Telstra..... Oops you did it again

Telstra was on TV the other week saying that they need to get their customers
back introducing new plans for everyone to compete with other telco’s

One of their plans was $69 for 40 gigs then slowed to 1.5Mb/s

Now introducing the new plans its now $69 for 30gigs then slowed to 1.5Mb/s
where you can see with vodafone they have a plan for $60 for 60 gigs then slowed

Wake Up telstra

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Telstra tried to offer a mate of mine - on a DISABILITY PENSION - a phone & net plan for $88 A FORTNIGHT. And then wondered why the offer was loudly rejected! They seem totally removed from reality.

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If one applies the old adage to Telstra " We learn from the mistakes we make in life " then I must be talking to people with the intelligence of an Einstein on the other end of the phone when I contact them.

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Honest question, did they know your mate was on a disability pension or was this just another sales call launched from their data base?

Separately, to survive the job in these days of sell, sell, sell surely there must be someone, somewhere, on disability living with family and having essentially zero personal living costs who wants a new phone and internet service! They might even share the internet service with their caring family. Leave no chance to chance! (/sarcsm)

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My friend’s first comment to Telstra staff was “I’m on a disability pension . .”. We didn’t realise we needed to make it any clearer. Thankfully, it’s all sorted now, but we’re still angry that they tried to sell my friend a plan that was so obviously too expensive.

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More big changes.

The evolution of Telstra mobile phone and data plans. The bottom line, is “the bottom line” with Telstra appearing intent on weaning or transitioning as many customers as possible off low cost plans to high cost more profitable options.

For City folk it may be a surprise, some of us still use Telstra some or all of the time. For us mainly when traveling, but also as a backup for home knowing the local Optus and Telstra mobile towers are in different townships. We recently received the following email. (End of July) There was no other forewarning.

Your mobile plan is changing
Hi Mark,
We’re moving you to a new mobile plan and we wanted to let you know as soon as possible.
From 26th August 2019, your service 04xx yyy zzz … will be moving to the Mobile Plan Extra Small.
The minimum monthly cost of your new plan will be $40.00 per month.
Your Mobile Plan Extra Small will include unlimited calls and texts to standard Australian numbers, 2GB data with no excess data charges - all for use in Australia, with no lock-in on your plan. So you’ll keep getting great value.
Find out more about your new plan here.
Please note, any promotional discounts or bonus offers currently on your service will not be carried over to your new plan.

Needless to say it is a more expensive plan, offering value I don’t need. There is an option further on in the email to choose a different plan or leave. One more job for the to do list.

I noted when looking for background on the change by Telstra some are less happy than I. For a broader viewpoint from Ray Shaw who may be known to some for his past IT segments on ABC radio. He let loose on the GadgetGuy. Excuse the language, he’s not happy.

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Yet when I was with Telstra a few years back they relaunched their plans with lower prices for the same amount of data. They didn’t bother emailing me saying they were switching me to the new price then did they? I only found out by doing my regular review of my utilities and insurance.

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I have little option. I’m told that there’s an Optus signal - from the peak of my roof. At ground level, I have a weak Telstra signal in the main bedroom. On the other side of the house, I get nothing. For land line, I don’t dare complicate matters by involving a different retail provider.

My 'phone plans are post-paid. They (almost) date back to a time when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. The land line costs $31.95 per month (it recently went up). All calls are charged, so I keep it mostly for incoming calls. My mobile costs $30.00 per month ($25 for voice, plus $5 for 250MB of data). I get unlimited mobile calls, so outgoing calls are made from the bedroom.

As far as I can tell, none of the current plans stack up.

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There are a few mobile plans that seem to beat your current mobile plan.

ALDIMobile $15/month unlimited national (fixed & mobile) calls and SMS 3GB data, $25/Month unlimited national (fixed & mobile) calls & SMS 18 GB data unlimited international calls & SMS to 15 countries plus 100 minutes to 35 further countries. (Telstra based network)

Vodafone $30 comes with unlimited calls and SMS and 10GB data (if you auto pay this data allowance is increased to 25GB) (Vodafone network)

Amaysim $10/month unlimited calls & SMS 1GB data, $20/month unlimited calls & SMS 5GB data, $30/month unlimited national (fixed & mobile) calls & SMS 30GB data unlimited international calls & SMS to 10 selected countries (Optus based network)

Thank you @PhilT for the Boost one
Boost Mobile $20/month unlimited national (fixed & mobile) calls & SMS 5GB data unlimited international calls & SMS to 20 selected countries plus 100 minutes to 35 other selected countries (Telstra network)

I’m sure there are more. Others on this site might be able to provide their experiences and choices.

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For those in dodgy reception areas the normal best chance for service is Telstra or Boost who apparently uses the Telstra network, not just the Telstra wholesale network.

FWIW this week (until Tue 1/10) Coles has a Boost plan on sale - Buy a SIM and an 80GB (12 months) recharge for $135. Seems Coles corporate did not tell the stores how it works, but if interested apparently you buy a Boost SIM for $2 and an 80GB recharge (requested at the register) for $150 and the system should deduct $17 from the transaction. eg a $15 discount on the recharge and a free SIM.

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These are the other mobile service providers which also use the Telstra network as resellers:

WhistleOut provides a summary of the Best Plans on the Telstra Network…

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Boost is reputed to be the only one that uses the full Telstra network. The others use the lesser Telstra wholesale network. If one call Boost’s ‘new customer’ 800 number the first announcement was ‘Thanks for calling Telstra’ and then ‘Thanks for calling Boost’. Hmmmm (not really)

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Whistleout agrees. As does one family member who uses Boost and is sent to work in all these out of the way places in the Cape with only a termite eaten signpost for the airport terminal.

Choosing the right mobile can also be important.

We had a similar need to sit on the roof to connect with Optus, although Telstra seemed to work if you stood at a window. Removing a forest of pine trees near the house helped with Optus. Upgrading to a certain model of phone made the most difference for both carriers. Huawei P6, and the XL version of the iPhone 8 seem to be a step better on our situation. Or the early model Samsung 3G non smart flip phones, the ones with the external aerial socket. I’ve been able to make reliable voice calls out west with one of those on Telstra 3G from a low bump of a hill to a tower much more than 50km distant. Line of sight vs distance?

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These might also be an option in areas where signals are flaky…

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Thanks for the memory jog. As mentioned we found a solution once we knew the cause, but plan B was well advanced, as follows:

So ‘Yes’, $1,000 and a yagi might be all it takes.

In this example it is Yes - Telstra!

Or

Yes - Optus! And others

Works well for data too, although the stand alone 3G/4G modems with provision for external aerials seem to function well without a booster subject to aerial selection.

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Yes, I should have said at some cost…thanks for posting some idea of the $$$$s.

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I believe you’ll find those are illegal. As far as I know, only Cel-Fi units are licensed for use in Australia. They’re the ones Telstra sells, re-branded.
https://cel-fi.com.au/

No they are not…see the ACMA (Australian government website) link in my previous post. One needs to gain consent from their carrier before installing and operating a signal booster. If consent is received, they can be legally used in Australia.

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I think consent might be hard to get from most carriers. Even possession of a device is illegal if it is unlicenced so a party would need to provide detail about the device they want to purchase and provide that via contact with their carrier to get the consent and then purchase and install it. Carriers may have an arrangement with cel-fi to supply their licenced units and this may have contractual arrangements attached re third party applications to the carriers.

Boosters (which use a wired connection to a single mobile phone) are prohibited in Australia. There is no leeway with these type units.

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Yes, they are.

Consent is part of the purchase transaction. A legitimate retailer won’t sell to anyone who doesn’t qualify.

I know people who have bought, both legal and illegal repeaters. That’s how I know about Signal Boosters Australia. Legal gear communicates with the tower and adjusts signal strength to avoid interference. Illegal repeaters can’t do that, so they transmit at full strength continuously, often preventing anyone else connecting to that sector on the tower.