[nine_k]

A few applications I could think of:

- Testing of various kinds. You can get deep inside an OSS base station, inspect and debug things, but likely may not even look at the proprietary innards of a commercial BS.

- Emergency connectivity when the backbone is broken, or did not exist. Most people would bring mobile phones anyway.

- Study / teaching, like MINIX OS or trainer aircraft which you can take apart and inspect.

- Maybe very small local cells to improve connectivity in difficult landscapes (mountains, skyscrapers, underground).

[emilamlom]

> Maybe very small local cells to improve connectivity in difficult landscapes (mountains, skyscrapers, underground)

Something like this would've been useful in a couple remote networks that I worked on. Internet was easy to get with some ubiquiti wifi routers and antennae. Getting cell reception was a pain in the ass that involved setting up a repeater in the one spot of the valley where reception was kinda okay. I haven't looked into the project too much, but I imagine I could set it up to connect to a telcom tower and handle the wireless backhaul similarly to how I did the wifi.

Edit: An open implementation like this could lead to cheaper cells for large, concrete/metal buildings that typically have terrible reception.

[wmf]

Femtocell equipment exists; the real issue is whether any of your local carriers support it.

[vardump]

> look at the proprietary innards of a commercial BS.

I was wondering a bit whether that means Base Station or perhaps something else...