Optus has announced this morning the completion of its national network upgrade project, resulting in over 4,400 mobile sites nationally to provide significantly improved indoor coverage and call quality for its 3G customers. Part of this project has been the roll-out of 900 MHz spectrum to the 3G network, increasing indoor coverage from 70% to 90% in metropolitan areas.
The 900 MHz roll-out completed earlier this month with the upgrade of some 70 sites in and around Canberra. With up to 9.5 million customers accessing Optus’ network nation-wide, Optus has committed to retain the focus on 3G improvement and quality while it grows its 4G network to take over. Optus has (unsurprising) plans to continue its 4G and 4G Plus roll-outs in the first half of 2014. Come April (just three months away), Optus 4G performance in metropolitan areas should have grown significantly with faster data available for all.
Coming next, though, will be 4G delivered over the 2600 MHz and 700 MHz bands, the latter having opened up following the digital switch-off concluded in December 2013. Optus has a bit of work ahead of it, and has secured the cooperation of the Nine Network and Network Ten in gaining trial licences for services in these spectrums.
3G speeds are acceptable in Darwin and they really did extend the network coverage quite far out probably a 50% increase in land area. Obviously nothing can compare to Telstra but it’s good enough. I’m disappointed that they still don’t offer 4G in Darwin though. Telstra love to advertise that they are the only 4G network in the Territory.
I have had to disable 4g on my wifes phone in the gold coast as it randomly won’t receive texts or calls for extended periods…. Quite often the texts won’tcome through at all… No issues back on 3g
This can happen if you’re in an area that only has 4G coverage and no 3G/2G in-fill. 4G is a data-only network, so calls and texts are sent over the earlier networks. If your phone can’t see one of the other networks to silently switch to, no calls for you.
Telstra is the best. Screw these Optus peasants
Telstra is a horrible monopolistic company.
Optus is rubbish, in the inner west of Sydney I get 1 or 2 bars at home on 4G, download at 12MB on Boost (nexus 5) I got on 3g only 24mb download and full reception. The best signal on optus is 4g 4 bars in the city in some points… their network is crap, drop outs even no connection at all as 4g in St Leonards just drops out and the switch to 3g is problematic. I do NOT suggest Optus as your network. If 4g is your reason go to boost, you will get better connection and better… Read more »
no wonder why they call them as Drop(tus) 🙂
On the NSW Central Coast here and there is no difference, low signal strength and very slow data speeds. I wouldn’t call the “upgrade” a success as its no better from what I have seen.
I’m sitting at my desk in an office in the middle of Hobart where I get zero reception on Optus. My colleague next to me gets great 4G on Telstra. This upgrade doesn’t seem anywhere near ‘complete’ to me.
Hrm. Well, Optus, you still suck in the up the the northern suburbs of Melbourne.
And at the big Australia Day fireworks down at Docklands last Sunday, the Boost phones in my family all worked. The Optus and Amaysim phones, nope. Lots of bars, no actual connections.
Good for Optus. In my house in the heavily populated North West of Sydney I get between 0 and 1 bar of reception on Optus. I just switched my wife to Telstra to be able to actually receive phone calls.
I grabbed an Optus prepaid SIM last week to test 3g performance here in Canberra as a precaution before signing up for a Galaxy Note 3 (As GN3 doesn’t support the 4g Plus that Optus use in Canberra) . Lucky I did – struggled to get better than 1Mbps in the city and at home. Will stick with my unlocked GS4 on Telstra prepaid for now.