Canadian firm Spotwave is preparing to ship a wireless repeater that helps consumers who suffer from poor mobile phone reception in their homes. 

"We deliver mobile coverage in areas where coverage otherwise does not exist, " Sam Baumel, sales and marketing manager at Spotwave, told vnunet.com.

Unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the $399 Spotwave Zen is scheduled to start shipping in the US in the second quarter of this year, followed by a European launch in the third quarter.

The Zen uses a combination of two appliances to create a wireless network with a radius of up to 50 feet, one of which will create a wireless link with the cellular base station.

A number of companies already offer similar solutions, but their technologies lack the sophistication to prevent interference, according to Baumel.

Spotwave has been selling carrier-grade signal repeaters to mobile operators in the US for several years, but is only now launching a consumer product.

Contrary to most European areas, mobile coverage in the US can be patchy, causing dropped connections even in urban areas.

But with the rise of UMTS high-speed data networks, European consumers will increasingly be confronted with an irregular service, claimed Paul Tinney, Spotwave's vice president for worldwide sales and marketing.

The UMTS signal is transmitted with less power than a GSM signal, requiring additional transmitting antennas and causing an increased number of black spots.

"European consumers are not used to their data rates going down to dial-up speeds," Tinney told vnunet.com.

However, he acknowledged that consumers might be reluctant to pay $399 to achieve a wireless reception for which they are already paying.

Providers could make available a free or subsidised version of Spotwave's device to customers who are complaining about poor network reception. Tinney said that he is not aware of any operators that have plans in that direction.