HI OzBargainers
I am looking to get some guidance as I have been using Telstra for years and now getting a great deal from Optus and was keen as it meet most of my requirements but comes at significant more cost then Optus offer on the table.
The only concern is I haven't heard very well of Optus Network and related coverage.
Seeking some input from the group here about their experience from Network perspective.
Agree , on many trips and having Telstra my mobile was mostly covered when we were travelling and other friends who had Voda or Optus was not that consistent.
"…was mostly covered…" and "…was not that consistent…" sound similar to me.
Strongly agree with Hybroid - The coverage in the cities is basically the same, the real difference is when you are in more rural areas.
I never leave major cities really - and Optus coverage works perfectly for me.
I have used all 3 over the years….
Optus suffers from black spots and drop outs even in CBD
I rank the telcos as follows:
1. Telstra
2. Vodafone
3. Optus (a long way behind)
Optus sells thier network bandwidth to "many" MVNOs (mobile virtual network operator) which impacts availablity of the network for Optus customers.
So a move to Optus should offer a significant saving to offset drop outs and black spots.
Expect noticably less coverage outside Metro areas compared with Telstra
You will definitely be disappointed
Optus offers great deals for new customers but screws existing customers big time
So once you are onboard dont expect any more great deals
Just FYI, something coming at great cost is the opposite of coming at a great price!
"now getting a great deal from Optus and was keen as it meet all my requirements ". Are you using Optus or not?
not yet, looking to port, being with Telstra but the multiple SIM price with Telstra is very high compared to Optus so the only difference come to Quality of Service hence the ask for Network coverage and its quality.
Get a $2 Optus sim and try it.
"…great deal from Optus and was keen as it meet all my requirements…"
Is mobile reception one of your requirements or not?
indeed it is, I have changed my wording as all my requirements except the Network in question. Thanks
Optus Network and related coverage
Different areas have different results.
Get yourself a $2 Prepaid SIM and see what it's like in your areas OP
great advice, I like it.
find a friend with optus and have a party at ur house
ps. i'm with optus!
Get a $2 optus sim and test the coverage in your area/s and see if you are happy with it. Whether someone else is happy with it at their house is fairly irrelevant unless they live next door to you.
i am ok from my house perspective, more specifically concerned if you travel either for work or fund and will be moving out of your home zone.
unless they live next door to you.
Even that doesn't guarantee it. Optus (and voda) in my house is the pits, but if I go to various parts of the yard it's okay. Telstra just works everywhere at my place. But I've been places where mates on Optus did better than I did on Telstra too. It all depends.
Never had issues personally with optus, even on trips. Granted I don't go to the super wilderness.
Your other option is to go with a cheaper provider that uses the Telstra wholesale network. To get an idea of the difference between the retail network (the one you're on) and the wholesale network, try this map (scroll down a little bit and use the slider on the map).
I'm on the wholesale network in a regional area and have no problems. It was unusable with Optus.
If they’re on Telstra and they move to an MVNO on the Telstra wholesale network (like Woolies Mobile, Aldi Mobile) they’ll get poorer coverage.
The only MVNO in Aus that has the same coverage as the entire Telstra retail network is Boost.
I don’t know why anyone would go for any MVNO other than Boost simply for the superior network coverage. I don’t travel regionally often, but simply having that security makes Boost worthwhile, and it’s still pretty cheap anyway.
I think when I compared Boost to Woolies Mobile it was a little bit more expensive, or had less data or something but the security of a better network was worth it. Woolies has data banking as mentioned on your link but 20gb a month for me is plenty anyway (and you can rollover unused data for the next month only with Boost which for me is fine).
If they’re on Telstra and they move to an MVNO on the Telstra wholesale network (like Woolies Mobile, Aldi Mobile) they’ll get poorer coverage.
Poorer coverage than Optus? Definitely not the case with me. I guess it varies from area to area.
But yes, if they want full Telstra coverage, Boost is the way to go.
No I mean poorer coverage on the Telstra wholesale network vs the retail network. Like being on Boost vs Woolies Mobile.
In my experience there are areas where Optus has better reception than Telstra, or has service but it isn’t as often as the other way around.
The real benefit of Woolworths is the 10% off groceries voucher once a month.
Boost for the Telstra coverage though.
The big unknown is international roaming though when you move out of Telstra postpaid to an MVNO. It’s changed a lot recently.
When going regional I’ve found my reception has been fine whereas my partners phone on Optus sometimes gets no reception. This will differ where you go.
I would just recommend going with Boost unless you want something like Optus Sport or the perks of getting cheaper movie tickets through Telstra, or need something like international roaming. Boost uses the Telstra retail network unlike MVNOs and therefore has the exact same coverage as if you were on Telstra for a fraction of the price.
Their service is okay, but if you ever need to call them, expect repeated 10 hour phone calls.
so customer service is bad, I hope they have customer support via chat like Telstra?
yes you do, you can message them using the my Optus app. ive found Telstra support so much worse than Optus.
Where are you and where do you use it would help people give advice
Sydney and its suburban area.
In terns of value for money Coles mobile has satisfied us well.
Each network varies. Your best bet is to get a $2 sim and try it out everywhere you use frequently.
I was on coles mobile (Optus) for years but then I moved and it was shocking so I switched to kogan (Vodafone) and that’s been great in the new place.
if you use mobile data at home I would ask your neighbours what they use. We were both on optus and our area had a dead spot, swapped to telstra and all good.
Even calls were a PITA
I had 2 accounts with Optus at different addresses. We had a chronic problem arise with dropouts on one account,and I took it up with Optus support. An utterly Appling experience, and after about 5 weeks with no end in sight, I canceled both accounts.
I am one with Spintel who use the Optus network. So far ok
Questions about which mobile network is better are like which car insurer is better … what’s best for you is not necessarily best for others. You need to know if you have good coverage where YOU use your phone, not where others use their phone. That said, I have poor reception at home from all carriers (Optus and Telstra are sharing towers), outside home I find Optus fine.
I've been with Optus mobile for 20+ years. Mobile coverage in our home surburb is okay but in 2 nearby surburbs where we go often for food & grocercies, it drops to 3G and internet connection is pretty much non-existent and call phones often drops out and can't be made. This has not changed/improved in the last 10 years. My wife is on Telstra with no issues so the whole family has to hotspot off her! I think Vodafone and even Telstra users will have similar stories of blackspots for their carrier. As someone suggested, get a cheap SIM to give it a try? Vodafone offers a 30 days network guarantee.
Go over to Whirlpool forums and look at the carrier advice for each option.
I’ve had Optus, Aldi and Boost and now also use Telstra mobile broadband in a router instead of NBN.
One coastal town which has shown Optus coverage for years never worked for me.
My inner Melbourne suburb was a Optus black spot for years and when it got totally unuseable they let me transfer out of a handset contract at no cost because they had no plans to upgrade.
But travelling outback we found a few whole towns and resort areas only powered by Optus - no Telstra. Luckily we had an Aldi and an Optus phone.
Whatever you decide, be prepared for coverage to change as populations move around especially during events and seasonal travel, new buildings, whole new suburbs in some outer areas and lots of development in some inner suburbs - one house gets turned into 6 or more apartments - demolish and repeat over and over - and coverage goes to crap. Summer on the Victorian surfcoast can lead to constant dropouts.
Keep that in mind when trying out a $2 Sim - might be fine when you try it off peak, but later - a different story. Use the Speedtest by Ookla app and look for slow connection and ping times, widely varying speeds - (indicative of thin coverage) etc.
My Aldi service on iPhone was giving me grief - switched to Boost and so far it hasn’t missed a beat. Good luck. BTW - customer service can be patchy on all of them.
Gosh life is complicated - thank goodness we have Ozbargain and Whirlpool.
Liked your comments "Gosh life is complicated - thank goodness we have Ozbargain and Whirlpool."
Sometime it is harder alone to decide/chose from whereas a group together can make things bit simpler. A lot of experienced users here.
For cities, main highways and larger towns Optus is fine. But I hear that Telstra is much better in out of the way spots. Ive been using Optus for years and it hasnt been a problem except for Optus coverage in Tassie around 15 years ago when it was non-existent (except Hobart). But I was back in Tassie a couple of years ago and Optus was everywhere.
It really depends on where you want to use it. If Im going to out of the way places I get a telstra sim from a telstra reseller for a limited time.
Also, even if you are in a city, dont assume that all networks will be good for you. There are black/gray spots for all networks in most cities. Telstra doesnt work too well in a couple of small spots near where I live. Check the coverage maps for each network. There are available on their websites.
Sales and Customer service is horrible.
Placed the order and it all went wrong, they capture wrong delivery address. I contacted them and was passed between 8 different contact center people. Each of them asking to authenticate every time and explain the issue all over again and no one was able to fix.
I thought calling them may help but that is another disaster. I explained again everything and the guy just keep putting me on hold.
This is by no means just an Optus issue, it’s really a Telco issue. I had arguments with Telstra and threatened them with the Ombudsman, they literally said ‘go on then’.
Hope you got it sorted.
I am summarissing all their issues and will be going to ombudsman for sure.
Being open, I used to work for Optus.
I would rank the 3 networks as below
1. Telstra
2. Optus
3. Voda
Optus and Voda are very similar in quality nowadays, I’m just burnt from issues I had previously with Voda. Voda is #1 if you’re a frequent overseas traveller though, their roaming is miles ahead.
Realistically, my recommendation is to stop buying your phone on a plan, and buy outright. If you don’t need 5G, get on a boost prepaid service and be done with it.
I used to work in the data marketing part and agree that most of the offers are for new customers. No matter how much we’d raise this, the Product team just didn’t come to the table.
Great in Sydney CBD, no issues. Not so great outside cities, on long drives like M31 and when heading up Blue Mountains. Telstra have much better signal there.
Any responses you get are going to be anecdotal and won't really inform your specific use case much.