Sprint’s AIRAVE Femtocell Base Station was a nice concept for creating a CDMA signal, similar to a miniature cell tower, for your cell phone.  Unfortunately as we approach the final weeks before the release date on August 17th, more details are trickling in to crush our hopes on the device’s capabilities.  While the AIRAVE does deliver enhanced cell phone coverage in your house or office even if your existing coverage is poor, several important details have been revealed.

• No EVDO Data support (no PowerVision): You will be stuck churning along at Vision Data speeds
• No seamless tower transfer from AIRAVE to standard cell tower: Unfortunately AIRAVE will not work as smooth as T-mobile’s Wifi @ Home Service (HotSpot@Home)
• Only works where Sprint has native coverage: It checks via GPS to confirm you are in a Sprint coverage area before it completes the signal
• Support is limited to 3 simultaneous users: Not a big deal for families, but if your office was planning on using the AIRAVE, think again.

Unfortunately the lack of EVDO data support really kills the deal for those using devices that do not offer WiFi.  Combine the lack of EVDO with the problems of moving from the AIRAVE station and outside of your home or office and the likely prognosis is dropped calls.  As the August 17th release date approaches for the Sprint AIRAVE, we can’t help but feel disappointed in the slow rollout and limited features.  Hopefully another version of the AIRAVE will deliver on the initial specs we assumed would be incorporated into the device launch.

Update: We have heard from several readers that the Airave does transfer easily between the Airave and cell towers.