Several years ago when I started my career in wireless phones, I had a discussion with my trainer. She assured me that before long most people would just have a personal phone number, instead of trying to track someone down at a location such as home or work.

A recent survey found that about one in four cell phone users who have a landline phone would cut the cord if their cellular phone’s reception were better. The survey also found something else very interesting; 69 percent of cell phone users say the reason they now have a landline is simply because they always had one.

Other interesting points found in the survey were:

• Most consumers grade their reception at home as a B-
• 69 percent have experienced some kind of service problem such as dropped calls, poor signal reception or dead zones
• 62 percent of those that use their phones at home have done something to try and make or receive a call including going outside, going by a window or just gave up and used the landline.

The vision for the future has always been a wireless world, but not having a physical connection has always had its limitations. There are two scenarios for reception issues indoors, urban congestion and rural sprawl.

In an urban setting many of the structures use heavy duty construction materials, making penetration of cell phone signals difficult. These structures usually are densely packed into the relatively small area. Cell signals travel in a straight line and work best in line of sight from the tower. Because of this, you can actually be in the shadow of taller buildings making it harder for the signal to penetrate your building.

Rural areas have a different problem, large areas to cover with limited population. In these situations the cell sites are much less densely packed. To cover larger areas cell towers are built taller to cover more territory. Because of this the signal must travel farther and may be weaker when it gets to your home. These areas are also more affected by dips in the terrain and may also get a shadow effect from large stands of trees.

The best way at the moment is to take whatever weak signal that exists outside and bring it indoors with a phone signal booster. This device captures the signal, amplifies it and redistributes it to the interior spaces up to 2500 square feet. They are easy to self install and relatively affordable with prices ranging from around $100 for personal short range devices to $350 or more for a larger home installations, although some commercial installations could bring the price even higher.

For those who are serious about cutting the cord, the options are there and the cost is minimal and could be paid for in just a few months if the landline is dropped.