[Exocet]

In an effort to help calm the chaos surrounding the iPhone 3GS release, please use this thread for any questions or help you my require about using your 3GS on Telstra.

[melbmac]

Anybody else had dramas with their activation with Telstra?

I just got one from a T Life store and apparently they have incorrect codes or something so can't activate my phone until later today?

(For the record I am porting over from Optarse).

[nuts4eva]

Does Telstra Support Visual Voice Mail

[Beau]

Originally Posted by nuts4eva

Does Telstra Support Visual Voice Mail

No.

[beckmarc]

In the small print for the Telstra plans it states "iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G are configured to work only with the wireless services provided by Telstra." I am not sure what this means. i.e. can you still use your iphone on your home or work WiFi network to download email an updates?

[dotnet]

Originally Posted by beckmarc

In the small print for the Telstra plans it states "iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G are configured to work only with the wireless services provided by Telstra." I am not sure what this means.

It means they're locked to Telstra and can't be used with another carrier without getting unlocked first.

i.e. can you still use your iphone on your home or work WiFi network to download email an updates?

Yes.

Cheers
Steffen.

[beckmarc]

Thanks for the reply

I had been wondering if it would only work with bigpond internet on your wifi at home or something like that. Thanks for clearing it up

[skullnbones]

Originally Posted by beckmarc

Thanks for the reply

I had been wondering if it would only work with bigpond internet on your wifi at home or something like that. Thanks for clearing it up

If I may add to the reply, I have bigpond DSL2 at home with an Airport Extreme. As soon as I turn on my 3GS it logs onto the home wifi network and works like a dream - some nights at home I don't even get the Macbook out; I just use safari, mail and the calendar (with Mobile me) in front of the television while my wife watches Desperate Housewives.

[skullnbones]

Hi all,

I bought a 3GS 32G on the morning of the release.

I had a look at my Telstra mobile data usage tonight (Thursday). It said that on Tuesday at 3:32 p.m. I used over 7MB of data and was online for 24 hours! It also said that the following day, again at 3:32 p.m. I was online for over 8 hours and downloaded 1.54MB.

I got rid of skyscape (a medical text book company that I had used on my iPaq) at around that time, as it wouldn't install the freebies properly and it does have a notice system that updates, but 7MB is a lot.

I also wondered if it might have anything to do with constant synching from Mobile Me, which I set up on Tuesday afternoon.

Has anyone else had this sort of problem? At the moment I'm using the $10 150MB/month data package until the contract on my awful Optus USB broadband expires, then I will upgrade my Telstra data allowance and tether the iphone to the Macbook (I downloaded a config yesterday and it works a treat). So until that time, I am concerned that Mobile Me may be the cause of a possible data blow out.

NB I haven't tethered on 3G, just last night when I installed the config, I tested it with the macbook while the iphone was getting its internet access from the home wifi and Bigpond DSL (I turned off the macbook airport so it defaulted to the tethered connection).

I'll see what happens now that Skyscape has ben uninstalled.

Has anyone else had any unexpected data usage on the 3GS with Telstra, particularly for Mobile Me users?

[Aladdin]

I've been wondering myself why I seem to chew through so much data. There really is no way of checking where the data usage is coming from.

I try to be careful, but more often than not I seem to consume >5MB per day (and therefore will be running out of included data before end of month).

I've turned push notifications off today, but I've kept MobileMe push on for now.

[romaverona]

I've been checking my usage with the data transfer record on the iphone and this has helped me keep limits on my daily usage. 150MB a month will hoepfully be okay for me because I only really use it for facebook and twitter when I am out of the house and have used up 4MB in 2 weeks. I do the major stuff at home, my Iphone automatically goes to the wireless bigpond ADSL network at home.

Just been exploring my telstra online account. There is a tab where you can review unbilled calls on your mobile, including internet.

Bit strange because I have made 32 connections and even the ones that aren't from the home network are not being charged - lots of detail about location and amt of data being transferred? Too good to be true.... On the other hand my international SMSs have already had a cost assigned to them.

[Steiny]

Had my outright-unlocked 3GS delivered yesterday. It's my first iPhone so still playing around, finding my way etc. I was already on Telstra's cheapest $20 plan and swapped the sim out of my old Samsung Z510 no worries.

Now when it comes to mobile data, I don't WANT to use it. At all. I have wi-fi at home, work, and a couple others places I frequent. Outside of those I don't give a stuff but I'd rather have it disabled in some way so I don't accidentally run afoul of unexpected data usage. Is this doable from the phone itself, or do I need to contact Telstra to have it disabled or blocked?

In Settings > General > Network > Cellular Data Network, it lists "telstra.iph" as the APN for Cellular Data. If I delete that setting, will that stop it? Or is that not a good idea, might cause other problems etc.?

[gtext]

Originally Posted by Steiny

Had my outright-unlocked 3GS delivered yesterday. It's my first iPhone so still playing around, finding my way etc. I was already on Telstra's cheapest $20 plan and swapped the sim out of my old Samsung Z510 no worries.

Now when it comes to mobile data, I don't WANT to use it. At all. I have wi-fi at home, work, and a couple others places I frequent. Outside of those I don't give a stuff but I'd rather have it disabled in some way so I don't accidentally run afoul of unexpected data usage. Is this doable from the phone itself, or do I need to contact Telstra to have it disabled or blocked?

In Settings > General > Network > Cellular Data Network, it lists "telstra.iph" as the APN for Cellular Data. If I delete that setting, will that stop it? Or is that not a good idea, might cause other problems etc.?

I think that setting will just be installed again next time you sync to iTunes.

Just contact Telstra and ask them to turn off data for your account from their end.

That's what i would do but someone else might have other ideas.

[bennyling]

Originally Posted by Steiny

In Settings > General > Network > Cellular Data Network, it lists "telstra.iph" as the APN for Cellular Data. If I delete that setting, will that stop it? Or is that not a good idea, might cause other problems etc.?

Yep, go ahead and remove it or put something insane there, like no.usage or something.

Wont' cause any other problems, and will only be "fixed" once Telstra release a carrier update via iTunes, not whenever you sync it.

[Beau]

If you fancy push anything (notifications, email, etc), you'll want mobile data. The iPhone gives cellular data first priority, only falling back on WiFi occasionally.
Just letting you know.

[Steiny]

Thanks guys. Appreciate the answers and advice.

[chaosboi]

Just got a Telstra prepaid sim last night and everything seemed ok til tonight.

To get data I have to first open Safari and click on a link to kick start things.

Eg, if I open Tweetdeck I get no data connection unless I kickstart the connection via Safari!

Any ideas?

[eron]

Originally Posted by chaosboi

Just got a Telstra prepaid sim last night and everything seemed ok til tonight.

To get data I have to first open Safari and click on a link to kick start things.

Eg, if I open Tweetdeck I get no data connection unless I kickstart the connection via Safari!

Any ideas?

I had to call Telstra Prepaid to activate data. Then restart the phone.

[davidxxx]

I bought my iPhone on a Friday, and only connected by WiFi on Friday night. When I had a look at MyDataUseage it said I had used 35% of my 150meg allowance!! And part of that data use was for sending 2x MMS a month ago!! Well before I even had a data plan.

So, of course, I rang accounts on Sat morning and the nice young lady explained to me that I was getting those MMS at a cheaper rate because they applied to my data pack. But but I said I only signed up the data pack 3 days ago, and only got my iPhone yesterday.

She seemed incapable of understanding that they couldn't charge my data allowance for MMS when I never had a data pack.

And not surprisingly she couldn't explain why about 60kilobytes of MMS used up 35% of 150 megabytes of data.

And of course i never had 150megs anyway as when I signed up for the data pack they said it would be pro-rated up to the next billing cycle and thus I would only get (and be charged for) 80 or so megs until the end of the billing cycle.

In the end she reckoned I would just have to wait and see what happened when I got my bill. Mmmm gives one a lot ofaith in Telstras account procedures, doesn't it?

David - waiting for his bill

[dotnet]

I bet the 35% are the pro-rata use. You probably signed up 35% into the billing month, so you've got 65% of 150MB left for that first billing month.

Cheers
Steffen.