I was walking with a friend recently toward his car. He pulled out his car remote and held it up to his chin to click the 'unlock' key. I asked him why, and his response was that the remote's battery was low, and that holding it next to his body extended its range. I don't know if this is true, or some new urban legend, but it got me wondering if there could be a way to apply it to portable phones. Has anyone come across ways of boosting the range of a cell phone when out of the normal coverage areas? My experience on camping trips is that phone providers are not interested in spending their good money on towers in remote areas.

I've seen a product advertised ("As Seen On TV!") that fits into the battery compartment of a phone. Does anyone have experience with it?

As an alternative, is there a way to jury-rig a phone to extend the range, possibly by using wire to extend the antenna?