Why does a cell tower need to be massive to transmit data to a smartphone but the phone’s extremely small antenna can transmit data back over the same distance?
In: 52
Imagine you are communicating with people the size of ants. They have tiny ears and mouths, and you have huge, very good ears and mouth.
Since you are so loud, their tiny ears can hear you easily.
They are very quiet but you are above all of them and have very good ears, so you can hear them all regardless of their size. Your ears are specialized to the pitch of their voices so you can’t really hear anything else except their tiny voices and they are also pointed at a specific area on the ground, kind of like holding up a big cone to your ear.
Imagine you are communicating with people the size of ants. They have tiny ears and mouths, and you have huge, very good ears and mouth.
Since you are so loud, their tiny ears can hear you easily.
They are very quiet but you are above all of them and have very good ears, so you can hear them all regardless of their size. Your ears are specialized to the pitch of their voices so you can’t really hear anything else except their tiny voices and they are also pointed at a specific area on the ground, kind of like holding up a big cone to your ear.
Because the cell tower is both a very loud voice and a very large ear. The phones antenna being small means it has a very quiet voice, so the cell tower needs to be big to be a big enough ear to hear it, and the phones small antenna is a very small ear that has difficulty hearing unless it’s hearing a very loud voice, so the cell tower has to be big to speak loud enough.
Because the cell tower is both a very loud voice and a very large ear. The phones antenna being small means it has a very quiet voice, so the cell tower needs to be big to be a big enough ear to hear it, and the phones small antenna is a very small ear that has difficulty hearing unless it’s hearing a very loud voice, so the cell tower has to be big to speak loud enough.
Massive cell tower can detect small signal and output big signal.
Extremely small cell phone can detect big signal and output small signal.
Massive cell tower can detect small signal and output big signal.
Extremely small cell phone can detect big signal and output small signal.
I know it’s not the WHOLE reason, but the tower is responsible for *thousands* of cell phone signals in the area; your cell phone antenna is only responsible for ONE cell phone’s signal.
Same reason your car isn’t the same size as a bus, basically.
I know it’s not the WHOLE reason, but the tower is responsible for *thousands* of cell phone signals in the area; your cell phone antenna is only responsible for ONE cell phone’s signal.
Same reason your car isn’t the same size as a bus, basically.
You have to remember that cell towers have to take a lot of abuse as does the equipment on them. The sector antenna’s are generally around 12″ by 48″ by 6″ and most of what they house is just a grouping of antenna’s that are able to transmit and receive. But those sector antenna’s also connect to multiple devices. In more populated area’s more sectors will be pointed in each of 3 directions as they generally have a 120 degree useable field and 3 groups will cover 360 degrees.
The majority of the cell equipment is generally located on the ground and will fit in a room about 5′ by 5′ with 6′ tall ceilings and even then a ton of that is dead air space so the techs can work on it. They hold all the power conversion equipment as well as the transmit and receive equipment which there is a set for every sector antenna installed. Not to mention they have HVAC equipment to keep things cool. And don’t forget that they have to transmit data either through another tower so they have to have a wireless uplink/downlink and the equipment to handle that or some sort of computer that can send things through a land line.
However a smaller company (think a local cell provider that isn’t an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) can get away with 3 sector antennas and a piece of equipment about the size of a couple filing cabinets. With that they can have a cabinet that is about the size of 2 X 4 drawer filing cabinets. Sometimes they can use an omnidirectional antenna as well but that will connect even less people.
If you want to see a picture of a smaller cabinet being placed I was working at a building where they changed one out. It was a local company that was later absorbed by AT&T. You can also see some of the sector antenna’s for Sprint in the background near the guy with the blue hard hat on.
[https://files.ventshop.net/Pictures/crane/PICT0170.JPG](https://files.ventshop.net/Pictures/crane/PICT0170.JPG)
You have to remember that cell towers have to take a lot of abuse as does the equipment on them. The sector antenna’s are generally around 12″ by 48″ by 6″ and most of what they house is just a grouping of antenna’s that are able to transmit and receive. But those sector antenna’s also connect to multiple devices. In more populated area’s more sectors will be pointed in each of 3 directions as they generally have a 120 degree useable field and 3 groups will cover 360 degrees.
The majority of the cell equipment is generally located on the ground and will fit in a room about 5′ by 5′ with 6′ tall ceilings and even then a ton of that is dead air space so the techs can work on it. They hold all the power conversion equipment as well as the transmit and receive equipment which there is a set for every sector antenna installed. Not to mention they have HVAC equipment to keep things cool. And don’t forget that they have to transmit data either through another tower so they have to have a wireless uplink/downlink and the equipment to handle that or some sort of computer that can send things through a land line.
However a smaller company (think a local cell provider that isn’t an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) can get away with 3 sector antennas and a piece of equipment about the size of a couple filing cabinets. With that they can have a cabinet that is about the size of 2 X 4 drawer filing cabinets. Sometimes they can use an omnidirectional antenna as well but that will connect even less people.
If you want to see a picture of a smaller cabinet being placed I was working at a building where they changed one out. It was a local company that was later absorbed by AT&T. You can also see some of the sector antenna’s for Sprint in the background near the guy with the blue hard hat on.
[https://files.ventshop.net/Pictures/crane/PICT0170.JPG](https://files.ventshop.net/Pictures/crane/PICT0170.JPG)
Latest Answers