I have solved* my 4G VoLTE #3gShutdown problem

*- well, at least unblocked myself so I can receive SMS so I could, in theory, port my number off #Optus † and maybe use #Telstra ? Via #AldiMobile maybe? Which possibly perhaps won't arbitrarily block my VoLTE-capable phone perhaps why not some people believe.

†- which is kinda holding my number hostage, since I need to receive SMS to prove I own the number for porting purposes, but am barred from using my old phone with the network because botched ACMA legislation.

It really is a shit show, so many phones that work perfectly fine being blocked because they weren't brought from a Telco.
https://www.reddit.com/r/australia/s/zbai96hqH3
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-03/brand-new-phones-unable-to-make-calls-3g-shutdown/104541440
#3gshutdown #australia #volte #auspol

It really is a shit show, so many phones that work perfectly fine being blocked because they weren't brought from a Telco. www.reddit.com/r/aus... www.abc.net.au/news/... #3gshutdown #australia #volte #auspol

How Australia could have handled the #3GShutdown differently, why roaming stopped for some foreigners in Oz, debunking telstra and optus, why Australian #volte isn't special and some references to other sources and countries https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rudolfvanderberg_james-parker-medium-activity-7256760712050495489-bOsM

ARGH. WTF, Australia?

So I've known about this #3Gshutdown for a while. But only in general terms. And yeah, #Optus has been messaging me occasionally saying "Oh, we think your phone might be impacted by the #3G shutdown" -- but I have a 4G phone, so I'm fine, right? It's Optus, they probably have some data left over from my ancient phone I used before.

Well it turns out it's a lot more nuanced than that. Even if you're on 4G, phones may use 3G for calling, and there's no definitive standard for voice calls over 4+5G. There's "VoLTE" but it's a crapshoot as to whether your phone supports that.

So the upshot is,
- I might not be able to get calls on my HiSense phone I bought, and millions of other Australians who decided to not limit themselves to the Australian market may experience the same,
- The Telcos will get to decide what phones we're able to buy and at what prices, I'm sure we can trust them on that,
- It'll make massive amounts of e-waste,
- And tourists won't be able to use roaming when they visit here! Good thing we're not heavily dependent on tourism eh?

JFC I consider myself fairly knowledgeable with tech shit and this is news to me. What are the bets the 3G shutdown was a decision by upper management without consulting tech?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPlTz-3estM

A #PSA for anyone living, staying, entering or even travelling to/from #Australia:

Apparently, #Australia decided to mandate it's #GSM systems to be shutdown because some #GalaxyBrainChair wanted to yeet #2G & #3G and demand everything to use #4G & #5G when in fact #VoLTE support is spotty at best and #EmergencyCalling oftentimes is explicitly hardcoded to not use #WIFIcalling or VoLTE as providing #triangulation and #LocationData via #SS7 is a desired feature when someone calls EMS, Fire Dept or the Police for help...

• So essentially #tourists and anyone who hasn't an explicitly fully VoLTE-functional device they tested and verified to also do #EmergencyCalls via VoLTE are fecked with no reception when they need it the most!

• This WILL KILL PEOPLE!!!

As much as we want to bitch about #GSM & #GPRS / #UMTS being #outdated and #inefficient, there are reasons to at least keep 2G available - ranging from lower power consumption to higher resilience in emergency situations.

• #NewZealand for example does shutdown non-#EmergencyCalls during severe #Earthquakes so that people trapped and/or in need of urgent assistance can get through to dispatch operators and everyone else has to get in line and take a number aka. use #SMS or if existing #Internet to say "I'm fine!"...

• If the Ozzies really need that juicy #UHF #SubGHz #Spectrum it's totally feasible to instead change the #allocations and reconfigure #CellularNetworks to use lesser bandwith for 2G (i.e. only keeping the absolute mininum of channels available for any service) and thus clear up space...

And to add insult to injury, Australia passed a #NorthKorea|n-alike #CellPhone #ImportBan for any device that doesn't do i.e. the bespoke proprietary garbage that i.e. #Telstra, #Vodafone and #Optus do with the #baseband modems of their #branded devices...

Seriously, which #TechIlliterate dickhead decided it's a good idea to do that #3Gshutdown in Australia without even a basic 2G network up and running at all?

• At least #Switzerland [AFAIK] still has #3G up and running (tho it would've been wiser to do it like #Germany and keep #2G as emergency fallback with it's functions like #CellBroadcast....

#Australia To Block Internationally Purchased 4G/5G Phones As Part of #3GShutdown - Starting 1st Nov, 20240930,
by #HughJeffreys,
https://invidious.privacyredirect.com/watch?v=RPlTz-3estM
https://youtube.com/watch?v=RPlTz-3estM

Wow, "#VoLTE" (voice over LTE ("long-term evolution")), is not a standard! Really? Are there reasons besides the different frequency bands in use in various countries?

If you live in #Australia and use Telstra mobile network, you need to check this out.

#3gShutdown
#VoLTE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPlTz-3estM

THIS is why #Germany keeps #2G / #GSM online: Because #4G and #5G don't work well for #EmergencyCalling, #CellBroadcast has been reinstated and made #mandatory for good reasons and because #BaseStations will downgrade to #2G when grid power is lost to conserve energy and be able to stay online for longer...

#VoLTE sadly doesn't work transparently on everything tho...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6qb9dml6So