be placed.

For instance, a hotel or bar WiFi connection could be used, with the AFC bridging that to get smartphones and other cellularly-enabled devices online for voice and data, even if there’s no regular signal available. Integrated GPS could be used – along with auto-setup systems – to automatically get the AFC working with a public hotspot. Of course, it would also likely be used by carriers themselves to make sure subscribers weren’t bypassing international roaming fees by using the ip.access kit abroad.

“In an LTE world, this would be the ultimate in personal metro zone hot spots” ip.access CTO Dr Nick Johnson concludes. The AFC is functional but unlikely to go on sale in its current form.

“The Femto cell contains a Mini-RNC/Node-B which is not a real RNC nor a Node-B. It’s something inbetween. The mini-RNC can request real encryption keys and authentication vectors for any vodafone UK customer from the vodafone core network (like a real RNC). The vodafone core network still authenticates every single phone (like a Node-B)”

As the modders explain, the end result is a femtocell that can be used to record all voice calls made by phones connected to it, stored in AMR12.2 format. Although usually Vodafone requires each connected handset to be registered to the Sure Signal, the hack can bypass that and, if a phone is in range, can inadvertently register to the femtocell as if it were a regular base-station.

A similar hack allows outgoing calls and SMS messages to be sent via another Vodafone customer’s phone, if registered to the compromised Sure Signal, though incoming traffic can only be collected if the account is registered through Vodafone to the femtocell itself. Other instructions suggest how the Sure Signal could be transported abroad and used to create a personal network wherever there’s a broadband connection, rather than solely in the UK as Vodafone mandates.

However, while potentially dangerous to users who inadvertently connect their phones to a hacked Sure Signal, the fact that it also requires a physical modification to the hardware so as to prevent remote upgrades means it’s highly unlikely that those units already in people’s homes could be remotely co-opted. The femtocells themselves have limited range, too, restricting the potential collection area within which phones might be harvested.

We’ve reached out to Vodafone UK for a comment, and will update when we hear back from the carrier.

Update: Vodafone UK has given us the following statement:

“Overnight on July 12, a claim appeared that hackers had found security loopholes in Vodafone Sure Signal which could compromise the security of Vodafone’s network. This is untrue: the Vodafone network has not been compromised.

The claims regarding Vodafone Sure Signal, which is a signal booster used indoors, relate to a vulnerability that was detected at the start of 2010. A security patch was issued a few weeks later automatically to all Sure Signal boxes.

As a result, Vodafone Sure Signal customers do not need to take any action to secure their device.

We monitor the security of all of our products and services on an ongoing basis and will continue to do so.”

Update 2: [07/15/11] Vodafone has taken extra steps beyond its firmware update of last year to ensure no call monitoring/spoofing is possible from hacked Sure Signal boxes. The carrier is now blocking network access to any units which do not upgrade to the most recent firmware. That means, if you have an old Sure Signal, as soon as you plug it in it should automatically upgrade and then give you network access; if you’ve hacked your femtocell so as not to update, the unit simply won’t work. Vodafone echoes what we pointed out in our original report, which is that the potential for harm was always – given the low range of the Sure Signal – relatively limited:

“We have identified just a handful of devices running software which pre-dates the patch we issued to fix this vulnerability (originally issued in February 2010).

These devices will no longer access our network unless they are carrying the most recent software update. Devices will automatically poll for this update upon being powered up.

The only time a customer could theoretically have been at risk was if they were registered on, and within 50 metres of, a box which the owner had tampered with. This would have required that person to dismantle the device and solder additional components onto it, as well as taking the conscious decision to prevent the device from receiving our automatic software updates.”

Update 3: After further allegations by THC regarding the effectiveness of Vodafone’s fix, the carrier has given SlashGear a further comment:

“The design of the Vodafone Sure Signal is based on and conforms with the industry 3GPP femtocell standards. Therefore, claims that it violates the security requirements for 3G/UMTS are completely untrue.

In addition to this, the device has been and continues to be rigorously tested by Vodafone, our partners and independent security experts. As a result of this, we can say with confidence that Vodafone Sure Signals currently in operation are not vulnerable to the reported exploits.”

[via cellular-news]

The MF100H femtocell is interoperable with the Nokia Siemens networks mobile infrastructure that is being planned for completion soon. The Femtocell is delivering a traffic carrying capacity of 1000x greater than the 3G network of most small carriers.

Netgear doesn’t say when the new MF100H femtocell will hit the market or what it will cost for end users when it finally lands. “Femtocells are just now getting to the other side of the technology chasm,” said Michael Clegg, vice president and general manager, Service Provider Business Unit, NETGEAR. “Today, these nascent devices appear in tiny deployments when measured against the billions of residences and businesses worldwide where they will ultimately be deployed. After three years in the market, femotcells are now poised for widespread adoption thanks to industry advances in interoperability and reduced deployment costs.”

Ubiquisys has announced a new femtocell that is the world’s fist attocell. The device is designed for people that travel abroad and want to be able to make and receive calls just as they would at home. The device was developed specifically for the iPhone, but will work with any 3G mobile phone including Blackberry, Nokia and Android devices.

The device connects to a laptop via USB for power and a web connection. It will then gather IP information about the country it is in and sets the 3G radio inside to the allowed level. That means the coverage area will vary from a scant 5mm in some areas to a whole room in others. The phone is laid n top of the attocell if 5mm is all the coverage allowed and calls are made with a Bluetooth headset. The device will be shown off at MWC.

MagicJack will launch its femtocell product this year that will work with any mobile phone. We have heard about this femtocell before. What we didn’t know was that rather than selling the femtocell product alone, the device would be marketed with a wireless carrier.

Exactly which wireless carrier will be used is unknown, but odds are it won’t be AT&T or Verizon but one of the smaller carriers and my money is on a pre-paid carrier. MagicJack apps for the iPad, Android, and Blackberry devices are still in the works and a new softphone service will land in the next month or so from MagicJack to compete with Skype and the offering will be global.

Roke claims that its femtocell is good for 40,000 times more coverage than your average femtocell. The femtocell also promises to offer coverage at speeds up to 120kph allowing the user to travel while staying connected.

The femtocell is a LTE device and supports up to 12 users at the same time. With a huge coverage area of 40km, I would have though more users could be on at the same time. The company says that the femtocell is low cost but doesn’t offer specific pricing information.

A little background first: a femtocell is basically a domestic or small-office scale cellular base station, that hooks up to your broadband connection and creates a localized area of 2G or 3G coverage (depending on model). Your cellphone automatically pairs with the femto as if it were a regular base station – usually with some sort of pre-registration so as to prevent unauthorized access – and then any calls you make are passed over broadband to the carrier’s network backbone rather than over the crowded airwaves.

Femtocells make sense for carriers as they allow them to shift heavy users off of wireless and onto the more capacious hard-wired network, and they make sense to users because they guarantee coverage in an area that perhaps doesn’t normally see sufficient bars to make calls or use data services. Of course there’s also a cost question on top of that – some operators charge upfront for the femto and then the ongoing service is free, while others subsidize the femto and then have a service fee and/or count calls against your wireless minutes – though that’s up to the carrier rather than Airvana.

What makes the Airvana Femto Family Tablet – aka the Femt’Au Pair – special is its seamless integration with multiple devices, and the way it uses that integration. Airvana showed a demo where a cameraphone, when it came into range of the home femtocell, automatically transferred all its new photos to the home computer (in this case a touchscreen Sony VAIO all-in-one running a web-based “home hub” demo UI) and uploaded them to a Facebook gallery. The process was near-instantaneous, and at the same time the handset – a Motorola DROID – automatically changed its wallpaper to a “home” image and flashed up a message saying “Welcome Home”. Since it took place over a cellular link (and at very fast speeds, since femtos are far more likely to reach the higher limits of HSDPA/HSUPA than a public base station) it didn’t require WiFi be turned on or paired first.

Meanwhile, messages left – either locally or sent through an automatically created VPN link when a handset is remote – from other home users flashed up on the VAIO’s screen and on the mobile version of the app viewable on the DROID. In Airvana’s demo, the DROID was set as a teenager’s handset while a Nexus One was set as the parent’s phone: as soon as the DROID came into femtocell range, an SMS was sent to the Nexus One saying the teenager was home. Meanwhile the parent could send messages – such as “do your piano practice” or “I’ll be late” – to the teenager, flashing up on the VAIO and on the handset. A “Family Location” pane automatically updated to show where each person was, tracked by their phone and the base station they were connected to.

The clever part is that Airvana don’t require complex modification of the mobile handset in order to use the basic functionality. The femtocell is capable of automatically collecting photos – you can also view them remotely, browsing the phone’s memory as if it were locally attached via USB – together with pulling out calendar data without any specific software running. The calendar is intelligent enough to tell the difference between a physical location and a scheduled location, so for instance if the teenager leaves school and goes to the mall instead, that can be flagged up. Meanwhile, more complex femtocell-specific APIs have been developed that Airvana are pushing to have included into mobile handset OSes, that would allow for more significant interaction between the phone and the Family Tablet, for instance the changing wallpaper.

Those APIs – which Airvana will make publicly available, so carriers and developers alike can build applications or FAPapps (“Femtocell Access Point apps”) for the system – are what makes the Femto Family Tablet really interesting. The company told us that the carriers they’ve spoken to have been keen on interoperability between different brands of femto and different carrier models, which hopefully means that a Verizon femto app won’t be confused if wirelessly paired with a Sprint femto, for instance. It also leaves plenty of room for third-party developer involvement: Airvana haven’t added image push functionality from the Family Tablet to the phone, for instance, but the service backbone is there and it would merely someone producing software for it.

Airvana envisage different versions of the system, and are in talks with various carriers who are leaning toward one or the other. The femto intelligence could be in a server integrated into the base station itself, serving up a local webpage for interaction in a similar way to the setup pages of most routers. Alternatively, a standalone box could be used – similar, perhaps, to Verizon’s ill-fated Home Hub, only with a femtocell built in – that had a touchscreen for control. Finally, some carriers are talking about a remote, cloud-based interface that would see minimal intelligence in the local femtocell. As for what handsets the more complex features would be compatible with, Airvana already have an Android API and are working on versions for iOS, BlackBerry OS and other platforms at the moment. One interesting addition is virtual DLNA support, which basically allows non-DLNA compliant mobile phones to connect to – and send/receive content to/from – a DLNA source such as a media server or HDTV using the femto as a bridge.

The company won’t be offering Femto Family Tablet hardware themselves; instead they’re working with carriers with the femtocells and the underlying hub system. It’ll be up to those network operators to decide what sort of box might appear in your living room, whether that will have its own touchscreen interface, use your PC or iPad, or even your HDTV. As for timescales, their estimate is sometime next year for Europe or North America; similar systems are already operating, though a little less complex, in Japan, where Airvana are working with KDDI among others. Carriers are likely to be spurred on by the research Airvana commissioned that found users would consider paying significantly higher monthly service fees and upfront hardware costs for systems that included home-hub style functionality; that, and the fact that the company just won awards for both the Femto Family Tablet and their contribution to femto standards. In fact the only people we can see not being too keen are teenagers: having your parents automatically updated whenever you arrive home or leave the house, or if you bunk off school, may prove to be a hard sell that even tight Facebook integration can’t quite sweeten.

If you feel differently about femtocells, you might be interested in the femtocell TI is showing off at the Femtocells World Summit in London. The femtocell can support up to 32 users at once. That is way more than most femotcells that typically support about ten users.

This would be the perfect femtocell for an office that wants to connect a bunch of workers to a more reliable connection. The demonstration of the new femtocell is meant to highlight tech from TI and partners Azcom and Nash.

AT&T, for their part, claim that there is a cost incurred for them to handle the data once it goes beyond a user’s home broadband connection, though that seems a little disingenuous since it’s then on their fiber backbone rather than being herded through the crowded wireless spectrum.  Of course, if you’re near your AT&T 3G Microcell then you’re probably also within range of a WiFi hotspot, so could always hop on that instead, but with the femtocell priced at $150 and being seen, in part, as a way for AT&T to use your own connection rather than bulk out their network, we can imagine there’ll be plenty of people frustrated by this.

[via BGR]

Details of the VoIP functionality aren’t entirely clear from the draft user manual on the FCC site, but we’re assuming you’ll be able to plug in a regular landline phone and bridge calls over your broadband network, probably with some low-cost calling plan from Sprint.  Alternatively, they could offer wired use of your mobile minutes; we’ll have to wait until the official announcement to know for sure.

Unfortunately there’s still a GPS chip in place, so you won’t be able to take the new Sprint Airave out of the country and expect it to work.  Sprint look to have missed their target of getting a 3G-capable femtocell on sale before AT&T managed it, but the Airave does have VoIP functionality which is something the AT&T 3G Microcell lacks.

[via Engadget]

Up to ten phones can be registered to a single 3G Microcell, managed via an online interface, and up to four can be actively using the femtocell at any one time.  While there’s no ongoing service charge for the 3G Microcell itself, AT&T will still count any minutes used against the cellphone making them, which always seems a little unfair given you’re basically paying them to use your own broadband for VoIP.

Still, if you reckon you’ll be making frequent use of the femtocell, AT&T will offer a $19.99 per month Family Talk plan that allows unlimited voice calls through the 3G Microcell.  There are also various rebates if you take out such plans or upgrade your AT&T DSL connection at the same time as ordering the 3G Microcell, which can potentially make the device free.

Press Release:

AT&T Announces Nationwide Plans for 3G Microcell

Femtocell Service from AT&T Supports 3G Voice and Data, Will Offer Attractive Price Point and Plan Options

Dallas, Texas, March 24, 2010

AT&T* today announced that AT&T 3G MicroCell plans to begin its national roll out beginning in mid April, with new markets activating in cities across the continental U.S. for the next several months. AT&T 3G MicroCell is an innovative solution that allows residential customers to route wireless phone calls and data connections (or sessions) across a home broadband connection. This solution is designed to benefit customers who live in homes that have coverage impediments that consistently interrupt wireless spectrum, such as dense wall and roof construction or unfavorable terrain.

AT&T 3G MicroCell is the only femtocell to support both 3G data and voice services. Developed in conjunction with Cisco and in a public trial in select markets since September, AT&T 3G MicroCell is available for a one-time cost of $149.99.

Consumers with AT&T 3G MicroCell will be able to easily activate the device the same day it is purchased, thanks to easy, self-install instructions. Technical support is available for customers who need it.

Consumers manage AT&T 3G MicroCell though their online MyWireless account at www.att.com/mywireless. Through this online management, only those phones chosen by the customer may use the MicroCell. Customers may define up to 10 lines to have access and up to four may operate on it simultaneously. Minutes used through the MicroCell affect only the account of the phone making the call – there is no requirement to purchase separate service for the 3G MicroCell.

In addition, AT&T will offer a companion rate plan option for MicroCell customers – especially customers on Family Talk plans — who want to supplement their existing voice plans. For $19.99 a month, individual or Family Talk customers can make unlimited calls through a 3G MicroCell, without using minutes in their monthly wireless voice plan.

Consumers who select 3G MicroCell calling plans at purchase are also eligible to receive a $100 mail-in-rebate toward the purchase of AT&T 3G MicroCell – effectively making the device about $50. Customers who also purchase a new line of broadband service with AT&T (DSL or U-verse 1.5MB or higher) are also eligible for $50 via mail-in-rebate– effectively making the device about $100. If a customer is eligible for both rebate options, the customer will be able to get the device for $0, after mail-in rebate.

For more information on AT&T 3G MicroCell, visit www.att.com/3gmicrocell. For the complete array of AT&T offerings, visit www.att.com.

*AT&T imposes: a Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge of up to $1.25 to help defray costs incurred in complying with obligations and charges imposed by State and Federal telecom regulations; State and Federal Universal Service charges; and surcharges for government assessments on AT&T. These fees are not taxes or government-required charges.

1 Promotional Card from AT&T: Price of 3G Microcell is $149.99. Receive $100 mail-in rebate via AT&T Promotional Card with enrollment in AT&T Unlimited MicroCell Calling, and $50 mail-in rebate via AT&T Promotional Card with new AT&T DSL 1.5 Mbps or greater subscription or U-Verse High Speed Internet Access subscription. Allow 60 days for fulfillment. Card may be used only in the U.S. and is valid for 120 days wherever major credit cards are accepted. May be used to pay wireless bill. Not redeemable for cash and cannot be used at ATMs or gas pumps. Some restrictions and other charges apply. See terms at store or at att.com/wirelessrebate. Card request must be postmarked within 45 days of activation and you must be a customer for 30 consecutive days to receive card. Cannot be combined with promotions or discounts other than those described here. Offer available while supplies last.

2 Limited-time offer. Other conditions & restrictions apply. See contract & rate plan brochure for details. Subscriber must live & have a mailing addr. within AT&T’s owned wireless network coverage area. Equipment price & avail may vary by mrk & may not be available from independent retailers.

3 Sales tax calculated based on price of unactivated equipment.

4 Standard usage rates apply to text messaging and Internet browsing, depending on your plan.

5 High Speed Internet service and AT&T post-paid wireless plan of $39.99 or higher required. Unlimited talk option available for additional monthly charge. Device must be operated in a location where AT&T is authorized to provide wireless service. It is not compatible with other wireless systems. The maximum coverage of the AT&T 3G Micro Cell™ is approximately 5000 square feet. Actual coverage will be limited by the density of obstructions. Device may not support all location based wireless services or video share services. In the event of a service disruption, you will not be able to access E911 service using the Microcell. Internet access serviceand usage generated by 3G MicroCell are subject to applicable charges from your ISP. Normal charges apply for mobility data plans and features when using the AT&T 3G MicroCell™. AT&T Unlimited MicroCell Calling talk feature includes inbound anytime minutes and outbound anytime minute domestic calls made to the 50 United States, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam and Northern Mariana Islands.

6 Information set forth in this press release contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results might differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future results is contained in AT&T’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AT&T disclaims any obligation to update and revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

As well as being small, the FP810/G3-mini apparently only uses 5W of power making it pretty frugal, too.  Of course, the number of simultaneous calls permitted will depend on your broadband connection and any limitations placed on the femtocell by carriers, but the promise of up to 14.4Mbps downlink and 5.7Mbps uplink rates with strong coverage has us drooling a little.

Press Release:

NEC to Launch New Femtocell Access Point from Ubiquisys

Enables operators to offer high performance, competitive pricing, low energy consumption

London 10 February 2010 – NEC Corporation (NEC) announced today the addition of a new femtocell access point from Ubiquisys, to its end-to-end femtocell solution. The NEC FP810 femtocell access point will be available to mobile operators in April 2010.

“One of the main concerns of mobile operators has been to understand the business case for femtocells. The launch of the NEC FP810 proves how we are meeting that challenge by providing mobile operators with a low-price, high-performance and low-energy-consumption device,” said Richard Hanscott, vice president, NEC Europe.

The NEC FP810 is a discreet size – eight centimetres – and delivers high capacity and performance: it is capable of up to eight simultaneous calls and supports HSPA (High Speed Packet Access). It consumes less than 5W of power which is below the EC code of conduct power consumption targets and up to three times lower than most commercially available femtocells.

“We have a proven track record with NEC in providing cutting-edge femtocell solutions to mobile operators and understand the challenges they face. Our collaboration with NEC meets these challenges by providing a low-cost femtocell solution with high performance and low-energy consumption,” said Chris Gilbert, chief executive officer, Ubiquisys.

The NEC FP810 is powered by the Femto-Engine software from Ubiquisys which has patented Self Organising Networks (SON) capabilities that provide continuous spectrum monitoring, self-adapting radio resource management and integral optimised timing synchronization.

It’s common for wireless users in Europe to get better deals that we get here in America. Such is the case with a new femtocell from Vodafone called the Sure Signal. The device does what you expect a femtocell to do by routing wireless calls over your broadband connection for better signal strength.

The big difference is that Vodafone made the femtocell an attractive device by offering it to customers for a onetime fee. Vodafone users who spend £25 monthly or more on their rate plan can get the device for £120. Those who spend more can get the Sure Signal for as low as £50. No ongoing monthly fees are required and it supports up to four users at once.

magicJack aren’t especially forthcoming on how their femtocell works.  Apparently any GSM phone can be used, and all you need to do is bring it within 8 feet the first time – to allow it to “register” – before using it at anywhere in up to a 3,000 square foot house.  Calls are routed over magicJack’s Voice Network, an account for which costs $20 per year.

Other than that there are no technical details, which leaves us somewhat confused.  magicJack will supposedly be offering the femtocell to their existing subscribers first – no word on what it might cost them – and we’re hoping they’ll spill some more information later on in CES 2010.

Press Release:

magicJack Announces Only Plug and Play, Carrier Agnostic Femtocell Technology

Home-brewed Telecom Technology Enables Free Cell Phone Calls

LAS VEGAS –(Business Wire)– Jan 07, 2010 Coming off a major growth year, magicJack inventor and founder Dan Borislow introduces another industry first: the smallest, lowest cost, plug and play femtocell technology.

What is our femtocell?

magicJack’s femtocell technology enables your cell phone or smart phone to connect through our Voice Network, instead of your carrier network. By utilizing our network via a magicJack account that costs just $20 a year, you may save hundreds and even thousands of dollars a year by offsetting cellular minutes. In addition, when calling internationally, customers will save anywhere from 95-100 percent off current cellular carrier rates. Up to 50 percent of mobile users have terrible phone reception in their houses or small businesses. With our femtocell technology, people will get exceptionally clear quality voice calls every time.

This femtocell will work with mobile phones from potentially any carrier and you may even use an old GSM cell phone without any paid service plans with a carrier. Not only can people connect to their own magicJack device but they can also connect to other femtocell-enabled magicJacks at friends’ houses and businesses. All the user has to do is come within eight feet of the magicJack one time to register the connection and then talk away within a range of a 3000 square foot house.

Other companies have spent up to billions of dollars developing versions of femtocell but they have not achieved the ease-of-use, considerably smaller size and very low cost structure of our femtocell technology. These factors will be critical in determining which company may achieve wide scale deployment using femtocell. magicJack has been developing this technology for over six years and has taken an entirely different path than the rest of the industry. Dr. YW Sing, the inventor of the first video phone chip, and Dan Borislow, the inventor of magicJack, in collaboration have designed and built a new chip that enables our femtocell product. This same chip will revolutionize the way we are able to reach 911 emergency centers too. Said Borislow, “We believe our technology might be the only one that makes sense for any telephone operator to deploy. With over five million magicJacks in the hands of consumers and business owners across the globe, magicJack users create a massive network that will be available via the femtocell technology.” The femtocell product will first be available to magicJacks’ existing customer base.

The YMAX Voice Network has supported magicJack with complete reliability as its growth scaled to 200,000 new customers per month in 2009. Our parent company YMAX designed the network to be the lowest cost and highest quality voice network in the industry with more switches/gateways (50 plus) and more session border controllers for security than any other telecom company. YMAX is certified in all 50 states and has the largest breadth of area codes in the country.

Who is magicJack and YMAX?

magicJack is a subsidiary of YMAX. YMAX not only owns magicJack, it also owns its own chip company, softphone company, softswitch/SBC/application server company and has two patents with six others pending. YMAX believes all of its subsidiaries have the market leading technology in their respective fields.

In the past two years, magicJack has sold over five million magicJacks. These plug and play devices can replace home or business phone service for just $20 a year by providing free local and long distance, free voice mail, your own phone number and many other features. Since its launch, the magicJack has received numerous product of the year awards. magicJack is adding 8,000 new customers a day and is sold in almost every major retailer and online. Radio Shack gave magicJack their most innovative product of the year award in 2009. We expect to see additional awards once the femtocell technology is introduced in 2010.

YMAX delivers close to a billion minutes a month now with 99.9% reliability. It has not only been the fastest growing telephone provider ever but has increased its customer care scores by over 10 times in the last two years. Customers reach us on average within four seconds, 24/7. Customers are asked to grade us between 1 and 5 with 5 being excellent service. We began with one 1 to three 5’s. Now on any given day, we get one 1 to forty 5’s. Rated an A by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), this rating is well deserved.

magicJack is currently rolling out a major upgrade to save your contacts and recently called numbers on our network so they are more accessible to you. If you add a second location or use our soon-to-be-announced, stand-alone service (similar to Skype but at a fraction of the cost and with better call quality), you can share this important data across all your phones and computer.

YMAX is a profitable company that had GAAP revenues of about $30 million in 2008 and $110 million in 2009.

magicJack will be exhibiting at the ShowStoppers media event tonight and hosting a private media party for viewing the femtocell technology in the Wynn Fairway Villas (#307) adjacent to the ShowStoppers ballroom. Please be in touch with Kari Hernandez at kari@ink-pr.com for access to the private event where we are giving away over 300 magicJacks.

ABI has now reconsidered that amount and slashed the number of femtocells that it predicts to ship by 55% to about 350,000. Mobile operators have failed to push the femtocell as strongly as expected meaning that relatively few consumers have adopted the femtocell. The economy is one of the reasons that femtocells haven’t been strongly adopted.

I think another reason that femtocells haven’t been adopted by most consumers is that the thought of paying the mobile provider more money to get a clear signal in a home or office, when we should be getting a clear signal anyway, bothers some consumers. I know it bothers me. Femtocells can add up to an additional $20 per month to a cellular bill not counting the cost of the hardware.

A new report from Unstrung Insider has found that revenues from femtocells will remain small through next year. This comes as no real surprise considering that femtocells are still expensive and can almost double many mobile phone bills. The other issue is that consumers like me feel that the femtocell should be free of charges.

I think these things should be free because not only do they reduce the load on cellular towers by routing calls across the Internet, thereby saving providers money, but also I think dead spots are something that the providers should be fixing anyway. Femtocells are fixing an issue that the provider should be addressing and putting the cost of the fix on the users of the service. Despite the fact that revenues are expected to be small through 2010, the report expects femtocell shipments to grow 8 times to reach four million units in 2010.

While the $19.99 unlimited package – which offers, as you’d expect, unlimited calls using the 3G MicroCell from your AT&T cellphone – is one way of using the femtocell, AT&T are also offering it outright, at $150, with minutes used from your monthly plan.  To encourage unlimited sign-ups, they’re offering a $100 rebate on the 3G MicroCell itself to subscribers, but you could feasibly buy the $150 box and simply use it without any more than your monthly subscription.  Still an expensive way to fill in gaps in AT&T’s coverage, but nicer than being tied into an extra $240 each year.

No feedback on performance as yet, aside from a single screenshot of an iPhone showing not only a glorious five bars of signal but a telling “AT&T M-Cell legend” so that you know it’s not that the carrier have stepped up their game.  We’re assuming setup was as straightforward as for rival femtocells from Sprint and Verizon, which generally involve putting a GPS puck by a window, plugging in power and broadband, and booting up.

What’s been prompting the most controversy since the 3G MicroCell’s announcement is AT&T’s charges.  The carrier is billing subscribers $19.99 per month for unlimited calls via the box (half that if you subscribe to either an AT&T landline or broadband, or free if you have both), and considering they’re basically charging you for lessening the load on their network, that seems more than a little cheeky.

Update: AT&T have clarified pricing, and the unlimited package isn’t the only way to use the 3G MicroCell.  More information here.

[via Engadget]

Like the other networks’ units, the AT&T 3G MicroCell has a GPS receiver which is used by the carrier to make sure you’re not trying to bypass their roaming charges abroad.  Up to ten devices can be authorized for use with the femtocell, meaning you won’t be sharing your connection with other users, and it’s all managed through an online UI.

An Engadget tipster dropped them a line with details on the upcoming price plan for the 3G MicroCell, and it seems to be another example of carriers pushing femtocells as an extra bonus for the consumer rather than a way to bypass patchy, overloaded networks.  AT&T will be charing $19.99 per month for unlimited use – which includes calls started on the 3G MicroCell and then passed over to the main network – though that comes down to $9.99 if you have either a landline or broadband with them.  If you have both, unlimited calling is free.

Update: AT&T have clarified pricing, and the unlimited package isn’t the only way to use the 3G MicroCell.  More information here.

Yahoo Finance reports that the launch of the AT&T 3G Microcell could come as early as next week in select markets including Atlanta, San Antonio, Seattle, and North Carolina. Nationwide rollout of the femtocell is expected by the end of the year.

The 3G Microcell from AT&T supports both voice and 3G data by routing the activity over a user’s existing broadband connection rather than the AT&T network. The device is said to be able to cover as much as 5,000 square feet of space. The device will support up to 10 mobile devices at once.

The HSL 2.75G Femtocell seems, going by the picture above, to be in the render stage of final design, but according to the company’s press release they’re already in talks with European, Asian and other regions’ carriers.  While the language might lead you to initially assume they’ll be offering the femtocell directly to end-users, unfortunately they’ll need to get carrier agreements in place first; still, the possibility of a single femtocell device – which bridges voice and data calls from a mobile phone to your broadband connection, thus creating a small “cloud” of personal cellular coverage – that could handle traffic from phones on multiple networks is a promising one, should HSL be able to pull off the agreements.

Unfortunately, as the 2.75G name suggests, this first HSL model does not support 3G speeds, only EDGE data rates.  That’s going to make for a slower surfing experience, but then it’s likely better than no signal at all (which is, after all, the point of femtocells) and if you’re in range of the HSL 2.75G you’re likely also in range of your WiFi router.  Apparently up to 7 cellular clients can be connected at once, and HSL have opened up a page for pre-registering interest; no word on pricing as yet, though.

Press Release:

HSL Announce Direct Availability of Femtocells to Mobile Users

HSL, a provider of mobile infrastructure, are today announcing that their femtocell, the HSL 2.75G Femtocell, is to be made available directly from HSL to mobile users around the world to improve mobile service availability for 2G and 3G mobile users. In support of this HSL are today also releasing the website www.femtonow.com to give mobile users the means to express interest in obtaining the HSL 2.75G Femtocell ahead of the femtocell becoming available for use with their operator’s network.

Many mobile users in rural, suburban and urban locations experience problems using their mobile indoors due to poor coverage. As a result of this users can experience very low mobile service availability or no service at all. This problem is particularly acute for 3G mobile users but also greatly impacts 2G mobile users. Poor coverage prevents a mobile user from making use of their mobile phone in a location important to them such as their home or office. Given that on average at least 30% of calls occur when at home poor coverage in the home is a real issue for mobile users.

The HSL 2.75G Femtocell effectively addresses this problem for 2G and 3G users. The HSL 2.75G Femtocell is connected to the user’s broadband router so to communicate with their mobile operator’s own network across the Internet, and creates a cell of good quality coverage throughout the home or office. When within coverage of the femtocell users can reliably use their mobile for voice calls, SMS, MMS and data at EDGE speeds.

The availability of the HSL 2.75G Femtocell for use with individual mobile operators is subject to HSL entering into agreements with those operators. In conjunction with this announcement HSL has commenced pursuing agreements with operators in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Oceania.

In certain markets the HSL 2.75G Femtocell will be able to simultaneously support mobile users belonging to different mobile operators. This will allow a single femtocell to serve all mobile users in a household irrespective of which network each mobile user belongs.

Mobile users interested in purchasing the HSL 2.75G Femtocell should register their interest at www.femtonow.com. As individual mobile networks become available for use with the HSL 2.75G Femtocell, mobile users belonging to those networks who have registered their interest will be contacted to allow them to purchase the HSL 2.75G Femtocell.

“Just like Sprint was the first with 2G, we’ll definitely be the first in the 3G space as well.  We’re not talking about trials; we’re talking about full commercial service.” Mathew Oommen, Sprint

Oommen held off of revealing exactly when Sprint’s 3G femtocell would arrive, nor any specifics about service plans, hardware providers or price.  Nonetheless, he’s confirmed that there will be more than one 3G femtocell on offer, as well as one more tailored to enterprise use, and that the devices will be part of Sprint’s open device initiative.

Femtocells create patches of localized cellular coverage by acting as mini base-stations, routing calls – and, in the case of 3G femtos, data – across the user’s broadband service.  Sprint launched their 2G femtocell, the Samsung AIRAVE, back in September 2007; while the hardware and service were praised, the extra fees involved left many users cautious and reviewers disappointed.  AT&T recently confirmed that they plan to release a 3G femtocell supporting HSDPA data by the end of 2009.

[via phoneArena]

The hardware will be a standalone device, rather than a residential-gateway style multifunction unit, and is expected to be supplied by Cisco.  The company also provided the femtocells for AT&T’s trial.  However, that will just be the first step of AT&T’s plan:

“Certainly we’re looking at integrated femtocells.  Some people think that integration is putting a femto into a residential gateway, and that’s one aspect.  We’re looking at other things in the home [and asking]: How can I leverage all the elements in the home? There’s a lot of research and investigation in these areas and nothing definitive on what we’re going to do.” Gordon Mansfield, AT&T

AT&T’s femtocell will work in a similar way to Verizon and Sprint’s existing models, which are already on sale in the US.  The compact box connects to a user’s broadband, and re-routes calls and data over that connection rather than via the carrier’s wireless connection. 

[via Greg Hughes]

Described as similar to the size of a router, Vodafone are yet to release images of the Access Gateway [image above via bandaancha], but we’re presuming it will be similar to Sprint’s AIRAVE and Verizon’s Wireless Network Extender in the US.  As with those femtocells, users can choose to pay a monthly subscription for the Access Gateway – either inclusive in a contract plan, from £15 ($24) per month, or alone from £5 ($8) – but they’re also offering it as a one-off purchase for £160 ($260).

Customers can pre-select the devices that will be allowed access to the femtocell, via an online interface.  Sales begin on July 1st.

Press Release:

Boost Your Mobile Signal at Home with Vodafone Access Gateway

• Small, plug-in box that improves indoor coverage in the home
• Quick and easy to install – plugs into any home broadband line
• First of its kind in Europe – exclusively for Vodafone customers
• A small plug-in box that will significantly improve customers’ mobile phone signal in their homes has been announced today by Vodafone UK.

Available online and in store from the 1July, the Vodafone Access Gateway service is the first of its kind anywhere in Europe. A neat box, similar in size to a router, plugs straight into any home broadband line to bring customers improved and more reliable 3G coverage indoors.

Quick and easy to install, the Gateway works with all 3G handsets and can support up to four voice calls at any one time. Customers will no longer need to worry about missed calls on their mobiles due to inconsistent indoor coverage. With the new Vodafone Access Gateway customers will be able to take advantage of the full range of Vodafone services via their handset anywhere in the home.

The Gateway is available from free or as part of an inclusive price plan from as little as £15 a month. It is also available as a one off purchase for £160 or a monthly charge from as little as £5.

“The Vodafone Access Gateway will boost indoor mobile phone coverage for customers who today, find they need to move around the rooms in their home to get a consistent signal strength,” says Ian Shepherd, Consumer Director, Vodafone UK. “We are committed to delivering the best, most reliable network and this is another step towards maintaining a seamless service.”

The Vodafone Access Gateway can be ordered from July 1 at vodafone.co.uk/gateway or in Vodafone stores and is delivered to the customer. Customers then register online the mobile numbers they want linked to the Vodafone Access Gateway and within 24 hours the full service will be ready and working.

For further information please contact:

The content is all on-demand, and varies by provider.  E! Entertainment are offering daily segments from their E! News, Daily 10 and The Soup shows, while National Geographic will have three channels on the Hub – Kids, Travel and What’s New on TV – offering various video clips.  As for the VZ Navigator integration, it basically allows you to find a destination on the Hub and then send that to a Verizon Wireless cellphone; if that phone has a VZ Navigator subscription, as well as basic address details it also has access to turn-by-turn directions.

Of course, all that functionality comes at a price, and Verizon haven’t held back.  The Hub itself costs $199.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate, then there’ a $34.99 monthly service plan.  You’re also required to have at least one Verizon Wireless cellular plan, and since the Hub won’t, bizarrely, work as a router, if you don’t have one Verizon will happily sell you a suitable device for another $69.99.  Additional handsets cost $79.99.

The A&T 3G MicroCell itself is made by Cisco, and is presumably one of the fruits of the company’s January 2008 investment in femtocell specialist ip.access.  As with the Sprint and Verizon femtocells, AT&T’s will allow you to select which handsets will work with the 3G MicroCell, and cover a 5,000 square foot area.  Like Sprint’s AIRAVE, it will also seemingly offer a service plan, though whether it’s mandatory or optional is not yet clear:

“Unlimited nationwide calling: With the 3G MicroCell, you have the option of unlimited minutes in the home or on any 3G MicroCell with a 3G MicroCell service plan”

The phrasing would suggest that unlimited calling can be subscribed to, but that without it use of the 3G MicroCell will count against a user’s normal cellphone plan inclusive minutes.  Use will only be permitted within AT&T service areas, as the femtocell has a GPS puck that prevents it being set up abroad.

No word on pricing or availability, but given the new page on AT&T’s own site it looks imminent.

[Thanks Alex and sCoobIE!]

This is in direct contrast to Sprint, who require a monthly subscription in order to keep using their femtocell.  It’s a policy that has left many would-be users frustrated, as they see themselves not only paying Sprint for their cellular contract but also paying to patch the holes in the carrier’s coverage.

The Verizon Wireless Network Extender requires a minimum broadband speed of 300Kbps (though more is obviously better), and can only be used within the “Verizon Wireless Enhanced Services coverage area”; the femtocell will use a GPS puck to make sure you’re only trying to connect it within the US.  Although data is supported, it won’t allow EV-DO speeds, and neither will it make any difference to location-based services.  Interesting, the features page suggests the following:

“The Network Extender is compatible with all Verizon Wireless phones as well as some handsets from many of the nation’s leading carriers”

It’s unclear whether this merely refers to MVNO’s using Verizon’s network, or other CDMA carriers such as Sprint.  The former seems a more likely explanation.

[thanks Paul!]

In fact you can create your own 5,000 square foot CDMA network, with calls and data being shuffled across your internet connection.  Up to three individual calls can be active at any one time but, like the Sprint implementation, the Verizon Wireless Network Extender demands a GPS puck be attached to make sure you’re not using it outside of the US.

Expect the femtocell to land in Verizon stores and online on January 25th, priced at a not-inconsiderable $249.99.  It’s unclear from the carrier’s documentation whether, like Sprint, they’ll be charging a monthly fee for use of the device.

Aside from the color change and some new casing moldings, there’s a stubbier aerial too.  Sadly the GPS lock system that so disappointed us on the AIRAVE – which refuses to let the femtocell operate if it realizes you’re not in the US – is still present on this Verizon version.

While we were impressed with the hardware when we tested the AIRAVE, and it worked exactly as promised, it was the costing that made us think twice about wholeheartedly recommending it.  Here, Verizon can differentiate themselves from Sprint despite using basically the same box: if their pricing policy is fair – i.e. not charging vast quantities for the “privilege” of using your own broadband to make up for poor patches in the Verizon network – then they could be more successful than Sprint have.

[via MobileBurn]

Check out the Sprint AIRAVE unboxing video after the cut

At first glance, the AIRAVE looks like a standard WiFi router.  Up front are four LEDs for power, system, GPS and WAN status; at the back there’s an antenna, ethernet port, AC connector, power switch and a connector for the included GPS puck.  Setup, then, is straightforward: hook it up to your broadband router, attach the GPS puck (more on that later) and plug in the power.  Then pick up the nearest book and wait.

In fact, you’ll have to wait around an hour.  Sprint ship the AIRAVE to you already set up with your account, but when you initially power up it still takes close to sixty minutes for everything to stabilize.  Happily future power cycles only required a 5-10 minute wait, but this is still something you don’t particularly want to be plugging in and unplugging.

If this were a router you’d now be delving into the setup pages; however with the AIRAVE you’re all done.  The silent box basically sits there, creating your own bubble of CDMA coverage.  Any calls placed or received within its range – Sprint quote up to 5,000 square feet, though walls and other large objects will reduce that – will be routed through your broadband rather than over the CDMA network. 

It works, too.  We expected at least some troubles with the handover – walking out of range and having the call transferred to Sprint’s network; note that it doesn’t work the other way around, you have to hang up and redial once in AIRAVE coverage – but every time we tried it, on every Sprint phone, it was seamless.  A double-beep as soon as you hit Send lets you know that you’re calling via the AIRAVE.  We tried it with a number of Sprint handsets, including the Samsung Instinct, and on each it was as though the signal meter had been jammed on full.  Only at the limits of the range did we see the bars drop, but call quality was still decent.

Up to three active calls or data sessions can use the AIRAVE at any one time; any subsequent calls will have to use the normal network.  Should one of the initial three then hang up, active calls have to hang up and redial in order to hop into the empty slot; it doesn’t transfer onto the AIRAVE automatically.  While the AIRAVE can support three, of course you have to have the bandwidth for it; Sprint tell us that each call requires a minimum of 40kbps, both downlink and uplink, which means you’re looking at 120kbps both ways for all three.  Downlink probably won’t be too much of an issue, but uplink is generally much slower and could be a bottleneck for some depending on other network traffic.

Sound quality is superb, and we found ourself reaching for Sprint handsets rather than phones on other carriers (displaying good signal) or even the landline.  No matter whether calling other Sprint users, people on other networks or landlines, we had no complaints – in fact the frustration then became other mobile users with their own poor signals.

Of course, when you’ve the promise of such mobile riches, you want to make sure it’s always there when you go to use it.  Out of the box, the AIRAVE is very casual with its connection: any Sprint phone within range will automatically log on.  You can limit the handsets which are permitted to do so, but that requires a call to Sprint customer services.  We’d have preferred to see a simple, router-style webpage where filtered numbers could be managed.

The fact that it generally works so well makes the few drawbacks of the AIRAVE all the more frustrating.  First off, that GPS puck.  Sprint demand a satellite lock so that they can limit AIRAVE use to the US only; give up on any plans you may have had to pack it in your luggage and avoid international roaming fees.  Then there’s the cost: $99.99 for the AIRAVE box itself, then $4.99 a month service charge.  For that, you get to use your own broadband service to use up the Sprint minutes you’ve already paid for. 

Unlimited in-home calling is an option, but it increases that service charge to $14.99; choosing the unlimited in-home family plan makes it a steep $24.99.  Obviously if you’re already signed up to Sprint’s Simply Everything plan then you get unlimited calls for the basic $4.99 surcharge, but if your family wants unlimited calls and you’re not all on that tariff, you’re looking at almost $600 over your cellphone’s two-year contract.

That’s a lot of money, and it smarts when you think that you’re already paying for the broadband which Sprint are using to help you call more.  For some, that will be the biggest turn-off about the AIRAVE, and enough to encourage them to sit out their contract and next pick a network with better coverage where they live.  Others, perhaps near the start of those two years and facing mediocre service, might feel more inclined to justify it.  Technically, we think you’ll love the AIRAVE; it’s just those monthly fees that might take off some of the shine.

Check out the full Sprint AIRAVE by Samsung gallery

Sprint AIRAVE Unboxing Video: