Edit 4/4/10: The AT&T 3G MicroCell will be available for sale in Reno on April 5. See their website for more info.

AT&T is expected to make their 3G MicroCell available this month to customers in the Reno area. The device is a femtocell – a small device that connects to a broadband internet connection and improves cell phone reception to a limited area, such as a home. Brian Klug has posted a very detailed article on Anandtech about femtocell’s that are now available through all 4 U.S. major cell carriers. Read the full article here.

2009 was an uneventful year for new cell sites in the Reno area. T-Mobile was most active adding the most new cell sites and turning on their 3G voice & data network in 2009. Cricket added coverage in the Spanish Springs area. Otherwise, all other carriers did not add coverage via new cell sites this year according to our sources.

For 2010 Verizon Wireless has a new cell site planned for southwest Reno near the Washoe Golf Course. AT&T has a cell site planned to improve coverage in the Somersett area of northwest Reno.

In the new year posts to this website will occur as new cell sites are known, and other major carrier news is announced. For more frequent updates, check out our Twitter MicroBlog Updates in the left column of this website, or follow us from your Twitter account @RenoWireless.

I’ve received a few reports of 3G data service active on people’s phones in parts of the Reno area. At this time it’s showing up in the South Meadows area, but not in Spanish Springs according to reports from T-Mobile subscribers.

T-Mobile has been selling the G1 phone in the Reno area that is 3G data speeds capable, even though 3G data was not yet available. Now T-Mobile customers can take advantage of the faster internet speeds.

Feel free to reply to this post with your experience.

I received this review by Kyle, who lives in the South Meadows/Damonte Ranch area. He was an AT&T wireless customer for quite a while, but got fed up with the unreliable coverage at his home. A few months ago he switched to T-Mobile. Below is his experience:

Coverage is MUCH better in South Meadows.  It is also better in south Reno going up Mount Rose HWY around the Chevron station, Monte Rosa Estates, etc.  Also better going up HWY 395 North of North McCarran.

Other than that the coverage isn’t any better than ATT.  Inside large buildings like Atlantis Casino and the Eldorado Casino, T-Mobile is worse than ATT.  T-Mobile has no service at times, whereas ATT had low signal (1-2 bars) but did not drop to no service.  With only 5 fewer sites than T-Mo and 850 Mhz, ATT has Reno covered quite well overall as you well know.  T-Mobile is also worse between Gold Ranch and Truckee– drops a call where ATT does not.

What I have found is that quality of service has been noticeably better.  I drop fewer calls overall (not just in South Reno) and have not had any calls where only one party can hear the other talking and the other party hears silence (happened occasionally on ATT).  Calls on T-Mo’s GSM sound better than on ATT GSM (maybe AMR HR vs. AMR FR?).  ATT’s 3G sounds great but it kicks you back down to GSM so often that it seems many calls would end up there.  I have not had delayed voicemail messages like I would sometimes get with ATT.  Fewer “Call Failed” messages, etc.  Overall, T-Mobiles network seems to provide a better quality of service, with the only noticeable weakness being the In-building coverage in certain large buildings.

Spanish Springs – We have a business account out there and we are out in Spanish Springs 3 days a week.  T-Mobile has much better coverage in the South end of Spanish Springs, especially in the new Spanish Springs Town Centre shopping center with the Costco, Home Depot, etc.  AT&T has 1 bar or “no service” in some of these businesses while T-Mobile has a strong signal.

A new T-Mobile cell site is on-the-air located near Reno High School, in the Village Shopping Center on California Avenue. CID 4358x. The picture below shows the antenna structure under construction in January.

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A new monopole cell site was recently constructed on the eastern edge of Spanish Springs with antennas for T-Mobile and Cricket improving coverage in the area. Both carriers also have 2 other cell sites serving the Spanish Springs valley.

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A blog post on th RGJ website claims that Verizon Wireless has added 3 new cell sites in Northern Nevada.

According to a company spokesperson the three sites benefiting from the expanded coverage are:

• Fernley: along Interstate-80 and surrounding areas, including Wadsworth.

• West Wendover: again, along I-80 and surrounding areas.

• Zephyr Cove: along U.S. Highway 50 and surrounding areas in Lake Tahoe.

T-mobile has completed a new cell site, located on the property of Reno Auto & Truck Wrecking on West 4th Street near Summit Ridge Drive. CID 4357x. This new site is very close to 2 other sites and provides overlapping coverage to neighborhoods west of downtown Reno.

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A new Cricket cell site is active in the South Meadows area near the intersection of South Meadows Parkway and Wilbur May Parkway. The new cell site was co-located on an existing monopole that also has antennas for T-Mobile, Nextel and Clearwire.

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T-Mobile has a new cell site operating at the Northern Nevada Medical Center in east Sparks. CID 1316x. With the site’s antennas at the top of the multi-story hospital, this new cell site provides mid-level coverage to much of eastern Sparks.

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