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Phone coverage


Leno and Denise

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Hi new on the block we are waiting on our new Kedron hoping it will be ready Christmas week. This is our first van so lots to learn.

Need help we are considering buying one of the smart phones but have since found out they do not have a patch led conection for nextg arerial on the van. I would like info from anyone who has a smart phone or can offer help about coverage around Auss. have been told only telstra provides phones with this connection and they are not the new smart phones. we were told samsung smart phones had the best coverage but no connection, input would be appreciated. Leno & Denise

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As I am really in need of a new phone, I am watching this topic with great interest.

I was all set to buy an iPhone, then found out I could not use it with the aerial in our car or van.

I am now at a loss as to what to get.

EDIT: we do of course use Telstra for phone and internet.. love them or hate them, they still have the better coverage.

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Hi Leno & Denise,

May I suggest a phone call to WINCOM Australia. These guys seem to know there way around the traps.

The IT Manager is Mathew Colgrave Mobile # 0411704391 (office) 07 32057999

There location is Brendale QLD.

They set us up with 'pigtails & extension cable' for my old technology mobile phone. I now utilise my Marine Antenna on the ATV.

Hopefully they can do the same for all you guys.

Safe travels

Gary & Kaye

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The problem is that the iPhone does not have a port to put the piggy into.. there simply is not the ability to do it so I have been told twice by different retailers.

Any yes Matt is brilliant. I have been getting connections sent to me for new phones since 2004. Never had any problems, always get exactly what I need.

Hi Leno & Denise,

May I suggest a phone call to WINCOM Australia. These guys seem to know there way around the traps.

The IT Manager is Mathew Colgrave Mobile # 0411704391 (office) 07 32057999

There location is Brendale QLD.

They set us up with 'pigtails & extension cable' for my old technology mobile phone. I now utilise my Marine Antenna on the ATV.

Hopefully they can do the same for all you guys.

Safe travels

Gary & Kaye

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Hi

Glen has an iPhone which Comwide Communications provided a cradle and aerial for our car.

They are also at Brendale - Unit 6/11 Kenworth Place Brendale, Ph: 07 3889 6799 Mob: 0407 032 526 - Manager is Graeme Duck.

Both Comwide and Wincom are good to deal with.

Cheers

Deb B

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I travel between Karratha and Geraldton (1100kilometres) every six weeks and like to be able to report into Ian as to my position on the highway. Previously I used a Telstra rural phone but as the battery has lost its' ability to power the phone for more that a ring I nabbed Ians HTC Wildfire smart phone. Oh he just happens to be on a really good prepaid plan AND his phone can be used to create a hot spot for my Ipad!

I drive his Landcrusier 200 series up and back and it has a bluetooth connection - I didn't expect to be able to get the kind of signal my F165 did and was more than a little surprised through the bluetooth I can call in from spots I could never have gotten through on previously, unbelievable I know. I can also get it to hotspot and send email when the phone isnt connecting enough for a talk. Telstra - as much as I hate to admit really is the company with the greatest coverage (short of a sat phone).

Sue

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Hi Sue,

The F165 you mentioned is that a ZTE brand (Chinese) with a patch lead & external antenna?

I have one of these & I'm very happy with it. Works very well for me

Our son Ben has been working up in the Kimberley for just on two years now & has had an iPhone4 since they were released, I scoffed at him when he purchased it but it has worked VERY well in fairly remote ares without any external antenna..... very surprising, BUT at the same time very pleasing (his workmates had similar phones & they worked just as well)

Needless to say they are all using Telstra.....DONT even consider using any other carrier in the bush!

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Hi Sue,

The F165 you mentioned is that a ZTE brand (Chinese) with a patch lead & external antenna?

I have one of these & I'm very happy with it. Works very well for me

Our son Ben has been working up in the Kimberley for just on two years now & has had an iPhone4 since they were released, I scoffed at him when he purchased it but it has worked VERY well in fairly remote ares without any external antenna..... very surprising, BUT at the same time very pleasing (his workmates had similar phones & they worked just as well)

Needless to say they are all using Telstra.....DONT even consider using any other carrier in the bush!

Hi

Tony

Yes our F165 is the ZTE - we dont have a patch or antenna and it has worked well for us over the 3 or 4 years we have had it - just needs a new battery to keep it going. The case is pretty worn now and the rubber has come away long ago so we havent bothered with the battery just leave it at home attached to the power point - to satisfy our needs these days it lacks the abilitiy to be a wifi hotspot.

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Hi thanks for the input I have blue tooth connected to the cruser so at the moment am leaning towards iphone or something similar after comments of Ian and Sue's son sounds impressive and defiantely it will be telstra. I have thought of prepaid but have been told it is very expensive best to have a plan.

I have however gone with prepaid internet. telstra have a deal $120 for 10gb over 12months. I like this idea as I pay only for what I use and am not in a hurry to use it. I think it will be alot cheaper then on a plan. Time will only tell if I am wrong I will just transfer to plan later. still open to other suggestions.

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Hi Leno & Denise,

May I suggest a phone call to WINCOM Australia. These guys seem to know there way around the traps.

The IT Manager is Mathew Colgrave Mobile # 0411704391 (office) 07 32057999

There location is Brendale QLD.

They set us up with 'pigtails & extension cable' for my old technology mobile phone. I now utilise my Marine Antenna on the ATV.

Hopefully they can do the same for all you guys.

Safe travels

Gary & Kaye

thanks Gary and Kay I have already spoken with Brett at Wincom but there is no port in the iphones or the like to connect the patch lead and he said there was no other way to connect to the aerial outlet. He can do the connection for the prepaid to the aerial so I will be seeing him when we go up to collect the van.

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We have just done a 4 month journey to WA from Tassie and our phone was with Telsta. Only way to go. Had a flip phone (T2) with inbilt antenna and socket in the back for an external antenna which worked well. The external antenna (cant spell areial) gave us up to 2 extra bars although there was lots of nothing. We are now back in Tassie and have just purchased a Samsung Galaxy 5 smart phone as the previous free Telstra phone you get when you renew your 2 year contract I felt was inadequate - quality of voice etc.

Talk about getting used to it - press any where on the screen and you don't know where you may finish up. Takes a while to get used to it. But it does accept my sim card from the other Telstra phone. So my options are - When in metro areas the smart phone (I am not so smart that I can use it other than SMS and calls) is the way to go, then in country areas move the sim card to the old phone with the external antenna patch.

We did the Great Central road on our return and would be happy to talk about it. Cheers Rod

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Hi Leno & Denise

Just been reading your comments regarding PrePaid v plan. Definately do some research as prepaid is heaps cheaper at the moment - I am in Geraldton getting the garden ready for the summer while Ian had to stay behind in Karratha so we are using the mobile a lot. I recharged with $40 (one month access) and get calls to the value of $550 and 1gb of data. We purchased our HTC outright at the Good Guys for $199 when Telstra were selling them for $50 more. I use the phone as a HotSpot for my Ipad whilst on the road and although I use the Ipad heaps the one gig lasts a long time. Other things that make it more worthwhile than a plan are that until recently Coles was offering a 20% discount when you recharge which also gave us bonus/bonus data and calls so we could talk forever! And right now Telstra is offering free calls after 6pm to all standard Aussie numbers. When you add it all up there is a considerable saving to be had in buying your phone outright and putting a prepaid sim into it.

I arent associated with Telstra and could get on to my soapbox about their service at times - but as much as I have been know to slam the phone down and throw my arms in the air when trying to talk to them they do offer the superior coverage in the bush.

Cheers

Sue

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Hello Everyone and Merry Christmas,

iPhones are fantastic and addictive. Being Apple, they do not have any after market goodies such as the ability to attach to an external antennae.

We have the external antennae on the van and we have a telstra phone (cheap one) that we can attach if we need to do so. However, very often the external antennae does not help as there just aint any signals out there. So, we have a satellite phone. Now we don't even bother with the Telstra phone attached the the external. If we can't use the iPhone and we just have to chat with someone, we use the satellite phone. Works anywhere in the world and is a great safety device for outbback travel.

I know it is more expensive but......

Regards

Colin

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thanks for the info I had decided to go with plan but after seeing your comments Ian and Sue I want to go back and check out prepaid again. I had a look at the iphone at telstra today and they showed me the connections for the aerial in the van and how it can be connected to the car.

I am just obsorbing the info for me not sure I want to go that way. I like the idea of changing sim cards from new to old phone if needed that could work.

have thought about sat phone mainly for emergencies but have been told if in trouble dial 000 anyway even though you have no bars, as it automatically find sat connection for you and the covers 99.9% of Auss.

I asked a telstra dealer about it and was informed that that was correct. So long as we can get help if needed is all that matters.

let me know if this is true or has been tested do I need to have full coverage if this is so. I would be very plsed to hear from more seasoned travellors. tahnks to all.

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Hi Leno and Denise

I read with interest your comment below. Can you tell me a little bit about what they showed you?

I had a look at the iphone at telstra today and they showed me the connections for the aerial in the van and how it can be connected to the car.

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Hi again,

As mentioned above, I have a cradle for my iPhone which powers it and improves signal by a passive aerial. Meaning it doesn't have an actual patch lead that plugs directly into the phone but, the cradle itself is linked to the aerial and improves signal by approximately 2 bars in weak signal areas. Works pretty well for our needs. B)

Glen...

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Hi All,

I am in a similar situation to many of you having just purchased the new Apple i4s.

I use the phone as both a modem for internet access and a phone, previousy I had an HTC desire with a spare case that had a patch lead glued to it and I just changed the case as desired. This was very effective.

My research for an Apple alternative has lead me to a web site that has a few alternatives, I imagine this is what Glen has installed.

I have attached a link and my options are between No.s 6,7 & 8 looking left to right that appear on this page. Just click on them for further details.

Hope this helps.

John

P.S. I also carry a satelite phone for emergencies but find when I use it my callers become frustrated by the delay.


/>http://www.mobileextras.com.au/ProductList/tabid/64/ProductID/2005/CategoryID/63/Default.aspx

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:unsure:

Hi Leno and Denise

I read with interest your comment below. Can you tell me a little bit about what they showed you?

my appologies it was a cradle that is used which is then connected to the aerial the cradle is portable and can also be attached in the car if you have an aerial on the car. so sorry for leading you astray

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Hello Everyone,

I was interested in Leno's comment on 7 Dec about 000 being available in an emergency from any mobile phone even if there are no bars (signal)showing. I decided to do a bit of research.

I recommennd the following link: http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_100575

On the ACMA web site you will find the following information:

Calling the Emergency Call Service from a mobile phone: FAQs

Is calling Triple Zero (000) from a mobile phone reliable?

Mobile phones enable individuals to call the Emergency Call Service from most places in Australia. However, the nature of mobile handsets and mobile networks means that in some circumstances these calls are not as reliable as calls from the fixed network.

Problems that may be experienced when making a call from a mobile phone to the Emergency Call Service include :

• bad reception, making it difficult for the emergency service operators to understand the caller;

• a remote location may result in limited or no network coverage being available;

• running out of battery; and

• a lack of precise location information about the call.

Special roaming capabilities of the vast majority of mobile phones when calling Triple Zero (000) mean that when you are out of your service provider's coverage area but are in another carrier's mobile phone network coverage area, your call will be carried on the other carrier’s network. However, it is important to realise that if there is no mobile coverage, you will not be able to reach the Emergency Call Service via a mobile phone, and alternative devices, such as personal location beacons (PLBs) should be considered. PLBs are equipped to send a distress signal with location details on a dedicated radio frequency that communicates with Search and Rescue operators

I hope this info is useful.

Regards

Colin

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Thanks Colin for that very important piece of advice - the fact that you researched to find the correct answer should be appreciated by all as many travellers we have come across in remote areas of our state are under the false assumption that in an emergency their mobile phone would work for an emergency call. We have often informed people that they don't only to be treated with suspicision.

If I can deviate slighty from the topic for a minute to cover one of my passionate topics which arises from many years of living in a remote region and chatting to tourists and newby locals. Please if you are travelling remote remember - the nearest help is often hours away so at the very least make sure you have an adequate first aid kit and I would love it if everyone who travels takes the time to do a St Johns or equivalent course because one day it could save a life. Too many times I have come across accidents where the person might have had a chance had someone known how to stop bleeding not to mention CPR etc. AND if you have a kit make sure it is easily accessible as every minute counts. I could go on but have probably out lived my welcome, appologies. Now back to the topic. :D

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