im getting ready to start my east and centre trip this year and am trying to make a decision regarding telcos. Ive always been with Telstra and have been relatively happy with their service (and very happy with their coverage). I am now considering whether to continue my contract with Telstra or to start afresh with Optus. There is a great many comments throughout the forum on how bad Optus coverage is however those reviews are 3-4 years old.
I have looked at the Optus coverage map and can see that it certainly seems ok for the east coast and down to Adelaide (which is where Ill be traveling this year before heading into the centre), so I was wondering if anyone has some current reviews they could provide for Optus coverage and connectivity which may help me make a decision? Optus is incredible cheap in terms of data and also provides the highest coverage volume of 200GB per month (Im still working so data access is important for me).
Can anyone provide positive and/or negative thoughts for the Optus V Telstra decision Im struggling with?
Cheers, Craig
brickies said
09:08 PM Jan 15, 2018
We carry two mobile phone the wife carry Telstra mobile , I carry Optus mobile she has a signal often than me , Optus is good in towns even in Longreach but once you leave town Telstra is much better .
SoloCraig said
09:14 PM Jan 15, 2018
Thanks @brickies. I did consider two phones to juggle back and forth as coverage shifted, but then hoped Optus May have improved of recent times......
landy said
10:21 PM Jan 15, 2018
if you don't fancy two phones there are several very good dual sim phones out at the moment. Landy
Dickodownunder said
10:51 PM Jan 15, 2018
Hi Solo Craig,
I have had similar thoughts re our telco services. Currently we have two phones with telstra service and 1gb of data divided between each phone per month. For $70.00 per month we also get calls and sms services. IMO this is useless. In addition to this we have a telstra supplied wireless dongle that gives us 50 gb per month of internet data for $150.00 IMO not very good value.
Now after a bit of research I find I can change the phones to Boost mobile where we get 12 gb of data for EACH PHONE plus calls etc for $59 per month. Excess data rolls over each month. Boost runs on the telstra 3g and 4g and as far as I can see we will have the same service as we have now for our phones.
I can change my internet dongle to work on the OVO service which I believe is Optus. The cost for this is $69.00 per month for 100 gb. Now I realise that Optus wont supply the same quality of internet that I currently get on telstra however when we are in larger regional centres and bigger towns we will have a similar service to telstra. When we are in more remote areas we will then use the 12 gb each that we have on the Boost network. By adopting this tactic I hope to cut our costs in half for our mobile phone and internet and as we are similar to you whereby our use is high at times, this should give us a lot more flexibility.
Solo Craig, These are only my thoughts but I have ordered the Boost sims to try the phone and data first and if that all works as planned I will complete the plan by going onto OVO Optus internet. I might add that the Boost deal is prepaid so we are not locked into anything and if I go to OVO there will be no contract as I own my equipment. Good luck with your final decision.
Edit; made a mistake with current data plan costs. -- Edited by Dickodownunder on Monday 15th of January 2018 10:52:46 PM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 12:05:36 PM
Barboots said
11:06 PM Jan 15, 2018
Just because they came up... Dual SIM phones sometimes have limited network support on the second slot. Having a handset which supports the most of your chosen network's connectivity is almost as important as the carrier, if you want anything more than voice and text.
griffo1962 said
11:35 PM Jan 15, 2018
Dickodownunder wrote:
Now after a bit of research I find I can change the phones to Boost mobile where we get 12 gb of data for EACH PHONE plus calls etc for $59 per month. Excess data rolls over each month. Boost runs on the telstra 3g and 4g and as far as I can see we will have the same service as we have now for our phones.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Monday 15th of January 2018 10:52:46 PM
Just be aware, Boost & any of the other Telstra resellers do NOT have the same coverage as Telstra. check their coverage maps, some only run on a very low % of the towers. Once you get away from the major centres you'll have very little if any service.....
markf said
11:46 PM Jan 15, 2018
We have Telstra phones but in places like Marree and Mungeranie there is Optus coverage but no Telstra. Problem solved by buying an el-cheapo phone that can at least do calls, SMS and can act as a hotspot for the Telstra phones, laptop, tablet, etc.
PeterInSa said
01:50 AM Jan 16, 2018
Re ( Boost & any of the other Telstra resellers do NOT have the same coverage as Telstra.)
Agree, Last year No coverage/call ability from Aldi at Nullabor Station but 5 Bars so made the Call from our Telstra Mobile.
Izabarack said
07:10 AM Jan 16, 2018
Telstra, by any measure. Optus parent does not even have a presence in Australia anymore. Optus only interest in Australia is to take your money. A fair bit off contact with Telstra lately getting the NBN. All the call centre people I have spoken to are located in Australia and speak Australian. My old ears are having more and more trouble understanding heavily accented speech.
Iza
Wanda said
09:44 AM Jan 16, 2018
Hi All
Go with Boost you won't be sorry.
I believe, not 100%, they are actually owned by Telstra, but the main thing is when travelling outback "if" there is any coverage where others like Optus, Vodaphone, Aldi etc fail you will usually get through with Boost and Telstra.
We have been with them, and put a lot of friends onto them , for the past 3-4yrs and they are excellent. Great prices and no contracts.
regards
Ian
rockylizard said
10:00 AM Jan 16, 2018
Gday...
Cheers - John
dorian said
10:29 AM Jan 16, 2018
A friend with a farm at Robertson, NSW, says he gets no coverage with Telstra, but Optus works fine.
Barboots said
10:31 AM Jan 16, 2018
Best post Rocky š
rockylizard said
10:49 AM Jan 16, 2018
dorian wrote:
A friend with a farm at Robertson, NSW, says he gets no coverage with Telstra, but Optus works fine.
Gday...
One of the strange vagaries of our wondrous mobile/internet coverage by our telcos.
I guess it depends just where the farm is, which leg he is standing on and which direction the wind is blowing.
It seems both try to tell us they have broad coverage with their 4G networks at Robertson.
Telstra -
Optus -
Cheers - John
Barboots said
11:34 AM Jan 16, 2018
For almost every person saying that I don't get Telstra somewhere where Optus is strong, there is a person with a phone that doesn't support the required frequencies. Odd exceptions exist.
Dickodownunder said
11:55 AM Jan 16, 2018
I completely agree that Telstra's coverage is more extensive than the others. I have researched maps for Boost and Optus compared to Telstra similar to Rocky L...thank you Rocky.
I have been out there in the wild travelling and talking to many people an observing our current service with Telstra in many areas and what I have noted is that in any cities, major regional centres and most towns on major highways have coverage with the bigger carriers. In some areas Telstra is better and in other areas Optus appears to work better. I also found this when I was working in more remote farming communities in SA. When camping in more remote areas and out of the way off the highway camps I found I had no Telstra just the same as neighbours had no Optus or any other carrier for that matter. For my personal situation I would in most cases be content with service in most towns, so, now it comes down to price verses some inconvenience.
OK so lets go back to Rockys maps above and look at the phone service between Telstra and Boost. Boost use the Telstra network in its entirety except for the speed of the top of the range 4G as provided by Telstra. Telstra keep this service for their own clients and as we all know, charge a massive premium for this service.
When we look at the colours on the maps it appears that Telstra offer the larger coverage where we are not actually comparing apples with apples. The Testra map displays their areas where their premium service is available which is great marketing by them and great information for those who want and NEED the extra speed.
Back to my requirements...I have considered the need for high speed 4G and at this stage I believe that I really dont need it. In my case we spend most of our time on the road in or near towns and regional centres...I hate cities and only go there when I have to. So I will give the Boost a try at first to see how it goes at a small saving but a massive gain in data allowance and because it is pre paid I am not locked in and at the very worst I can opt to go back to Telstra. If the Boost works satisfactorily then at the end of my current contract with Telstra for my data plan I will give the Optus a go via OVO We really only use this data when we are in towns and regional centres anyway. If I find it is not suitable then at worst, Iwill change back to Telstra.
I have noted that according to the maps the Telstra service is better in WA and that is generally confirmed with travellers comments. If we aren't happy with what is happening in WA when we get there I will go a get a cheap pre paid Telstra phone. This will be easily funded with what I save by not paying Telstra their premium.
In the end I hope to achieve a reasonable service with phone and data plans without paying the premium to the big telco. By my calculations I hope to cut our communication costs in half and achieve a larger data allowance.
This post is not an effort to convince anyone that Telstra is no good...Telstra offer the best service in most areas. This post is just to show the OP of my personal line of thought when trying to sort through the miriad of choices of telco providers.
edit;
I should add that we own our Iphone 7 plus phones and the current Netgear 4G modem wi fi dongle with a facility to be able to connect a variety of aireals through the provided cradle.
As barboots said above some equipment may not be compatible with some services.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 11:59:29 AM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 12:08:37 PM
brickies said
12:06 PM Jan 16, 2018
I would not go past Telstra if you are traveling , If you are in built up areas you could take the punt on others .
Dickodownunder said
12:17 PM Jan 16, 2018
Just for a little bit more info...
Earlier this morning I did an enquiry on Optus web site for my home address and the result was poor phone service but good data.
Their scale of efficiency is designated by none to 3 icons, 3 icons being good.
Boost show good for all services at the same address.
Relax-n said
02:28 PM Jan 16, 2018
We did our recent trip started mid May, from Adelaide, up the centre then heading west and down the coast, finally home end October.
My husband has Telstra and lost signal in some locations - but notices up stating no coverage at all.
I am with Virgin, (being Optus), not much else to say. Lost coverage not far out of Pt Wakefield, and had very little coverage till hit Perth.
I have also been told the quality of phone can make a huge difference - quality of receiver/arial.
Geeco said
03:52 PM Jan 16, 2018
Hi Dichdownunder, I think your logic seems sensible for your needs. We use Virgin (Optus) for our two iPhones and up until recently a Virgin 4g wifi modem. We moved to a slightly higher cost planar the phones and did away with the modem plan. We can live with 12gb per month from our phones and use the hotspot option to connect our iPads, saving $20/ month. The Virgin coverage has really improved in the last 3 years along the east coast where we roam. Happy to suffer some out of range for a significant saving by not using Telstra. We do have Telstra broadband at home and where possible use Telstra air to download heavy data content. At the end of the day you need to work out what best suits your needs and pocket. Cheers,
Wanda said
04:02 PM Jan 16, 2018
Hi again
Do not believe anything Optus put out as far as there coverage map is concerned, and possibly others as well in all there advertising saying how wonderful they are. Boost does not advertise!!
Again can only speak on what we found, all the way from Darwin across through the back waters of Queensland, NSW and SA( NOT the East coast) BOOST worked as well as other travellers using Telstra, time and time again we would speak to other travellers using Optus, Vodaphone, Virgin etc etc and they ALL winged about the lack of coverage or dropouts with these other providers.
Did we get coverage all the time, definately not, but no doubt Boost is better than most of the others, and you do not have to have these crazy contracts just because you were silly enough to buy a new phone from them, a big plus in my opinion.
regards
Ian
no I don't work for boost
BAZZA44 said
05:19 PM Jan 16, 2018
As has been said previously, Boost is on the full Telstra network because it is part of Telstra, only cheaper. Your account paperwork says Telstra even though you sign up to Boost.
It is a prepaid service and if you auto pay monthly you get a full month, but if you pay as you go I think it is only about 28 days.
I am on a $20 per month plan, all I need.
Barry
PeterD said
12:06 PM Jan 17, 2018
BAZZA44 wrote:
As has been said previously, Boost is on the full Telstra network because it is part of Telstra, only cheaper. Your account paperwork says Telstra even though you sign up to Boost.
Not just picking on you Barry but why can't you blokes get it into your heads that Boost Mobile is not owned by Telstra. Click on that link and read the history. When reading about the American operations note that TelstraAir is not Telstra Air. Telstra Air is the countrys largest Wi-Fi network. Telstra Air is not a company, private or public.
If you go back up to Rocky's maps you will see that there is a significant difference in the service areas.
Dickodownunder said
02:27 PM Jan 17, 2018
PeterD wrote:
BAZZA44 wrote:
As has been said previously, Boost is on the full Telstra network because it is part of Telstra, only cheaper. Your account paperwork says Telstra even though you sign up to Boost.
Not just picking on you Barry but why can't you blokes get it into your heads that Boost Mobile is not owned by Telstra. Click on that link and read the history. When reading about the American operations note that TelstraAir is not Telstra Air. Telstra Air is the countrys largest Wi-Fi network. Telstra Air is not a company, private or public.
If you go back up to Rocky's maps you will see that there is a significant difference in the service areas.
The question was never, Who owns Boost? If Boost use Telstra paperwork then so be it. This has nothing to do with ownership.
The question was for views on different services from telcos which are currently available in Australia.
Rocky provided great maps as put out by the different Telcos.
If you read a part of my second post I said that I had noticed that once you are off the highway and away from main areas then there is no service no matter who you are signed up to.
Go to the site that Rocky got the maps from and expand the view of the Nullabor plain and note that the Telstra coverage is only immediately along sections of the highway and extend very little distance beyond the actual road.
Then from the same web site expand the map that Boost supply and note that the Boost service will only apply to towns and more known districts along the same highway.
Then, if you are still interested, pick another Telco from the choices on that web site and check their coverage. By doing this you may see that differnt telcos offer differing services...I might add, in most cases a lesser service than Telstra. Someone above said that their Aldi connection did not work in a particular area out there.
Then, are you still with us Peter? because if you are you may have seen that in most cases the Boost service has coverage in the towns and known districts ( being mainly aboriginal communities) along the main highway.
Then, if you care to apply the same zoom observations to most of the main highways and roads from Rockys maps particularly in the eastern parts of Australia you may note a similar pattern.
So that brings us to the real question and part of the OP's enquiry....
Do the savings in costs compensate for the lesser service offered by other Telcos apart from Telstra?
Here is the link to the Telco maps. https://www.telcoantennas.com.au/site/coverage-checker-all-australian-networks
We must also bear in mind that these services may change frequently with some telcos.
I might add that my suggestions of Boost for mobile phone and OVO for data are only MY observations for MY requirements.
The OP mentioned dealing direct with Optus for data and they offer a great deal with 200gb per month plus free streaming for Netflix etc but as I read it I can not personally qualify for that plan as I am a private user and no longer have a business.
There are many variables and input with examples can be informative and helpful.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Wednesday 17th of January 2018 02:28:33 PM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Wednesday 17th of January 2018 02:30:50 PM
PeterD said
03:13 PM Jan 17, 2018
Dickodownunder wrote:
PeterD wrote:
BAZZA44 wrote:
As has been said previously, Boost is on the full Telstra network because it is part of Telstra, only cheaper. Your account paperwork says Telstra even though you sign up to Boost.
Not just picking on you Barry but why can't you blokes get it into your heads that Boost Mobile is not owned by Telstra. Click on that link and read the history. When reading about the American operations note that TelstraAir is not Telstra Air. Telstra Air is the countrys largest Wi-Fi network. Telstra Air is not a company, private or public.
If you go back up to Rocky's maps you will see that there is a significant difference in the service areas.
The question was never, Who owns Boost? If Boost use Telstra paperwork then so be it. This has nothing to do with ownership.
The question was for views on different services from telcos which are currently available in Australia.
Well you certainly got your nickers in a knot! I did not contradict anything you said above so what's your problem? I read it all and have no great problem with what you said so why repeat it?
Every time this subject comes up we get many claiming that Boost Mobile is owned by Telstra. I was just heading off this line of thought. I also referred to Rocky's maps to show there was a difference in coverage between the two.
brickies said
03:44 PM Jan 17, 2018
If you do a search on the net you will find that PeterD is right , Boost do use telstra network but not the very best part of the network , Boost will give you the same coverage has Testra but at a lower speed , If you want to hit the road and follow the coastline and not go inland it dosen't matter what network you use but if you want the best Telstra is the best and not much difference in price , If you are going to stay in caravan parks most caravan park will give you coverage , But if you want to free camp by the river think again, I have A Telstra and Optus when we have a signal on both phone Telstra one will always have more bars , You may say why do you still have an optus mobile well when I am home I have a cheap plan and where I live in the city it works great .
Wanda said
04:55 PM Jan 17, 2018
Some mothers do have em?
regards
Ian
A big fan of Boost, who ever owns them!!
Only been using them for about 4yrs, tried all the others, travelling outback its the next best coverage when needed to Telstra, thats my experience anyway.
BAZZA44 said
05:19 PM Jan 17, 2018
PeterD, please show me where I said Boost was owned by Telstra. I said it is part of Telstra, I do not know how that works.
On Canstar a couple of months ago they had an article on Boost versus Telstra. ----Result was Boost is the ONLY Mobile Virtual Network Operator to get FULL Telstra coverage.
The difference is that Boost does not get Telstra full 4GX speed capacity, has a cap of 100Mbps.
So to clarify , Boost has the same coverage as Telstra.
bARRY
brickies said
05:47 PM Jan 17, 2018
Barry Boost does get the same coverage has Telstra , But cannot give the same quality , If you are happy with what you receive for you money that's all that matter .But can't make out it's Telstra .
Hi GNs
im getting ready to start my east and centre trip this year and am trying to make a decision regarding telcos. Ive always been with Telstra and have been relatively happy with their service (and very happy with their coverage). I am now considering whether to continue my contract with Telstra or to start afresh with Optus. There is a great many comments throughout the forum on how bad Optus coverage is however those reviews are 3-4 years old.
I have looked at the Optus coverage map and can see that it certainly seems ok for the east coast and down to Adelaide (which is where Ill be traveling this year before heading into the centre), so I was wondering if anyone has some current reviews they could provide for Optus coverage and connectivity which may help me make a decision? Optus is incredible cheap in terms of data and also provides the highest coverage volume of 200GB per month (Im still working so data access is important for me).
Can anyone provide positive and/or negative thoughts for the Optus V Telstra decision Im struggling with?
Cheers, Craig
Thanks @brickies. I did consider two phones to juggle back and forth as coverage shifted, but then hoped Optus May have improved of recent times......
several very good dual sim phones out at the moment.
Landy
Hi Solo Craig,
I have had similar thoughts re our telco services.
Currently we have two phones with telstra service and 1gb of data divided between each phone per month.
For $70.00 per month we also get calls and sms services. IMO this is useless.
In addition to this we have a telstra supplied wireless dongle that gives us 50 gb per month of internet data for $150.00
IMO not very good value.
Now after a bit of research I find I can change the phones to Boost mobile where we get 12 gb of data for EACH PHONE plus calls etc for $59 per month. Excess data rolls over each month.
Boost runs on the telstra 3g and 4g and as far as I can see we will have the same service as we have now for our phones.
I can change my internet dongle to work on the OVO service which I believe is Optus. The cost for this is $69.00 per month for 100 gb.
Now I realise that Optus wont supply the same quality of internet that I currently get on telstra however when we are in larger regional centres and bigger towns we will have a similar service to telstra.
When we are in more remote areas we will then use the 12 gb each that we have on the Boost network.
By adopting this tactic I hope to cut our costs in half for our mobile phone and internet and as we are similar to you whereby our use is high at times, this should give us a lot more flexibility.
Solo Craig,
These are only my thoughts but I have ordered the Boost sims to try the phone and data first and if that all works as planned I will complete the plan by going onto OVO Optus internet.
I might add that the Boost deal is prepaid so we are not locked into anything and if I go to OVO there will be no contract as I own my equipment.
Good luck with your final decision.
Edit; made a mistake with current data plan costs.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Monday 15th of January 2018 10:52:46 PM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 12:05:36 PM
Just be aware, Boost & any of the other Telstra resellers do NOT have the same coverage as Telstra. check their coverage maps, some only run on a very low % of the towers. Once you get away from the major centres you'll have very little if any service.....
We have Telstra phones but in places like Marree and Mungeranie there is Optus coverage but no Telstra. Problem solved by buying an el-cheapo phone that can at least do calls, SMS and can act as a hotspot for the Telstra phones, laptop, tablet, etc.
Agree, Last year No coverage/call ability from Aldi at Nullabor Station but 5 Bars so made the Call from our Telstra Mobile.
Iza
Go with Boost you won't be sorry.
I believe, not 100%, they are actually owned by Telstra, but the main thing is when travelling outback "if" there is any coverage where others like Optus, Vodaphone, Aldi etc fail you will usually get through with Boost and Telstra.
We have been with them, and put a lot of friends onto them , for the past 3-4yrs and they are excellent. Great prices and no contracts.
regards
Ian
Gday...
Cheers - John
Gday...
One of the strange vagaries of our wondrous mobile/internet coverage by our telcos.
I guess it depends just where the farm is, which leg he is standing on and which direction the wind is blowing.
It seems both try to tell us they have broad coverage with their 4G networks at Robertson.
Telstra -
Optus -
Cheers - John
I completely agree that Telstra's coverage is more extensive than the others.
I have researched maps for Boost and Optus compared to Telstra similar to Rocky L...thank you Rocky.
I have been out there in the wild travelling and talking to many people an observing our current service with Telstra in many areas and what I have noted is that in any cities, major regional centres and most towns on major highways have coverage with the bigger carriers.
In some areas Telstra is better and in other areas Optus appears to work better. I also found this when I was working in more remote farming communities in SA.
When camping in more remote areas and out of the way off the highway camps I found I had no Telstra just the same as neighbours had no Optus or any other carrier for that matter.
For my personal situation I would in most cases be content with service in most towns, so, now it comes down to price verses some inconvenience.
OK so lets go back to Rockys maps above and look at the phone service between Telstra and Boost.
Boost use the Telstra network in its entirety except for the speed of the top of the range 4G as provided by Telstra.
Telstra keep this service for their own clients and as we all know, charge a massive premium for this service.
When we look at the colours on the maps it appears that Telstra offer the larger coverage where we are not actually comparing apples with apples. The Testra map displays their areas where their premium service is available which is great marketing by them and great information for those who want and NEED the extra speed.
Back to my requirements...I have considered the need for high speed 4G and at this stage I believe that I really dont need it.
In my case we spend most of our time on the road in or near towns and regional centres...I hate cities and only go there when I have to.
So I will give the Boost a try at first to see how it goes at a small saving but a massive gain in data allowance and because it is pre paid I am not locked in and at the very worst I can opt to go back to Telstra.
If the Boost works satisfactorily then at the end of my current contract with Telstra for my data plan I will give the Optus a go via OVO
We really only use this data when we are in towns and regional centres anyway.
If I find it is not suitable then at worst, Iwill change back to Telstra.
I have noted that according to the maps the Telstra service is better in WA and that is generally confirmed with travellers comments.
If we aren't happy with what is happening in WA when we get there I will go a get a cheap pre paid Telstra phone. This will be easily funded with what I save by not paying Telstra their premium.
In the end I hope to achieve a reasonable service with phone and data plans without paying the premium to the big telco.
By my calculations I hope to cut our communication costs in half and achieve a larger data allowance.
This post is not an effort to convince anyone that Telstra is no good...Telstra offer the best service in most areas.
This post is just to show the OP of my personal line of thought when trying to sort through the miriad of choices of telco providers.
edit;
I should add that we own our Iphone 7 plus phones and the current Netgear 4G modem wi fi dongle with a facility to be able to connect a variety of aireals through the provided cradle.
As barboots said above some equipment may not be compatible with some services.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 11:59:29 AM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Tuesday 16th of January 2018 12:08:37 PM
Earlier this morning I did an enquiry on Optus web site for my home address and the result was poor phone service but good data.
Their scale of efficiency is designated by none to 3 icons, 3 icons being good.
Boost show good for all services at the same address.
My husband has Telstra and lost signal in some locations - but notices up stating no coverage at all.
I am with Virgin, (being Optus), not much else to say. Lost coverage not far out of Pt Wakefield, and had very little coverage till hit Perth.
I have also been told the quality of phone can make a huge difference - quality of receiver/arial.
Do not believe anything Optus put out as far as there coverage map is concerned, and possibly others as well in all there advertising saying how wonderful they are. Boost does not advertise!!
Again can only speak on what we found, all the way from Darwin across through the back waters of Queensland, NSW and SA( NOT the East coast) BOOST worked as well as other travellers using Telstra, time and time again we would speak to other travellers using Optus, Vodaphone, Virgin etc etc and they ALL winged about the lack of coverage or dropouts with these other providers.
Did we get coverage all the time, definately not, but no doubt Boost is better than most of the others, and you do not have to have these crazy contracts just because you were silly enough to buy a new phone from them, a big plus in my opinion.
regards
Ian
no I don't work for boost
It is a prepaid service and if you auto pay monthly you get a full month, but if you pay as you go I think it is only about 28 days.
I am on a $20 per month plan, all I need.
Barry
Not just picking on you Barry but why can't you blokes get it into your heads that Boost Mobile is not owned by Telstra. Click on that link and read the history. When reading about the American operations note that TelstraAir is not Telstra Air. Telstra Air is the countrys largest Wi-Fi network. Telstra Air is not a company, private or public.
If you go back up to Rocky's maps you will see that there is a significant difference in the service areas.
The question was never, Who owns Boost? If Boost use Telstra paperwork then so be it. This has nothing to do with ownership.
The question was for views on different services from telcos which are currently available in Australia.
Rocky provided great maps as put out by the different Telcos.
If you read a part of my second post I said that I had noticed that once you are off the highway and away from main areas then there is no service no matter who you are signed up to.
Go to the site that Rocky got the maps from and expand the view of the Nullabor plain and note that the Telstra coverage is only immediately along sections of the highway and extend very little distance beyond the actual road.
Then from the same web site expand the map that Boost supply and note that the Boost service will only apply to towns and more known districts along the same highway.
Then, if you are still interested, pick another Telco from the choices on that web site and check their coverage. By doing this you may see that differnt telcos offer differing services...I might add, in most cases a lesser service than Telstra. Someone above said that their Aldi connection did not work in a particular area out there.
Then, are you still with us Peter? because if you are you may have seen that in most cases the Boost service has coverage in the towns and known districts ( being mainly aboriginal communities) along the main highway.
Then, if you care to apply the same zoom observations to most of the main highways and roads from Rockys maps particularly in the eastern parts of Australia you may note a similar pattern.
So that brings us to the real question and part of the OP's enquiry....
Do the savings in costs compensate for the lesser service offered by other Telcos apart from Telstra?
Here is the link to the Telco maps. https://www.telcoantennas.com.au/site/coverage-checker-all-australian-networks
We must also bear in mind that these services may change frequently with some telcos.
I might add that my suggestions of Boost for mobile phone and OVO for data are only MY observations for MY requirements.
The OP mentioned dealing direct with Optus for data and they offer a great deal with 200gb per month plus free streaming for Netflix etc but as I read it I can not personally qualify for that plan as I am a private user and no longer have a business.
There are many variables and input with examples can be informative and helpful.
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Wednesday 17th of January 2018 02:28:33 PM
-- Edited by Dickodownunder on Wednesday 17th of January 2018 02:30:50 PM
Well you certainly got your nickers in a knot! I did not contradict anything you said above so what's your problem? I read it all and have no great problem with what you said so why repeat it?
Every time this subject comes up we get many claiming that Boost Mobile is owned by Telstra. I was just heading off this line of thought. I also referred to Rocky's maps to show there was a difference in coverage between the two.
regards
Ian
A big fan of Boost, who ever owns them!!
Only been using them for about 4yrs, tried all the others, travelling outback its the next best coverage when needed to Telstra, thats my experience anyway.
On Canstar a couple of months ago they had an article on Boost versus Telstra. ----Result was Boost is the ONLY Mobile Virtual Network Operator to get FULL Telstra coverage.
The difference is that Boost does not get Telstra full 4GX speed capacity, has a cap of 100Mbps.
So to clarify , Boost has the same coverage as Telstra.
bARRY