Can You Hear Me Now Smithtown? Area Cell Phone Coverage

Like most towns, cell phone reception in Smithtown varies across the township.  Cell reception is affected by a variety of factors, most of which involve the landscape of the area and the particular construction of the local buildings.

A flat, open area around a cell tower allows a signal to be sent out up to five miles, whereas an area that is hilly or has a dense forest drastically reduces signal distance down to a one mile radius around the tower, according to area cell phone representatives. Homes with large amounts of metal on them, in the form of aluminum siding, concrete structures and Stucco surfaces with wire mesh, are likely to have significantly reduced reception, as the metal reflects cell signals away from the home.

The three major cell phone service providers, Sprint, AT&T and Verizon, all discussed their coverage within the Smithtown area.

Smithtown residents using Sprint may be disappointed with their coverage, as most of the town only receives "good" reception strength, or a maximum of three bars. Residents in Nesconset receive the best service from Sprint, with a full three bars of coverage. A huge gray area exists on the Sprint coverage map around the Nissequogue River, near popular roadways like River Road and Landing Avenue. This gray mass signals a roaming area, where Sprint users temporarily switch to Verizon cell towers and are charged an extra fee.

AT&T users appear to have the best coverage of the three providers, as they receive "good" to "best" reception strength in most areas of Smithtown on the coverage map, with only two small patches of "moderate" coverage. Unlike Sprint, AT&T has many cell phone towers near the water so that local beachgoers and boaters with the service can still make and receive calls.

Verizon's website provides a map of digital and analog coverage, but it does not show the strength of said coverage in each area  According to a Verizon representative, the majority of Smithtown and St. James have coverage of three to five bars, whereas Nesconset users only get three bars.

Verizon hopes to improve its area coverage, but Nesconset is blocking Verizon from putting up new cell phone towers. Smithtown and St. James have both received new cell towers in recent years, but Nesconset's towers remain sparse. Verizon users currently have the best reception near the Long Island Expressway and the Smith Haven Mall.

AntennaSearch.com is a useful resource that compiles locations of cell phone towers and upcoming tower projects near any given address. The site generates a report of the providers or other companies that own each cell tower and the distance of that tower from the address.

Unhappy with your cell reception here? Each of the major cell phone providers surveyed also offer a device that helps to increase cell phone coverage up to 5,000 square feet in homes or offices. Verizon's  Wireless Network Extender is the most expensive at $249.99. AT&T's version, 3G MicroCell, is $150 and the cheapest option is the Airave by Sprint, which costs $99.99 for the base station, but also requires a subscription to an Airave plan.

Does Smithtown need more cell towers or should the area not be disturbed? E-mail your opinion to amandaf@patch.com.