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Free Unlimited Wi-Fi with Telstra Air - Extended to 27 March 2018 (Telstra Customers)

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Free Unlimited Wi-Fi with Telstra Air - Extended to 27 March 2018 (Telstra Customers)
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pluto on 14/02/2017 - 07:45 telstra.com.au (2131 clicks)
Last edited 15/02/2017 - 01:16 by 2 other users

Just noticed that Telstra Air free Wifi has been extended till 27 March 2018 (unless offer is extended). Can be used by activating $2 sim from here https://www.telstra.com.au/mobile-phones/prepaid-mobiles/fre….

From the Website:

Our free Telstra Air data offer has been extended until 27 March 2018. So if you’re an eligible Telstra mobile or home broadband customer, you can continue to enjoy free data at over 750,000 Telstra Air hotspots across Australia, and over 19 million Fon Spots overseas (from 28 March 2017 until 27 March 2018 Telstra Air home broadband members will no longer be required to have data left on their home allowance in order to take advantage of the offer). That way, you can save your mobile data for when you’re on the move.

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  • [Deactivated] on 14/02/2017 - 08:02
    -8

    Welcome to 2009 Telstra

    • Save Medicare on 14/02/2017 - 09:13
      +8

      Who else offers it in Australia?

      • PainToad on 14/02/2017 - 09:19

        I think he means needing wifi is so 2009. Data limits are large enough for 'normal' usage.

        • Phoebus on 14/02/2017 - 09:27
          +6

          What's the normal data package with a $2 SIM?

        • PainToad on 14/02/2017 - 10:44

          @Phoebus:

          As I said below, buying just a $2 sim does not give you access to this. You need credit too.

        • Vool on 14/02/2017 - 10:48

          Depends what you consider 'normal'. I watched a few youtube videos the other week (thinking I was on wifi) and bam, 50% of my months data gone just 4 days into the month.

        • Pootie Tang on 14/02/2017 - 11:00

          @PainToad:

          I've had it for 2 weeks and never topped up and it works fine. I selected the 365 day option. I'm using dual SIM and it works even with the Telstra sin turned off

        • PainToad on 14/02/2017 - 11:50

          @Gringoesai:

          I selected the 365 day option

          Sounds to me like you purchased a sim that includes credit, ie. not the $2 sim.

        • Jake17 on 14/02/2017 - 13:13

          @PainToad: i use telstra air all the time without a tekstra sim. I signed up initially with a cheapo $30 pack and haven't topped it up for a year and no issues with it

        • mikezillakind on 14/02/2017 - 21:49

          @PainToad:

          err do i need to sell my sould ie pair up my home connection to get use out of this ? i dont wnat to sell 10% of my home bandwith back to telstra for nothing !

        • PainToad on 15/02/2017 - 08:37
          +2

          @mikezillakind:

          What?

        • Averell on 16/02/2017 - 10:37

          @PainToad: I bought a $2 Telstra SIM card from Woolworth, and have been using that with Telstra wifi for months.

        • Pootie Tang on 17/02/2017 - 18:27

          @PainToad:

          Honestly was just the $2 sim. It has no credit on it

        • retiredfeline on 17/02/2017 - 18:31

          @PainToad: Actually I didn't even use a $2 SIM. I used a 50c SIM with a short expiry way back at the end of 2015 to become a Telstra customer and avail myself of this facility. :)

        • Choanita on 18/02/2017 - 12:38

          @Averell:

          Or you just get you sent a free one :)
          https://www.telstra.com.au/mobile-phones/prepaid-mobiles?ti=…

  • try2bhelpful on 14/02/2017 - 08:03
    +8

    Thanks for the post, and the suggestion for activation. My only quibble with Telstra Air is that the range is so small, you have to be close to the phone booth for it to be reliable; however, that is just a quibble. It is a nice value add for my Telstra mobiles.

    For people who don't have Telstra, or can't be arsed logging in, Vic.gov also has free wifi in Melbourne and Ballarat. Worth having a look at. If you are in range it should appear as one of your wifi options.

    http://www.vic.gov.au/wifi.html

    • muncan on 14/02/2017 - 08:14
      +8

      Don't forget all the residential hotspots around the world too. https://fon.com/maps/
      Every time I restart my router, my devices all connect to my neighbour's Telstra Air hotspot :-)
      Come to think of it, my neighbours and I should each drop to the smallest Telstra broadband plan and connect to each other's hotspots, since the data is free and unlimited. Or just connect to our own hotspots.

      • tin tin on 14/02/2017 - 08:36

        I haven't tried it but doesn't it use up your home broadband allowance every time you use another Telstra air hotspot?

        Edit… Have the rules just changed… Maybe I can get free data by connecting to neighbours hotspot without using up my allowance, has anyone tried it?

        • lint on 14/02/2017 - 09:46
          +4

          It's unlimited while this promotion is on-going, and they seem to be extending this promotion for longer and longer periods every time it's about to end. ;)

          Downsides to doing this are:
          - You lose access to a home network and the benefits of that
          - Traffic is throttled and the owner's traffic is prioritised
          - It sucks having to always log in to Telstra Air on a computer

          But I do like that I can connect to a neighbour's Telstra Air hotspot with decent speeds when I have to restart the router, haha.

        • gr33nhouse on 14/02/2017 - 09:53

          I am constantly connecting to my neighbours Telstra Air. It's even decent enough for streaming sd quality netflix and YouTube.

          It's all about timing and bandwidth. In the middle of the night I can often get 250MB/s. Not super fast. But adequate.

        • Nousernamehere on 14/02/2017 - 10:55
          +5

          @gr33nhouse:

          It's all about timing and bandwidth. In the middle of the night I can often get 250MB/s. Not super fast. But adequate.

          250MB/s isn't fast hey? ;-)

        • slipperypete on 14/02/2017 - 11:52
          +2

          @gr33nhouse:

          Flip….I got 12MB/s just recently and nearly had an orgasm…the joys of country life!!

        • gr33nhouse on 14/02/2017 - 22:50

          @Porthos: haha whoops! My bad! 25MB/s is what I meant!

        • Nousernamehere on 14/02/2017 - 23:21

          @gr33nhouse: That's still damn fast though, faster than any ADSL2+ connection anyway!

          I still think you have your units mixed up :P

        • gr33nhouse on 14/02/2017 - 23:25

          My neighbour has NBN. Defs the right unit. I easily get a game upgrade in a no more than a couple minutes. Same for torrenting TV shows…

          Will have to do a speed test ;)

        • Nousernamehere on 15/02/2017 - 00:53

          @gr33nhouse: Ah ok, makes more sense.

          But the maximum speed you can get on the NBN (currently) is 100Mbps, so for arguments sake that's about 10MB/s (yes, I know it's slightly more but this is just the easiest to do a straight conversion for this).

          Just when you said the speed you get it just decent enough for SD Netflix, considering you can get HD Netflix on a 6-8Mbps connection, if you were getting 25MB/s you would be easily getting 4K Netflix, let alone just SD Netflix.

        • gr33nhouse on 15/02/2017 - 01:11
          +1

          @Porthos: fair point. Was only going off what speedtest tells me. Tbh most of the time it is only 100mbps, just at random times in the night when no one is using bandwidth I get crazy speeds.

          I'm just stretching my free Netflix sub for as long as I can, hence the SD. Havent tried 4K Netflix.

          Whatever it takes to get free WiFi and netflix I suppose!

        • Nousernamehere on 15/02/2017 - 02:16

          @gr33nhouse: Haha nah it's all good mate, was just trying to make sense exactly of what speeds you were getting!

          Kinda wish I had a Telstra Air connection near me, would be leaching so damn hard :P

      • eltito on 14/02/2017 - 08:39

        I moved to a new house, and have a Telstra air near me (a residential hotspot). Worst hotspot ever, in the last two weeks, it has only been connected for two days =(

        • muncan on 14/02/2017 - 08:44
          +13

          Sorry I'm having problems with my router

        • khing on 14/02/2017 - 17:00

          Same here.

      • ESEMCE on 14/02/2017 - 09:00

        It's not exactly blazing fast from residential hotspots…
        So no major benefit unless you only need internet for emails and occasional browsing.
        Plus you've got to log in every 24 hours minimum.

        • Name on 14/02/2017 - 09:09
          +1

          Yeah. I struggle to get even 2mbps from the telstra air hotspots I've tried.

          I just use my mobile data instead because the air has just been too slow to be usable.

      • try2bhelpful on 14/02/2017 - 11:04

        Thanks for the information. Personally I haven't found too many Telstra hotspots that aren't associated with the public telephones. The only one I found that might have been in a residential area didn't work with the login. Not sure why but sometimes I have issues with the login screen as well. Sometimes the screen tries to come up but you don't get to an actual login screen. Seen that issue with a number of free wifi services.

      • MrBear on 15/02/2017 - 08:23
        -1

        You do realise that it takes the data from your own account, not the person providing the Telstra Air hotspot right?

        • muncan on 15/02/2017 - 08:35
          +2

          You do realise that this deal is about free data until 27 March 2018?

          Telstra Air home broadband members will no longer be required to have data left on their home allowance in order to take advantage of the offer

        • MrBear on 16/02/2017 - 15:35

          @muncan:
          Okay, fair enough, I should have looked closer. Some documentation still says it counts towards your data.

          I did see this though:

          10GB/month of Telstra Air Wi-Fi data

          Does this mean you get free wi-fi data but it is capped at 10gb?

        • muncan on 16/02/2017 - 17:13

          @MrBear: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
          Might have to clarify 'Unlimited' with the op.

    • garage sale on 14/02/2017 - 08:38
      +2

      I used the latest air for 3 weeks while TPG were fixing my broadband …..Worked great but there were 2 businesses and 1 house in range allowing use of their hot spot. Guess depends how metro your neighbourhood is.

    • amaninaku on 20/03/2017 - 17:54

      thank you! it really helps

  • antler on 14/02/2017 - 08:13

    Unless you're desperate, one's not going to pay to use this anyway.

    The only benefit for Telstra is that then when they eventually roll out Voice over WiFi, people's mobile phones can connect to these hot-spots instead of search for a distant, unreachable tower. That is, it will possibly remove black-spots for Telstra customers in the future.

    • jv on 14/02/2017 - 09:18
      +4

      You can use free wifi whilst overseas with this…

  • Jaduqimon on 14/02/2017 - 08:18

    I see this as permanent. Who would pay for this when you can just buy a data sim for similar prices. The telebooth hotspot speeds are not great. on par with ADSL2 however the telstra stores have very good speeds of up to 100mbit. I occasionally get my laptop near one to update my steam library :)

    • jv on 14/02/2017 - 09:19

      I see this as permanent.

      then it wouldn't have an expiry date.

      • Diji1 on 14/02/2017 - 09:34

        But that's not how they see it!

  • Tuba on 14/02/2017 - 08:29

    So Telstra billed customers only, or includes Telstra infrastructure customers like Boost, or even Telstra wholesale like Aldi and Woolies???

    • funkydan2 on 14/02/2017 - 10:33

      Not for aldi/boost/telechoice

      • Tuba on 14/02/2017 - 11:17

        Thanks, was curious as the deduction of my access fee in my bank account description is 'Telstra'.

  • garage sale on 14/02/2017 - 08:41

    You connect using your Telstra account login so would be easy for them to exclude other providers.

  • [Deactivated] on 14/02/2017 - 08:47

    The "international" part never worked in Brazil during my recent trip. FON internet is the name of the network over there and if always asked me to pay.

    • BargainKen on 14/02/2017 - 09:06

      Fon is limited to broadband customers I think

  • PainToad on 14/02/2017 - 09:00
    +1

    Can be used by activating $2 sim from here

    Uhh no, you need more than that, "so long as you have an active recharge."

    • merivetio on 14/02/2017 - 09:19

      Yeah, this is stated in the T&C. Even bought the SIM recently because I got 'confirmation' from a Telstra customer rep (who could barely speak/type out coherent English, no offence) that the activated $2 SIM alone is enough. Put in a customer complaint/request and haven't heard back.

      Does OP have confirmation from personal experience or from someone else directly that the $2 SIM is enough?

      • Carbon Door on 14/02/2017 - 09:49
        +3

        I bought a $2sim and I haven't recharged it. Works without question

        • Pootie Tang on 14/02/2017 - 11:03

          Same

        • seanbaussie on 14/02/2017 - 18:33

          I got a free $2 SIM (no credit included) and although I have activated it I can't add it to my Telstra account as that would take receiving an SMS. All I get on my phone is 'emergency service only' so I can't connect to the SIM.
          Anyone got a solution?

        • Carbon Door on 14/02/2017 - 19:05

          @seanbaussie: check to see if the sim is correctly inserted, api corrects

  • sween64 on 14/02/2017 - 09:00
    +6

    Telstra stores in shipping centres have Telstra Air with phenomenal upload speeds around 200Mbps. It's great for backing up data to a cloud.

    • konholyoh on 14/02/2017 - 09:12

      I can concur.

      Some Telstra stores i can get up to 260mbps download and uploads.

      Then there are other Telstra stores just average 5-10mpbs which is meh.

      All the payphone Telstra Air hotspots are just rubbish speeds.

      • tromboc on 14/02/2017 - 10:03
        +1

        Telstra-owned stores have ridiculous internet, versus privately owned stores which have whatever they want to pay for. I've seen consumer grade Bigpond ADSL shared amongst the whole store before. Embarrassing.

        Source: worked in about 10 Telstra stores.

        • sween64 on 14/02/2017 - 10:05

          Is there a way to find out which are Telstra wonder and which are privately owned?

        • tromboc on 14/02/2017 - 10:06
          +1

          @sween64: Licensed stores have a plaque on their front counter telling you it's licensed and who by.

          EDIT: a less reliable way (not all stores have it listed) is to search the store on the Telstra website and if they provide an email address with team.telstra.com then it's company owned. If it's anything else (telstrastores.com telstrasunnybank.com etc) then it's not. If it has no email this doesn't help.

        • konholyoh on 14/02/2017 - 10:41

          Yeah, seems like the privately owned franchised Telstra stores are the ones that lack the speed.

          Telsta owned stores are the ones that really shine in the fast speeds.

        • [Deactivated] on 14/02/2017 - 16:39
          +2

          @sween64:
          The stores with the stressed-out worried looking man behind the counter is usually the franchisee who has his life savings on the line

      • AssociatedSCL @ Telstra on 15/02/2017 - 11:35
        +1

        I've managed to get 200 Mbps+ on payphones, so they aren't all rubbish.

  • Ninjabredman on 14/02/2017 - 09:18

    It's a great service but for some reason Telstra Air clashes with your home NAT Settings I had to disable it to get NAT OPEN from Strict when I was trying to play For Honor over the weekend

    Disadvantage for Gamers :(

    You can only Enable/Disable Telstra Air once a month

    • jv on 14/02/2017 - 09:20
      +1

      Telstra Air clashes with your home NAT Settings

      How do you know what my NAT Settings are ????

      • Ninjabredman on 14/02/2017 - 09:52
        +1

        BECAUSE I WATCH YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT <3

    • Tacooo on 14/02/2017 - 11:40

      Not to mention that…

      A) I don't want someone using my own (severely limited) bandwidth

      B) I don't want any open networks coming from my access point, no matter how they're configured

      C) I don't want to be forced to use Telstra's shitty Gateway modem

  • C0123 on 14/02/2017 - 09:22
    +2

    Step 1: Live next to a Telstra phone box.
    Step 2: Set up a wireless repeater (which logs all traffic as one device)
    Step 3: Free home internet!

    • Smigit on 14/02/2017 - 09:39

      Step 4: hope no one vandalises Telstra phone box

    • gr33nhouse on 14/02/2017 - 09:56
      +1

      Lol that's my set up haha!

  • pennyless on 14/02/2017 - 09:25

    Saw this yesterday and tried to connect to Fon while I'm currently interstate through the hotel hotspot, despite being a Telstra broadband cable customer paying $100 a month it seems I'm not eligible or I require their specific hardware as a gateway - my Cisco modem they provided 4 years ago doesn't support it.

    • lint on 14/02/2017 - 09:57

      Yep, for home broadband, you need to have a compatible modem and you need to have activated Telstra Air on the modem. The modem may disable it the connection speed isn't good, but you're still good to go as long as you didn't disable it.

  • alz on 14/02/2017 - 09:27

    I'm with Optus,what is the cheapest way to access this with Telstra? I think someone mentioned getting a prepaid SIM?

    • garage sale on 14/02/2017 - 10:20

      I'm also with Optus …..Get a prepaid sim if you want Telstra air ……I had to connect from my device .Acct and password…Not sure what router supports the login script.

  • The Value on 14/02/2017 - 09:28
    +2

    I love Telstra Air. I work across the road from a Payphone and stream YouTube constantly. It's amazing.

  • RtN on 14/02/2017 - 09:28

    Now if only they offered this on trains…

  • Diji1 on 14/02/2017 - 09:36

    It's free because they cannot keep a mobile phone service working despite being Australia's most expensive ISP.

  • retiredfeline on 14/02/2017 - 09:46
    +1

    So, Telstra still conducting a trial and not reliable enough huh? Doesn't surprise me, at times I have been unable to authenticate even with the app.

    Still, it's useful now and then. I even managed to download a Windows 10 ISO image through a neighbour's router overnight. Some nights I play Youtube clips using it.

  • neonlight on 14/02/2017 - 10:04

    Where can I find Fon Spots overseas in Japan? If there's none I won't participate Telstra air

  • inamberclad on 14/02/2017 - 10:05

    has anyone tried using this feature in japan?

    • neonlight on 14/02/2017 - 10:08

      I would like to know too, its probably easier just to get a data sim rather than constantly logging on Telstra site? Another reason I don't join Telstra Air because of security as someone is on your network using your bandwidth although the data charges are not on you. I don't like that especially you got a big family already and bandwidth is limited. If you are not on speedboost, your link will choke when your neighbours decided to connect to your hotspot. In fact I can see some people connect to other people hotspot and free up their own bandwidth at home

      • garage sale on 14/02/2017 - 10:23

        Its good for big downloads as it doesn't eat into your mobile plan (mine is 12gb) …..But yes not much use for browsing as you need to login

        • nightelves on 14/02/2017 - 12:07

          Wow so you get free Wifi with Telstra if you're in Japan?

  • petec_7 on 14/02/2017 - 10:51

    Wow this $2 sim keeps getting better and better. Telstra air. AFL. NRL. Keep 'em coming :)

    • Pootie Tang on 14/02/2017 - 11:03

      Is AFL free or do I need to buy a league pass?

      • petec_7 on 14/02/2017 - 11:30
        +1

        I just signed up on the NRL/AFL apps based on this post https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/291758.

        Some have mentioned needing $30 credit on your account. I've never recharged my $2 sim but it currently says that my AFL and NRL live passes are active till 31/1/18. I signed up with my Telstra account rather than using the sim itself.

        • seanbaussie on 14/02/2017 - 18:36

          How did you add your SIM to your account? I've tried but it sends an SMS to my number and (? because I've got no credit) I can't receive SMS.

        • petec_7 on 14/02/2017 - 22:03
          +1

          @seanbaussie: Can't remember the exact details but I've only ever had my Telstra sim in to sign up for a Telstra account. I turned wifi off and it verified I was a Telstra customer. Once my account had been verified, I took the sim out and put my normal one back in. For Telstra air, NRL, AFL I then just use my Telstra login to verify the fact I'm a Telstra customer. Hope that makes sense.

  • [Deactivated] on 14/02/2017 - 10:52

    Holy sh3et gotta quickly activate my sim.!

  • [Deactivated] on 14/02/2017 - 10:57

    If the Telstra air thingy was closer to my house by a couple metres I would be over the moon 😅.

    • Tuba on 14/02/2017 - 11:04
      +2

      Then you would probably be too far from the hotspot.

  • pluto on 14/02/2017 - 11:10

    Does anyone knows how to locate residential or private hotspots? App only shows phone booths.

    • Tacooo on 14/02/2017 - 11:42

      They sure as (profanity) wouldn't tell you what residential addresses have it. That would be a huge privacy breach.

      • vee124 on 14/02/2017 - 12:36

        Yes they do show which residential modems are also hotspots. You can see it on the Fon website.

        • Tacooo on 14/02/2017 - 12:38

          What website? Telstra don't even show that stuff on their own site. They only show the phonebox ones.

        • vee124 on 14/02/2017 - 12:41

          @potplanty: https://fon.com/maps/

        • Tacooo on 14/02/2017 - 13:23

          @vee124: At the bottom of the page: Locations are based on data uploaded by members.

          So they don't actually provide it, their members/visitors do.

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