Thread: Bloody Telstra

Hi all

I thought after years of fighting Telstra I had actually a solution that worked sort of 'ok' and in fact it did for about a year. I now have a mobile broadband solution via a fixed directional antenna pointed at a cellular antenna some 10 kms away which provides mobile coverage in the house so I dont need to stand on the veranda in the middle of winter to get a signal (first time since the AMPs network shutdown in the late 90's) and also a 4GX WiFi Pro which is a sort of wifi booster that takes the signal from the Mobile Smart Antenna base station and I can connect all our IP devices to this. I could even stream shows for the first time. So much better than my ADSL.

Well this 4GXWiFi pro (a quality Huawei product - not) started having power related problems almost straight away, (and after Googling them, discovered they were crap) and I again spent hours on the phone to Telstra, their customer service people didn't seem to know anything about them so I visited a Telstra shop which are supposed to provide them. Turns out they went obsolete pretty much as soon as I got mine.

Out of frustration I contacted the Telecommunications Ombudsman (which was also the advise from the manager of the Telstra shop) I sent them my 54 emails and copies of all the various 'chat' sessions I had with Telstra customer service and they acted very promptly late last year and within a week or so I was contacted by a member of Telstra's Escalation Complaints & Resolution team. She was very helpful, and after plenty of discussion and some weeks delay was able to provide me at no charge a replacement for the 4GX WiFi Pro, a 4GX Hotspot. This arrive mid December and following her instructions I set it up, which was essentially taking the SIM out of the old unit and putting it in the new one. However as soon as my devices were visible to the new 4GX she was happy it was working and that was the end of our communications. Turns out it was not working, well not properly, while I can see all my devices connected to it there is virtually no data going through it. So again find myself paying for a Telstra 'service' I can not use. I attempted to contact the woman I was dealing with, I had all her contact details but nothing. After three emails and a couple of voice mails I was no longer going to give Telstra the benefit of the doubt and decided since I had such prompt response from the Ombudsman I would go down this avenue again. My original case was pending closure so I had it reactivated and submitted all the required supporting information. This was last week and I received a reply yesterday which I thought was promising. Well that was until I read the email, the key point being...

Unfortunately, because of the current volume of complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, we anticipate it will take up to seven weeks before your case can be allocated to a case manager.

So what do I do, fight Telstra every day and hope I actually get somewhere or wait 7 weeks. There are no alternate providers here not even NBN or i would have gone down that route a long time ago. That's a rhetorical question...

Sorry, venting over...

Originally Posted by travelrover

Hi all

I thought after years of fighting Telstra I had actually a solution that worked sort of 'ok' and in fact it did for about a year. I now have a mobile broadband solution via a fixed directional antenna pointed at a cellular antenna some 10 kms away which provides mobile coverage in the house so I dont need to stand on the veranda in the middle of winter to get a signal (first time since the AMPs network shutdown in the late 90's) and also a 4GX WiFi Pro which is a sort of wifi booster that takes the signal from the Mobile Smart Antenna base station and I can connect all our IP devices to this. I could even stream shows for the first time. So much better than my ADSL.

Well this 4GXWiFi pro (a quality Huawei product - not) started having power related problems almost straight away, (and after Googling them, discovered they were crap) and I again spent hours on the phone to Telstra, their customer service people didn't seem to know anything about them so I visited a Telstra shop which are supposed to provide them. Turns out they went obsolete pretty much as soon as I got mine.

Out of frustration I contacted the Telecommunications Ombudsman (which was also the advise from the manager of the Telstra shop) I sent them my 54 emails and copies of all the various 'chat' sessions I had with Telstra customer service and they acted very promptly late last year and within a week or so I was contacted by a member of Telstra's Escalation Complaints & Resolution team. She was very helpful, and after plenty of discussion and some weeks delay was able to provide me at no charge a replacement for the 4GX WiFi Pro, a 4GX Hotspot. This arrive mid December and following her instructions I set it up, which was essentially taking the SIM out of the old unit and putting it in the new one. However as soon as my devices were visible to the new 4GX she was happy it was working and that was the end of our communications. Turns out it was not working, well not properly, while I can see all my devices connected to it there is virtually no data going through it. So again find myself paying for a Telstra 'service' I can not use. I attempted to contact the woman I was dealing with, I had all her contact details but nothing. After three emails and a couple of voice mails I was no longer going to give Telstra the benefit of the doubt and decided since I had such prompt response from the Ombudsman I would go down this avenue again. My original case was pending closure so I had it reactivated and submitted all the required supporting information. This was last week and I received a reply yesterday which I thought was promising. Well that was until I read the email, the key point being...

Unfortunately, because of the current volume of complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, we anticipate it will take up to seven weeks before your case can be allocated to a case manager.

So what do I do, fight Telstra every day and hope I actually get somewhere or wait 7 weeks. There are no alternate providers here not even NBN or i would have gone down that route a long time ago. That's a rhetorical question...

Sorry, venting over...

Sounds like the Ombudsman needs a Deputy Ombudsman.
Similar setup to you but now with with NBN & have dropped the Telstra landline connection,(still physically there if we need it back) roof mounted ant works ok here over some kms & our indoor Modem is a Technicolor TG789 V. 3, ISP is Internode.. They supplied the Modem & set it up.


The Modem reaches throughout the house (stone construction with Fireplaces. I mention fireplaces because every man & their dog reckons it it is nigh impossible to get a signal through them?????????) & an exterior room. That is a lot of cock, no not crock , cock.
Hoping this may be a help to you being a bit similar.


FWIW...

Consumer watchdogs CHOICE recently published the results of their Best NBN Providers report, and found iiNet at the top of the heap. Combining real-world speed tests and customer satisfaction scores, iiNet sits in first place above TPG, Telstra and Optus – in that order.18 Oct 2018

Starlink initial release now available in parts of NSW and VIC

Originally Posted by 4bee

Sounds like the Ombudsman needs a Deputy Ombudsman.
Similar setup to you but now with with NBN & have dropped the Telstra landline connection,(still physically there if we need it back) roof mounted ant works ok here over some kms & our indoor Modem is a Technicolor TG789 V. 3, ISP is Internode.. They supplied the Modem & set it up.


The Modem reaches throughout the house (stone construction with Fireplaces. I mention fireplaces because every man & their dog reckons it it is nigh impossible to get a signal through them?????????) & an exterior room. That is a lot of cock, no not crock , cock.
Hoping this may be a help to you being a bit similar.


FWIW...

Hi 4bee

Yes seems they need a few deputies I guess!

I’m pretty confident the issue with my 4GX Hotspot is configuration but there are no changeable parameters visible to me. Someone with the correct access should be able to do so but that would be Telstra! Sigh…

We still have our land line and ADSL being in a high risk bush fire area we can’t rely on the mobile network. It failed miserably during the Gospers mountain fire a couple of years ago.

Cheers

Originally Posted by travelrover

Hi 4bee

Yes seems they need a few deputies I guess!

I’m pretty confident the issue with my 4GX Hotspot is configuration but there are no changeable parameters visible to me. Someone with the correct access should be able to do so but that would be Telstra! Sigh…

We still have our land line and ADSL being in a high risk bush fire area we can’t rely on the mobile network. It failed miserably during the Gospers mountain fire a couple of years ago.

Cheers

I can access our Modem if I need to. Node freely supply the login Dets as it also helps them over the phone when they need to trouble shoot.


Hardly ever need to alter anything though.
EDIT.
Just found this.

You log into your router's firmware through a browser. Any browser will do. At the address field, type the IP address of your router. Most routers use an address of 192.168.1.1.5 Apr 2021

Unless you are fab with settings "there be Dragons".

Originally Posted by 4bee

I can access our Modem if I need to. Node freely supply the login Dets as it also helps them over the phone when they need to trouble shoot.


Hardly ever need to alter anything though.
EDIT.
Just found this.

Unless you are fab with settings "there be Dragons".

Have a URL and userID but no password for the 4GX Hotspot. Seems they don’t want folk fiddling

Hi,
Try Admin

Cheers

I see an add tonight for Telstra , if I listened correct they are moving all there call centres back to AU . I wasn't listening that well was playing solitaire on my phone during adds so was concentrating on that , so may not have heard correct though