Telstra are tools!

[Outbackmanyep]

What a load of BS!

Telstra now have decided to extend the CDMA cut-off to 28th April because of the inability of the new service to handle areas like CDMA has done.

I would like to thank Telstra for conning all of us into buying new phones, for the benefit of a money spinning venture in telecommunications!
I hardly call this service, its a downright joke what they have done, why introduce un UNPROVEN system in the first place....tell everyone to switch to the new phones before the 28th January deadline, or we would "lose" our number and get fined for "breach of contract"??, since TELSTRA are the ones changing the goalposts why don't they at least give people the "choice" of wether to use existing or switch networks.....??

Its a complete scandal!

It going to send people back to the dark ages soon if they are trying to control the world from their air conditioned fairyland......

It sucks big time!

We just got a new phone YESTERDAY, because of this BS new service and Telstra's DEMANDS, only to be stabbed in the back, i could have used my old phone for a further 3 months and enjoyed larger coverage in my area....

Pack of TOOLS!

[Ric]

Hi OBMY, I just purchased the Telstra rural phone because of my rural location and I am very happy with it because I now have reception for the first time and it's also my be very helpful with my RFS work.:thumbsup:

I can't help but think too that it was also a fund raising stunt as well. Let's hope our money is put to good use with cheaper call rates, more transmitter towers and broadband to rural areas at city rates.:lol: :whistle:

[Outbackmanyep]

Well its good to know its improved things in some places, but the thing that irritates me is that i just had to get off a really good plan to a dearer plan than i had before.....all because of Telstra's say-so....(they weren't re-issuing the plan i was on!)

Lets hope all RFS benefit from this and not just a few!

All the best!
Cheers!

[CoombellKid]

Change to Optus, at least you know what your in for :D . All the same a few
of my mates on Teltra have had to do the same like you.

regargs,CS

[CoombellKid]

I wouldn't be holding my breath for that one, Telstra rolled out the cable a
couple of years ago out here, rolled out right past our village :shrug: the only
purpose for it is the local school in Rappville, with none of the residents there
even able to hook into it. Must of been some Howard education revolution :rofl:

regards,CS

[Ric]

I know what you mean OBMY. I had to move from a $10 plan to the $30 plan. With the RFS it gives our crew another backup in case of any trouble.

It also allows me to call my wife Kee who can't stop worrying every time I go out on a call. Mind you I don't send any pictures taken with the little camera, I wouldn't be allowed out ever again. ;)

[Outbackmanyep]

As far as Optus go, on a landline, charging double what you pay at Telstra isn't good for winning customers over...even though Telstra OWN all the lines anyway! According to what i have been told, Telstra charge Optus for line rental and Optus stick their bit on it and pass it down the line.......
It has been a long time since i had Optus for a mobile deal.....
Have also had very bad dealings with Hutchison telecom, easy to get into a deal but hard to get out of it!

[Night Owl]

Ah, don't know how to tell you this but is actually worse than it is. They say the CDMA network is closing down, but guess what?

It isn't actually closing down at all! What is happening is they are changing the data protocol, and all the old existing hardware of the old faithful CDMA network is going to remain. The only thing that is going to change is it will be called WCDMA, and your old CDMA phone will not be operational on that different data protocol. So you are right. All they have done is change the frequency to go and make people buy new phones.

What they have done would be like television stations changing frequencies so your old plasma can't recieve any pictures anymore, just so they could force you into a contract for a new Plasma.

They are scum sucking moluscs.

[Outbackmanyep]

Thats the trouble going digital, it's open to control from afar!
Thats part of the way things are going! Next thing you know the vehicle manufacturers will want satellite abilities to disable a vehicle that you would be paying off....miss a payment and BING! Car won't start....pay up or else!

Something needs to be done, governments turning into highway robberies!

[Kokatha man]

As Outbackmanyep once said to me - he he ha! A whole month after Telstra had been given the simple request to assign my old man (he's 90 and in aged care) and at least 50 phone calls for an estimated 8 or 9 hours with my ear permanently glued to the earpiece of my phone listening to their inane music and voice overs (and I kid no-one with the aforementioned!) they finally made the new "jumpering" at the exchange - onto another old lady at the same home is in critical care after a stroke: another week almost followed before lo and behold, they finally got it right!!!

I originally rang for the changeover on 18th December and today, the month anniversary, the champs got it right. And to think that on the 18th December they had the temerity to tell me it would be done on the 20ty between 8am and 12 noon??!!!!!??

[GTB_an_Owl]

will tell you a telstra story

i played tennis with a fellow who was the supervisor or whatever for all the exchanges here on the coast and surrounding area.

he had a daughter in America that he used to chat with over msn or skype(voice) via his dial up connection (yes a few years ago).
he developed a bad line and was having trouble getting it all happening on these hook-ups

so he logged a fault or workorder - whatever - and had his line fixed
beaut - talk to the daughter now no trouble

now for the twist

three days later - his father in-law, who lived four doors down from him comes to visit and asks him if he can do something about the terrible noises he is hearing on his phone line

have a guess what the smart tech had done to fix his faulty line !

geoff

[Outbackmanyep]

He swapped someone else's line pairing?

[Louwai]

Aaaah yes the Telstra (Telecom) stories.

I also have a good friend who has been with Telstra for about 25yrs.
I recall him telling me how they used to sit in the pits on the footpath & call everyone they knew (usually international) by just choosing a line from the pole. Anybody's line. Someone got the bill for the calls.

Or how they would restock their own garages & tool boxes from the depot stores. One guy used to take the spare bobcat tyres & sell them. The Telstra storehouse would just assume that one of the thousands of bobcats took them & so re-order.

That guy is in charge of half of Brisbane now I think.......

[Louwai]

Line scam.

I just recently had a new fixed line connected.
Telstra have 3 basic fixed line 'packages'.
Basic $19 / mth rental (most expensive call costs)
2nd $26 / mth (Bit cheaper call costs)
3rd $35 / mth (cheapest call costs)

Anyway, I got the 19/mth one. Reason being. I have a Broadband connection & I use the internet ph. so I don't make any calls using the actual Telstra ph line directly. Therefore no call costs from telstra & so the high call coast choice didn't matter.

They asked if I was using Telstra broadband. When I said NO, they said I can't have the lowest line rental plan as "non telstra" broadband does not work on that plan. I MUST take the dearest plan as that has been configured for "external" broadband service providers.

I told them to go jump & connect the cheap plan.
Surprise, surprise I have not had one problem with my NON-telstra broadband connection.

[ballaratdragons]

I went onto the Telstra 'Next-G' system by choice 6 months ago. I get perfect reception everywhere!!!!

I had the old Digital system which had lousy reception, so I changed to CDMA. It was only partially better. Since switching to 'Next-G' I never get drop-outs up here in the bush, in Ballarat, other country towns or when I go down to Melbourne. I have full signal bars all the time.

I also have Telstra Broadband (unlimited) and it is great.

Also, because I have the house phone, mobile and internet all with Telstra, I get discounts on all the bills.

They have been good to me, so I have no complaints with them.

But I have heard of other people with similiar problems as mentioned above.

Also, our local CFA has to call us on the mobile as there isn't enough Beepers to give to all of us, and the CFA had the system checked and it passed with flying colours as an emergency system.

[Kokatha man]

Sorry - in my hasty ramble on Telstra I got a bit incoherent (had something else happening.)

The old man had moved two doors down and wanted his phone moved to his new room. That took the aforementioned month, wherein his line was penultimately connected onto a pair in use (the previously mentioned old girl recovering from a stroke in high-care in the same aged care residence.) Now, I can tell you as one who has practised that profession many years ago that that is a pretty dandy thing to achieve - a real whack-down application of duty. But, in defense (and maybe with ancient loyalties) it must be remembered that Telstra operate with about 5% of the technician work-force it had in the days of yore (PMG and Telecom.)

By the way - notice that your mobile only gives a few rings before it switches to voice-mail, and usually before you can answer it? Now, as we all know, this has nothing to do with the fact that Telstra then most likely gets a voice-mail access fee from you to retrieve any messages!

For the sake of those who are unaware, you can program your Telstra mobile to ensure it will ring for approx 30 seconds and allow you to answer the call: just punch in **61*101**30# and hit the call button - but remember that if you switch your phone off after enabling this feature it will revert to the abovementioned default position.

[ballaratdragons]

Then do what?

Hang up? wait for a message? let it ring a few times . . .???

[Kokatha man]

Your mob screen will say something like "enabling blah blah" or somesuch and this feature will be automatically performed - it'll go on to say "blah blah activated..."

Just try it Mr ballaratdragons: one of those "leaps of faith" things for want of a better phrase - it will happen young fella!

ps hang up after it tells you it has completed the task - a second or two.

[Kokatha man]

pps: then get the good lady to ring you - on another phone - to demonstrate the wonders of communication technology.

[ballaratdragons]

Done :thumbsup:

25 seconds before Message bank cut in :)

Thank you :)

I miss a lot of calls normally due to the short ring time. Not now.

[taz]

Thanks for that!

Had tried to fix it before, but the people in the telstra shops were obviously not very helpful! Now, no more diving into my bag to find the phone before it cuts out! :)

Although... it is only my work mobile, so maybe I should leave it the way it was! Answering it is usually trouble! :whistle:

[GrahamL]

When the "Trujillo' virus is done and gone with all the cost cutting and
bumping all the very experianced techs with all the local smarts away with "voluntary " redundancies ..whos going to cost effectively maintain the out of the way services that don't make the big dollars but are essential as a
comunity nessesity ... user pays yeah ?....anyone else think the selling of these monopolised public utilities (power ,water) ect to the beck and call of shareholders is plain obscene??

[Shaun]

I don't have message bank, if they want me bad enough they will ring back.....lol

[erick]

I finally upgraded to new phone and NextG a few months ago. Did it so I could hand down my phone to my daughter. She said she loved it for a month then went and got a new one - go figure!

Everything OK except I hate one "feature" of the Telstra-badged LG phone - ascending ring volume! By the time you realise it's ringing (even with vibration on as well!) and rush for it, I'd miss the call. So I've done the reprogramming - I think that's added some additional time, thanks.

Have tried everything to fix the crappy feature (even recorded the ring tone loud to start with - no joy) the damn phone continues the same way. Have searched for a solution - everyone has the same problem and complaint - LG say not it's a lovely feature, we won't give you a fix! Grrrrr! :mad2:

[avandonk]

A good friend of mine who was very high in the tech area was retrenched from Telstra. Some months later they asked him to work on contract, He said OK one condition I want $2k per day in cash paid daily otherwise no deal!
They said no way you are trying to screw us. He said you already screwed me and now I have you by the short and curlies. They finally agreed and he worked for over twelve months under these conditions.

There are more of these stories. When the bean counters are in charge of science or technology they always fail miserably due to lack of understanding.

The only way we people who have the real knowledge can get back is to treat them as they have treated us.

The only trouble is by then the incompetent twits have run away with the money and left an awful mess behind.

Look at the pathetic geniuses that run the biggest banks in the world and the losses (sub prime meltdown) they have incurred while still paying themselves huge bonuses! Thirty billion of bonuses in NY alone! Would you put your money with them!

Bert

[Glenhuon]

The Water Corporation in WA did the same thing. Gave all these guys voluntary redundancy and within 12 months more than 1/2 of them were back on contracts at more money as they had the experience and knowledge. They'll never learn. Best one was a foreman who had been with them for 30 odd years, made him redundant and a few weeks later rang him up to ask about the layout of some pipework he had been in charge of burying. Short answer was Bu**er Off! I'm retired. :)

Bill