Femtocell

A Femtocell is a device that uses a local broadband connection to boost mobile phone reception. Although the product is not yet widely available, many large companies like Cisco Systems are investing in more femtocell research and development.

The femtocell was designed in 2002 by a group of engineers at Motorola in the UK. Their intent was to create a cell phone equivalent of WiFi. The unit they created only required a an Internet connection and by 2004, several other companies were experimenting with the technology.

In 2005, more companies became involved with the idea of femtocell, bringing it to the mainstream in 2007. The Femto Forum trade organization was founded to promote femtocell around the world. The Sprint Nextel Corporation began a small distribution of home femtocell to work with any Sprint handset. Other companies are continuing to get on board with the goal of making femtocell common across phone networks while attempting to eliminate the complications that have come up with the technology.