It has been more than 80 days since Telstra and Optus flicked the switch on the 3G mobile network. Hundreds of regional and remote Australians say they can no longer rely on the network and struggle to make calls.

In short:

Regional and rural Australians say their ability to make phone calls has dramatically reduced since the 3G network was switched off in October.

Telstra and Optus shut down 3G to boost the 4G and 5G networks, claiming customer coverage would benefit as a result.

What’s next:

The federal government says there may be a need for regulatory intervention if the situation does not improve.

  • @[email protected]English
    2•11 days ago

    The companies promised that reception would not go backwards and that if anything, customers would enjoy better connectivity.

    However, network providers are adamant there has been no change to coverage levels since the switch off.

    Am I missing something? Or did they just admit they shut down 3G for nothing.

    • HanrahanEnglish
      1•4 days ago

      3G was shut down so they can use the spectrum for other things.

    • FireWire400English
      1•11 days ago

      I think they mean that it didn’t get worse despite the 3G shutdown. Conveniently ignoring all the phones that now get no signal whatsoever.

      • @[email protected]English
        2•10 days ago

        I mean, evident by the fact that the 4G signal hasn’t improved for many seems to suggest they were talking shit the whole time.

        • Quokka
          2•4 days ago

          @Zozano @FireWire400 They screwed over foreign roamers too. And turned thousands of perfectly good and compatible handsets into e-waste overnight.
          Oh, and conveniently made it so that the average consumer can only really buy handsets from the networks themselves if they want to be sure of compatibility.