Gathering Cellular Strength Readings

When we have technicians on-site dealing with the matter of cellular device installation, we must have the technician gather the cellular strength (in dBm or RSRP). Following this step-by-step guide, the technician can gather the cellular strength reading if they’re using an Android or Apple device:

Both dBm and RSRP are the same measurement on both Android and Apple.

• dBm (on Android) stands for “decibel milliwatts”, and it's a unit that measures the amount of power an amplifier or antenna can produce, or the signal strength at a location.

• RSRP (on Apple) stands for “Reference Signals Received Power” and it simply presents the dBm rating.

If on Android:

1. Tap Settings

2. Tap About Phone

3. Tap Status or Network

4. Tap SIM Status

5. Your dBm is under Signal strength

You can see the dBm with them placing their phone directly on the charger.

If on Apple:

1. Launch the phone app and go to the keypad.

2. Dial *3001#12345#* and then tap the green Call button.

3. The screen will display various technical data.

4. Look for RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power) under the "Serving Cell Measurements" or "LTE" section.

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What does the RSRP/dBm I found mean?

RSRP (or dBm) is displayed as a negative number ranging from -80 to -100.

If you’re hoping to install a cellular modem (modem kit or network box) in a location with poor cellular quality, then you may want to consider:

• If installing a modem kit, consider relocating the modem kit to another charger with better cellular quality. If that doesn’t work, use a cellular network box instead (see below).

• If installing a cellular network box, consider relocating the cellular network box somewhere in the garage with better cellular quality, then install relay box(es) if necessary to extend the mesh towards the chargers.

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