Need to rant.
Is it just me or is the Telstra network not as good as it used to be?
I’m with Boost which I believe uses the full Telstra network and I’m finding more and more often that I get nothing on 5G or one bar which is practically useless.
Grant over.
yep I know but there are still some hard core telstra fans that will still say they are the best lol in reality I have realized they are getting shitty every year not just in customer service but in general network service. I have tested that some areas that has service seem to have spotty or none at all now. I have had better service with VODAFONE lol which shocked me.
I recently switched from Vodafone to Telstra (Boost) as I found Vodafone was just not getting me enough reception, especially on train trips and figured Telstra would surely be better. It was honestly worse, even at home and work I found it to be fairly bad either at 1 bar or no 5g.
Moved to Optus network and found it to be much better covered in the areas I use it and have better 5g consistency than what I saw on Telstra
Vodafone is terrible from a network experience even in the cities. Optus is the best bang for your buck and with the deals here on Ozbargins, they are actually cheaper than Vodafone. Telstra is expensive but good in the bush.
I've found vodaphone better in Melbourne, at least for my commute. Optus was pretty hopeless in the city loop. Telstra was fine but never great, especially around Ascot Vale would drop out for a minute.
We all have different experiences, as long as it works for you that's the main thing.
Agreed its ridiculous that especially since Ascot Vale is a residential area with no tunnel and you always lose connectivity there
Good coverage in the only city that matters Brisbane :D
There have been posts here recently complaining about Boost
Most recently here:
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/929515
Personally Ive been on amaysim (optus) for 3 years.
Ive travelled up and down the NSW coast and been down to Melbourne and had reception everywhere I go.
When I travel overseas I still receive my SMS.
So no complaints whatsover about amaysim (optus)
The recent agreement to share regional towers with Vodafone has made Optus even better.
If you are happy with Optus consider switching to amaysim for better value!
Do Amaysim get access to the whole Optus network and full speeds? I know Telstra limits its resellers in speeds
Amaysim is now a subsidiary of Optus rather than just the reseller it used to be.
thanks for sharing … just curious when you said you still get SMS when overseas, do you pay for any roaming or it is by default (no additional charge)?
side notes, as someone who switch telco frequently … monthly almost … around Syd CBD, Telstra and Optus are almost identical, Voda at some spots is just useless….but all in general is OK… no one stands out by big margin..
its been shit for years now
Could be local congestion of airwaves ???
Personally - I'm with Optus mobile (but work is 100% Telstra)
Near my work - several mobile towers added in last 2 years.
Even UHF - in area has been overwhelmed - (used to get 3km+ range, now less than 500m - with a 5 watt UHF handheld).
+++ some days, we have trouble calling Telstra - Telstra mobile … And the person is in building on other side of road.
Mainly local tower issues.
You can check the tower locations and the frequencies supported by those towers:
https://ausphonetowers.com.au/
nice link, how is the App version? would you know are there many Ads or just occasional Ads?
I've never used the App version of this website.
FYI, this is based on acma data and can be highly inaccurate. https://www.rfnsa.com.au/ would be more accurate.
https://www.rfnsa.com.au/ would be more accurate.
Ah…that's the website I was trying to remember, but I could not,
and I ended up on AusPhoneTowers while trying to search for RFNSA.
Thanks for that link :-)
Yeah, have to agree.
No problem with telstra for me. Vodafone was good at the start of the year, but in the past few months it has suddenly become almost unusable and randomly cuts out for several minutes (longest period was nearly an hour where it just didn't connect). Optus (amaysim) always only has one bar of reception, but that doesn't seem to affect download speed
Yeah same, the data just stops working on Vodafone at times and the calls kept dropping out. Optus or amaysim is decent overall, or a Telstra reseller if going regional.
My 2 cents… been jumping between 3 of the networks,
TBH .. Optus Voda are same they have coverage agreement, Telstra network is overcrowded where a cell tower can take 1000 connections, there is 10,000 connections. Its oversubscribed and with the pretence of 99.9% coverage.
With boost more people have onboarded and it’s causing grief, its about time everything will go down for telstra.
Optus Voda not the same at all in metro areas, only regional and rural
How many have stuck to high-end brands and complain about coverage. The device could be the problem. I have had Oppo phones for years and my partner likes Samsung. Guess which one has the better receiver?
OPPO, and it cost less ; )
Optus is rolling out more towers and Vodafone have for years pushed the boundaries of wider coverage per site, Telstra just loves advertising about coverage but they have been proven wrong. Ask people in remote locations since 3G was turned off and they have lost coverage.
Many also forget about Voice over WiFi, they keep it off and can make a BIG difference in poor coverage areas.
1000% and I’m using full Telstra too (work-supplied).
I feel it coincided with the 3G shutdown, after that any patchy areas with 1-2 bars of 5G would get very inconsistent internet (or even none at all).
Definitely not worth a premium anymore if spending your own hard earned money.
I’m 7km from the cbd. Yesterday I was getting between 1 and 5Mbps on Boost anywhere in the house. Rarely get more than one bar even outside. Calls only work using wifi calling. Will try Voda when I renew - they have a 5g tower nearby.
I went from Telstra to Boost and it suddenly became almost unusable… back to Telstra and all was well.
Now I'm with Woolworths Mobile and it's fine.
Is this another consequence of overpopulation?
Are you offering to leave?
I'd say it's more of an issue with the amount of buildings going up. We've had a high crane index for a while and unless additional mobile stations are put in to keep up it likely will amount to specific towers getting inundated with traffic or 5G towers in the city not going as far. South Yarra for example in Melbourne has had a lot of buildings going up and now parts of the train station can be hard to get a signal on the train.
The signal level really depends on where you are and what towers are near and the transmission path to the towers and how the antennas are configured. For me I have tried them all.
Best signal level now is, Vodafone 2 bars, Optus 1 bar, Telstra 1 bar, about 10kms from cbd.
Telstra got worse about 5 years or so ago, Optus got worse shortly after.
A lot of new houses, very large and multi-storey with metal roofs probably don't help. Check out Android app "Aus phone towers" for your location.
No, Boost definitely uses the Telstra Retail network, not Wholesale. Perhaps you're thinking of Belong?
Yes, but it is deprioritised. See the Boost email Thursday 6/11.
I'm on woolies /telstra. It's been pretty sketchy lately especially under tin roofs, but that could be because I have a 5 year old phone…
Yea there is your issue - Boost gets second priority on the Telstra network.
Ive used both by porting in and out between Telstra and Boost prepaid, and when I'm with Telstra it's great, but similar experience to you when I'm on Boost.
Telstra prioritises its network.
Telstra Retail #1 (Gov/Enterprise - top of the ladder).
Boost, like Telstra Prepaid may have full coverage, but is a lower priority. Wholesale is further down the chain.
Signal strength does not equate to much.
Mobile is literally the you pay for what you get game.
This.
If you're not with Telstra directly and go through another provider who leases the Telstra network, you won't be getting the full experience.
Take a look around next time its New Years Eve - you'll see Telstra calls/messages go through right away, whilst other providers are delayed or don't go through at all till much later.
I'm with Telstra directly and I've been around people who are with Boost. They tell me it's the same network but then they have issues when I don't. Clearly there's some prioritisation going on.
I was under the impression that Boost and Telechoice were the only 2 x providers who had 'full' access to the Telstra network.
( Telechoice does not exist anymore )
The rest of the companies, eg. Amaysim, Gomo, Felix, etc… ie.
the all of the other MVNOs, accessing Optus or Vodafone networks,
have their voice calls and data packets are routed through the network with a 'lesser priority'.
So, this is surprising to hear that Boost calls/data are also treated with a 'lower priority'.
Email from Boost today, Thursday 6/11 “Update to T&Cs”. Starts carrying on about Customer Behaviour and Domestic Violence. But read on and they make it clear different plans on the network get different access and priorities, and there’s also coming a 5G only service which existing plans won’t have access to. Basically confirms what we are saying above. Might be the full network, but not equal service across all plans.
I got the same Email from Boost.
It looks/sounds like social behaviours will be punished by private corporations,
ie. this is the start of 'social credit scores'.
They will deny utility services to you, if you "step out of line",
like when restaurants would not serve you food, if you did not enter their private premises with an injection.
Tried telstra with their free SIM OFFER few months back and realised Telstra is not as good as before.
Telstra out my way is terrible. Western Sydney in a Medicore dense populated suburb. Optus has the best reception and speeds.
Go figure. My work phone, a GP7p has reception in kitchen bench or out front door.
Agree, wife’s mobile is with Tesla and it’s great. Tried boost and although it’s supposedly 100% of the network, experience was terrible. Speeds were shockingly slow and 5g was very limited.
I've recently switched from Boost to Amaysim (Optus).
Have already noticed better reception in Sydney CBD. So I agree in the city there's no point paying a Telstra premium.
That said at my house I can get up to 600Mb download from my Telstra 5g modem so no complaints there.
Getting no 5G coverage or only one bar of reception is a symptom of no nearby tower.
The number of towers is NOT shrinking. So the OP is imagining the problems he claims.
If the symptom he was reporting was later in the calling process, like how fast the connection was, that might be a result of an overloaded network. Of the number of towers not growing with the rate of population growth. But, I repeat, the number of towers is NOT shrinking.
Coverage shrunk when 3G was switched off. Regardless my experience with boost aligns with OPs experience.
Yet Telstra retail has provided a much better experience. (Still have coverage gaps since 3g went, but nothing like the boost experience. Yes I get they share the same towers/network. My experience is you get what you pay for.
I am with Boost now, won't be going back. Coverage and reception is very poor in western Sydney. I was with Optus and the coverage was much better, very few black spots if any etc. Now many indoor places and particular areas I get zero coverage, it's bad. My friend is with Voda and gets much better coverage overall.
I recently switched from Telstra (JB Hi Fi plan) to Optus to grab the Pixel 10 deal, but it’s been terrible. On the Craigieburn train line, the usual dead spots are still there, but now I’m also getting major blackouts all over my suburb as speeds drop to around 5 Mbps down and barely 0.1 Mbps up. Can’t wait for the 3 month cooling off period to end so I can switch back to Telstra.
It honestly depends where you are. Boost Mobile is probably the best on paper/regional, though there are still areas where even Vodafone has better reception than Telstra.
Then you have music events etc, where good luck even loading a web page with Telstra, whereas someone with Vodafone may have a little speed.
Started getting worse a few weeks ago. I'm on telstra retail and can't watch vdeos on some locations, but the calling works fine. I was thinking that they started throttling streaming video although I have something like 70GB data left.
Im with Telsta and live just outside of Sydney:
NBN fttn roughly averages 100mb/s
5G wireless modem - 350s mb/s
Belong 5G - averages 40mbs but maybe a little faster at times.
The moment i enter Sydney with my mobile. I think the 5G speeds are non existent. So slow and laggy. Have to refresh so many times.
Worse, I think a combination of 5G and me moving. I used to live inner city, speeds were blazing fast, I was in a two storey townhouse and even on the ground floor was common to get > 300 Mbps, around the corner near 1Gpbs. Moved 25 mins south a few years ago, houses all crammed in amongst each other, all with tin roofs, small or little windows, double brick, no way a signal can get in these days. I get 1 bar and about 5 Mbps inside. Pay top dollar but need it for when I travel to some remote locations. With Telstra themselves, I get about 70GB shared across my plans, but can only ever use about 6GB a month. Partner just moved off to Woolworths and saved about $40 a month, no change in reception or speed obviously.
I am with Telstra, I was with Boost and before that with Telstra. Frankly I do find Telstra and boost not as good as they once were. It is very possible its just where i live and where i work as those are the 2 locations most used i guess. I know in the CBD, it seems considerably better but doesnt help me as i am only in the CDB maybe once every couple of years.
I live in blackspot, they are all shite
I have similar issue with boost in Adelaide. It used to be good but not anymore in northern suburbs.
I have noticed a definite decline in mobile data speeds in the last 6 months with Telstra - reception is fine but kinda useless when you can't load anything. I was always wondering whether it was because I was on a cheaper plan and Telstra was deprioritising my traffic?
I've been considering trying Optus and seeing if I have a better experience. I'm an avid mountain biker so always thought sticking with Telstra was better for more remote locations.
Today’s email re Boost T&Cs talks about different priorities and access for different plans. It’s at the bottom after all the Customer Behaviour and Domstic Violence blurbs.
I think its just network congestion overall, i dont think they planned for every household to have so many simcard devices, ipads, fridges cars, everything. Back on telstra 4g i could get coverage everywhere, even in shopping centers, now like the op said, im lucky to barely get 1 bar on 5g and good luck getting a basic web page to load if your inside a shopping center building
I thought shopping centres blocked it to stop online price checks, didn’t realise it was the network
If you believed that you'd literally believe anything.
Has this been substantiated ?
Would shopping centres block 5G internet access,
and it's not all the metal and concrete surrounding the person like a Faraday cage ?
With Boost, in the inner suburbs and it’s not good.
Like a few others have said, the 3g shutdown seemed to kill off a lot of their great coverage - areas that were only serviced by old 3g. I've got friends living rural that no longer get cell reception.
Back in iphone 4 or 5 days i had to drive from sydney to melbourne, so i thought i would test out the mobile coverage. Left google maps on for the entire trip and besides one 5 minute gap, it didnt drop cell reception once! I wonder how it would go now…
IMO
- Which telco you have the best experience with is exceptionally dependent on where you live (literally street-to-street)
- Telstra seems to be marginally better than competitors on the whole
- Telstra also seems worse than it used to be on the whole
- Telstra is the ONLY feasible option for some users (i.e. you go two second outside of a city in Tasmania (does Tasmania have "cities"???))
- All telcos are just a bit sh*t
I am on Telstra Wholesale Network (More Telecom) and was previously with JB Hi-Fi, which uses the whole Telstra network and there isn't any difference in my usage experience between the two.
Metro Melbourne sucks for reception
Like the housing rental increases and sales, its due to population.
People rolling up into Aus and tower congestion is going to get worst, and worst, and further worst.
Need get petition or get media to assist to get these providers to double up or even triple up on towers, especially if you want 5G speeds, heck even 4GX would be nice.
These companies/corporations rake in the dosh and completely fail by not future expanding their product fast enough, Its as simple as that really!
I'm with Boost and Optus, I find there are deadspots and I have to switch between the two SIM cards. Wasn't as bad before they switched off 3G
I live in Melbourne and yeah I've been on Woolworth mobile and Boost and both seem to have become pretty bad over the past few years. Data must struggles and slower now. New iPhone 17 pro hasn't helped
If the Vodafone and optud weren't terrible in my area I would have switched already
Just got a telstra email. Wot is this bullshit
"Coverage and performance may vary between plans"
the latest email from Boost clears the air.
Performance varies between plans and where 5g SA available for Telstra , Boost will connect to 4g.
time to kick the boots once current plan expires.
What an email. Tried to hide that real info by starting with violence and abuse. If you follow through their FAQs they even confirm it’s shite by claiming it will work when you are on the toilet. Unbelievable. They are having a lend of us.
For a split second, when I got that email from Boost to change in T&Cs, I thought they’d sent just to me and because they found out about my Ozbargain post
Telstra had also sent me the same change in T&Cs, that Telstra will be in a position to deny a person services,
should Telstra find out about domestic violence offences the person had committed.
It sounds like every country is implementing some kind of 'social / behavioural controls or score-points',
and in lock-step fashion too, but every other country has a different "reason" for doing it.
Granted