Vodafone Sure Signal review
| Review: April 2012 | ||
Rating: In a nutshell: The Vodafone Sure Signal connects to a fixed broadband line in your home or office and provides a reliable Vodafone 3G voice and data connection. A must-have gadget for everyone working from home. Today's best buy: Vodafone Sure Signal V3 from Vodafone (£69.00) |
Summary
Getting a good mobile phone signal is a problem a lot of us have to face, whether it's from home or office, so the Vodafone Sure Signal appears to offer a perfect solution. Set up a Vodafone Sure Signal, and you have a 3G transmitter & receiver wherever you want, as long as you connect it to a fixed-line broadband modem or router. OK, so you can't carry it around with you, but you can set it up in your home or office and it will provide you with 3G coverage in the building. Data is transmitted via your fixed broadband connection, providing you with a full voice and data service that should be indistinguishable from a normal 3G service.
We tested the device in a house located far from any towns, and with thick stone walls, where mobile reception usually varies between zero and one bar and where 3G has not been seen in living memory. We used a BT Business Total Broadband 8Mbps connection and a BT Business Hub.
Setting up the Sure Signal was easy enough, once we realised that the instructions supplied by Vodafone were incorrect. Start by logging into the Vodafone website with your account username and password and click "Register your Sure Signal." Enter the postcode of the location where the device is to be used, the serial number (printed on the back of the device), the floor level on which you'll be installing the device and register a list of mobile numbers that are authorised to access the service (so passers-by and neighbours won't be able to piggyback on your 3G signal.) The list of authorised numbers can include any 3G devices with Vodafone SIM cards, including mobile broadband USB modems. Up to 32 numbers can be registered.
Once you've completed this registration process, you connect your Sure Signal to your modem using the supplied ethernet cable (you'll need a spare ethernet socket on your modem or router), plug it into the mains and switch on. The device then powers up and can take up to an hour to configure itself. In our test it took 30 minutes. You should only need to do this once, as the device stays on 24/7.
Once fully configured, any registered device can make calls or transmit data over the 3G network. Over a period of one month testing, we found the service to be very reliable, although not 100% solid. In the room where the Sure Signal was installed, registered mobiles showed a full 3G signal all the time. Call quality was excellent, although one call was dropped and on one occasion the 3G network disappeared, which was solved by rebooting the Sure Signal device. Data transfer speeds were usually around 0.5MB per second (4Mbps) for file sizes up to 14MB. This was probably a limitation of the fixed broadband connection.
The maximum range of the device seems to be about 40 metres, which is enough for a typical house or a small office. At a distance of 20 metres, with three intervening walls, the 3G signal dropped to about two bars and data transfer slowed by 50%. We didn't test the device with multiple phones, but Vodafone say that the maximum number of simultaneous users is four.
You may be worried about the health implications of installing a mobile transmitter in your home or office, but the Sure Signal emits a lower level of electromagnetic radiation than a standard wireless router, which in turn is much less than a normal mobile phone antenna. This is why the range of the device is so limited.
We found that the Sure Signal did the job it was intended for. Whilst the signal wasn't bullet-proof, it was probably as reliable as the kind of signal you'd enjoy in most city centres, with only one call lost in a period of one month. Data transfer was very fast and reliable. If you live in the country, or in a basement or other blackspot, then the Sure Signal will solve your reception problems. And if you work from home or have a small office, then the benefit of owning the Sure Signal greatly outweighs its cost. We'd have awarded it 5 stars if we hadn't dropped that one call.
Vodafone Sure Signal features include:
- Works with up to 32 registered 3G phones, laptops with 3G modems, and USB 3G modem sticks
- Up to four simultaneous users
- Works with Vodafone SIM cards only
- Requires a fixed broadband service with a spare ethernet connection on the modem/router
User questions
Sorry - questions and comments on this page are now closed.
What is the annual running cost electricity ?
Asked by Simon
from Uk
on 2nd Jun 2017
Don't you actually mean 'the benefits of sure signal greatly outweigh the cost' rather than the other way around?
Asked by Jon L
from UK
on 12th Jun 2016
Thanks for the review. I'm thinking about switching networks and this
device, living in a house with poor indoor signal.
Reply by S21
from UK
on 12th Jun 2016
Thank you, Jon. That is exactly what we meant! We've changed it
now.
Vodafone Sure Signal user reviews
Sorry - reviews and comments on this page are now closed.
Average rating from 19 reviews: 
Reviewed by Chris W
from England
on 1st Jun 2018
I am in an area where Vodafone offer the least worse service, so no
worthwhile choice of provider.
Then someone told me about
SureSignal, which transforms reception throughout most of the
house.
Reliability is satisfactory, but only for the duration of
the guarantee and shortly after that has expired,they all follow suit.
I think my fourth is going the same way. If I am lucky, I may get a
discount from Vodafone on yet another replacement.
What a
business model. Charge the earth for inadequate service, then sell a
piece of kit to make up for their failings and keep selling
replacements every eighteen months.
It's not as though I live in
a totally isolated area, although it is only a hamlet of about thirty
properties. Roll on the arrival of fibre, due for completion in
September. Then I can wave goodbye to Vodafone and BT!
Rating: 
Reviewed by Jane
from England
on 25th Feb 2018
I live in a 4g area but after having work done on the house.
Soundproofing, fireproofing ect, my signal was only 1 bar or if lucky
maybe 2. Nearly everyone I called said I was breaking up or calls were
dropped. A week ago I obtained a sure signal and hey presto I now have
a full signal and can enjoy my calls anywhere in the house without
having to press up against a window.
Rating: 
Reviewed by Glyndwr
from UK
on 5th Oct 2017
Sure Signal installed and apparently working properly, except ... I
can't call other phones that are registered to my Sure Signal net
while we are both within the signal radius of that Sure Signal unit.
OK, I can use some other means to communicate with them when we are on
the same wi-fi net but being Sure Signal "buddies" seems to block
normal phone comms with them.
Rating:
Reviewed by Lawrence P
from Scotland
on 4th Feb 2017
I'm not really sure what this device is or what it's benefits are. For
one, I've set it up and registered it and all the lights are
indicating it's working. I have a working fast broadband connection
but the device has made absolutely no difference to my phone. I'm
still sitting with the little 'H' at the top of my screen. Secondly,
even if it did work, what exactly is it doing? I'm paying for data
which is actually going through my broadband and therfore not using
mobile data at all. I can just switch to Wi-Fi when at home. Why would
I connect to a device which uses my broadband connection when at the
same time it's using up my mobile data allowance? This sounds like the
most useless and pointless device I've ever heard of. I can understand
it boosting a phone call but we have land lines in our homes and
office don't we? Seems like a waste of money.
Rating: 
Reply by S21
from UK
on 5th Feb 2017
Hi Lawrence, the purpose of the Sure Signal is to boost your reception
for voice mail and texts. It will make no difference to data, since
you are already connected to Wi-Fi, and therefore you don't pay for
your data usage.
Reviewed by Jean
from England
on 25th Jan 2017
I have to say THIS WORKS!
After maintenance repairs to our
nearest mast we ended up with very low signal in most of the house and
in places none. After hours on the 'chat' I ended up purchasing the SS
and getting Vodafone to credit my account for its value - this was
hard work, but by taking a printed copy of an online chat, where the
advisor agrees my need for the SS, our local store spoke to vodafone
to confirm both my online chat and purchase.
We have 3 IPhones-
the 6, 5,and 4- the 6 maintains a constant full signal and the 3 and 4
manage a 50-60% signal - all soo much better than no signal before.
I don't agree with their 30 meter range- maybe 15/20, but we do
have thick walls and lots of metal structures within the building.
No issues registering or connecting the phones and we have had this
connection over a week now.
Pleased with the results!
Rating: 
Reviewed by Mike
from UK
on 23rd Feb 2016
Seeing all the bad words about Sure Signal -
Thank
goodness for Sure Signal!!!!!
I live out in the sticks :
Vodafone recently texted to say that they had "tweaked" the nearby
towers to improve coverage - which meant that our signal went from
very low to none at all. So now we rely entirely on SS.
With both Netgear and Technicolor routers, setup is fairly
straightforward (though a bit long-winded) - no special settings
needed for the routers. It is a bit alarming that the unit takes so
long to get going - worries that there might be something wrong, but
it gets there in the end!
Good features -
*
Excellent signal throughout the house and over much of the (large)
garden.
Annoying features -
* The time the Mk2
model can take to get going after a broadband dropout.
* The
fuss about postcodes if you get given a different IP address after a
dropout (Vodafone thinks you have moved and keeps texting and emailing
until you reset the postcode).
* Data transferred over the SS
connection comes out of your monthly phone data allowance.
Note that the Mk1 SS only takes 3 or 4 minutes to start up from
cold - MUCH better than the Mk2.
(I have one of these in my
workshop which is a long way from the house).
Rating:
Reviewed by johnny
from northern ireland
on 13th Feb 2016
Had poor signal in house with only a few spots where you could
make/receive calls. Complained many times to Vodafone and eventually
they sent me a Sure signal f.o.c. Installed as per instructions and
registered it online. It did take several hours to set itself up,
however after a full reboot, was working within 40 minutes. Excellent
4g signal on all devices registered too it now and no more
dropped/un-connecetd calls. Great job, only question I have is why
would Vodafone not listen everytime I rang to complain about poor
signal saying according to their coverage map my signal should be
fine. Why would I lie to them! Only offered me the Sure signal when I
rang and said I was leaving them, after 12 years.
Anyway,
I found it pretty straight forward to set up and am now well happy
with the device :-)
Rating:
Reviewed by John
from UK
on 2nd Dec 2015
Spent all day trying to get it set up. Getting it registered a pain as
website does not have the required link. Vodafone help line says it
should work but it wont register. not a simple plug and play.
Rating:
Reviewed by Niels
from UK
on 19th Oct 2015
I have a Vodafone sim only contract and can only get one bar of GSM or
2G signal where I live. I do however have BT Infinity with a Home Hub
5 Wireless router. Plugged the Sure Signal into the router, went on
line, logged onto "My Vodafone" and registered my mobile number in the
Sure Signal section. 30 minutes later, voilą - a perfect,
strong 3G signal that after 6 months has not dropped a single call. I
do not work for Vodafone but feel a balancing review is necessary
amongst all the negatives.
Rating:
Reviewed by Lauren
from Uk
on 28th Sep 2015
Never will go will Vodafone again!!! I have no signal where I
live we have tried different things and for the last one they said to
get sure signal!!! Doesn't even work and it's stupidly expensive!!
They won't let me cancel my contract even though I'm paying 3
contracts with me that I can't even use at home! Pathetic! And the
customer service team are so rude!
Rating:
Reviewed by kate mollison
from scotland
on 27th Aug 2015
I am having problems installing sure signal -
I am going
round in circles between BT and vodafone;
After approx 6 hours
on hold/ in queues / passed from one tech support person who knew
nothing to another....
Finally discovered that BT have a
firewall that does not allow sure signal to get through;
They
need a port number, however Vodafone tech support seem unable or
unwilling to provide this - they keep giving me lists of numbers that
dont mean anything or fit the required formats in BT site;
as a
technological novice - I am unable to install;
And this is
frustrating as vodafone will not take the product back as I have had
it for approx 1 month (its taken this long to get this far)
I
AM NOT impressed.
Rating:
Reviewed by Peter
from uk
on 13th May 2015
Useless. After 4 phone calls and a re register with Vodaphone told me
to contact orange (with their router) Again after three different
phone number endless waiting time , the operator told me orange would
not reset the ports setting as not their job, told to go back to
Vodaphone.
Just a waste of money.
Rating:
Reviewed by Mike G
from UK
on 25th Feb 2015
The Sure Signal maybe promise a lot and perhaps it can work under the
right circumstances but ... after owning one for 2 days I am still not
able to get it to work.
The installation guide promises
very simple set up. According to the installation guide, you register
it online; plug into your router; power up and you are done.
The reality is a million miles away. What they do not tell you, is
the chances of it working following these simple steps is close to
ZERO.
Once you contact technical support, the real trial
begins.
Vodafone will tell you to set all manner of port
forwards on your router; something like 10 ports, a mix of TCP and UDP
protocols need to be forwarded to the sure signal; whoa I hear you
say, what does all that mean - spend many hours trying to figure out
all that! Basically, for an averagely literate computer user, this is
still complex stuff and requires that you get into your routers
advanced configuration and risk opening your home network to the whole
world if you make a mistake.
Even after doing this it
still does not work - ah, perhaps your ISP is not on the Vodafone
whitelist - whoa, what does that all mean. Again, you are in the
realms of internet and network protocols.
Vodafone
request traceroutes, ping tests, speed tests details of your IP be
posted PUBLICLY!
I wish I could report that even after
all that, the trials and tribulations were worth it - sadly I cannot.
After 2 days, still no working sure signal despite following all the
guidance and advice.
I am sure under the covers, the
technology is okay but in a world of consumer devices this falls very
very short of the plug and play appliances we are all so used to.
Vodafone do not help matters by making their own servers that service
the sure signal so hidden from the web that individual ISPs must be
permissioned on their firewalls that they use network methods really
not appropriate to domestic use.
It's a shame.
Rating:
Reviewed by Fithian
from UK
on 13th Jan 2015
All the users here are muppets, I'm sorry, but you are. I worked for
years in Tech support and you people are the absolute worst people to
deal with. You're completely and utterly inept, so you blame the
equipment.
A monkey could set up a Suresignal.
Plug
it into a power socket.
Plug the supplied ethernet into the DSL
socket on the Suresignal
Plug the other end into your router.
Go online and register for a voda account
Register your sure
signal and phone numbers.
Done.
if you can't do any
of the above, then I can only assume you must carry a card around with
you saying "Breath in, breath out".
Rating:
Reply by Friend
from uk
on 20th May 2016
I've worked in tech for years and setup several of these before. The
setup isn't the same for all router so before you go calling people
muppets I would get back in your box and wind your neck in. The auto
config settings on the sure signal only works with some routers (for
example: BT home Hub). A vast majority you'll need to open inbound and
outbound traffic which to someone of your greatness...Cough! is easy
to do. it isn't for some others.
Reviewed by John Harvey
from United Kingdom
on 15th Nov 2014
Chronically difficult to set up unless you're a tech
wizard. I'm not, but my home uses three Vodafone mobiles. I got a
friend to help but I'm not convinced this gizmo has improved my
reception.
Rating:
Reviewed by Steve P
from England
on 3rd Sep 2014
Advertised as "Sure Signal", it's anything but!
Regular
dropping of calls and poor voice quality when it does connect. To be
fair I live well out in the sticks and I think the issue is a
combination of poor broadband speed and a lack of IT knowledge on my
part. This is exacerbated by a support team that appear to operate to
a script and give a fixed response to a given issue.
Overall not impressed as all of this limits my ability to work from
home when I can't connect to conference calls on a reliable basis.
Rating:
Reviewed by Sarah terry
from England
on 13th Jun 2014
We are very disappointed and haven't been able to register for a
vodaphone account let alone register the sure signal as we don't get a
mobile signal to receive the text with the code. Wish we hadn't
bothered. Spent far too long using live chat, not successful and drove
a few miles to try and pick up the text.
Any advice
gratefully received!
Rating:
Reviewed by WS
from UK
on 3rd Jun 2014
Rural area. Without sure signal two bars in one spot in the house
standing by window. With sure signal four bars but only in the same
room as the unit is plugged in. A straight forward automatic setting
up procedure with a text from Vodafone to verify connection completed.
At least I can now send and receive text from home, but at a cost of
£100 for the unit to work in only one room makes it an expensive
option.
Rating:
Reply by RH
from UK
on 9th May 2016
Hi who did you buy from, you were conned the unit cost is
£69.00.
Reviewed by Barry Simms
from UK. Leicestershire
on 3rd Apr 2014
It should be noted that Vodafone Sure Signal will drop calls if your
internet DOWNLOAD SPEED drops below 0.50 mb or even 1.0 mb so you need
to do
speed test.net to keep eye on your I.P whoever it is.
Another thing Vodafone (tech support) say we only garantee
the product for 12 months from sale and registration after that your
on your own
"is this consumer right legal ? " after all you are
paying for a service of 3G in 2014 from them Whos responability is it
to provide that monthly or contract period ? Any body checked this out
yet what chance of you getting 4G in 2020.
For your
information Vodafone are on Version 3 some customers are authorised by
LEVEL 3 team head office in Newbury to free replacements on renewal
after contract negotiations .other than that pay up and move on it
gets you there only for now though.
Rating:
