Signal Booster Cell Phone Apps Are A Scam (Even The ‘Best’ Ones) – SlashGear

To understand why these apps are incapable of actually boosting your signal strength, it helps to understand how the strength of your signal is determined. Three broad factors impact the strength of the signal your phone receives: technical limitations on the signal itself, the environment around you, and your device itself.

When it comes to the technical limitations of the signal, they usually include the distance the signal has to travel from the nearest cell tower, the power of the tower’s transmitter, the type of signal being broadcast (2G/3G/4G/5G), and the bandwidth passing through the tower you are connected to. The worse any of these factors are, the weaker your connection will be.

As for the environment around you, its impact on signal strength is relatively straightforward — things between your device and the cell tower will weaken the signal. For instance, if you are in a valley or tunnel, surrounded by buildings, or even in a car, those physical obstructions can be enough to prevent your phone from connecting effectively. Environmental conditions and dense foliage can also negatively impact your cell signal.

Naturally, no app can have any impact on those factors, which leaves your phone itself. Here, two main factors impact your signal — the gain of your phone’s antennae and their efficiency. However, there’s little, if anything, that an app can do to improve matters.