No service in Austalia

[GrahamD_2857621]

Hi

I am in Oz with no service. I have purchased add-on and confirmed balance in app, changed mobile settings to mob.asm.net (as per iOS instructions), network selection is “auto” (I have tried manual selection of 3 options). There is known to be signal here. Data roaming is on. What to do?

[MSF]

@GrahamD_2857621  Not sure how much credit you put onto the account, but any data use would cost 10p per megabyte - that's £102.40 per Gigabyte and so could be swallowed up very quickly.

Data usage on your account will always be a bit behind, so you need to check it again - preferably via website.

If your phone is a relatively new model, consider an Esim from a company like Airalo (others also available) as this works out far, far cheaper.

[GrahamD_2857621]

I am aware of the cost of calls/data.  When I try to use an alternative, set-up by by wifi, I try pay and my card provider wants to send a confirmation text to the phone number I cannot use.

I managed to pay for the Smarty add-on by PayPal.

I obtained a SIM from Coles, tried to set it up, it required an **Australian** credit/debit card.

My Smarty sprang to life a few days ago, some days after the add-on was purchased, whilst I was in the outback.  Having returned to civilisation it no longer works.  My Smarty tells me I have used 15p (i.e. 3 texts) of my add-on.  Network selection shows 3 networks, none actually work.

[SmartyTrousers]

The Australian mobile networks have brought in changes in the last few months (mandated by the government there) that mean they now block phones connecting to their networks if they aren't confident the device will be able to make emergency calls over 4G, including tourist phones.

From what I've read, you may be able to get service if you manually select Vodafone in the network selection (instead of auto), but it's not guaranteed.

Here's a video with more info.

[GrahamD_2857621]

Thank you for the suggestion, however I am currently set (manually) to Vodaphone AU but it does not work.  A few days ago i was in the outback and Smaty sprang to life, but has since stopped - maybe time, maybe location; I have used 15p of my credit (3 texts). I was aware of the 3G removal issue but did not think it would apply to an iPhone 15. My wife's EE phone is working fine so it is not a lack of signal

[MSF]

@GrahamD_2857621  That 15p figure is definitely strange because texts sent are charged at 20p each according to the Price Guide.

[JamieCl_1453005]

I have the same issue:

£15 add-on credit, changed network settings, and roaming is on. 
I’ve tried manually connecting to all the networks in central Sydney. 
I’ve reset everything and re-tried several times, restarting my phone etc. all I have is SOS.

Any help appreciated 

[MSF]

@JamieCl_1453005 There has recently been some posting regarding the Australian networks refusing service to phones that are not VoLTE compliant I believe. Could this be the cause?

[JamieCl_1453005]

Thanks for the suggestion. 
I checked and VoLTE is switch on. I’m using a iPhone15. 
if I can’t figure it, I’ll need to switch sim.

[MSF]

@JamieCl_1453005 I think that newer iPhones like yours were said to be fine, so no further forward then.

Can you register to any network? If so, but still no service, is it possible to go into one of that network's stores to check?

[JamieCl_1453005]

Thanks for the help.

I tried to manually connect with all of them but no luck. 
I chatted to the help team and they raised my data cap, helped me rest my network settings, but still no luck

[Eleanor_1694988]

Im having the same issue now! Was fine and receiving texts on my English number until Saturday when data add-ons ran out. I’ve recharged and had no signal since, even after trying to switch to Vodafone. I’m at a loss, locked out of my UK bank, savings account, credit card - anything with 2FA enabled. Anything that’s worked?

[MSF]

@Eleanor_1694988 If Vodafone won't work either, is it a general blanket ban on roaming or is it an issue with your phone? Can you perhaps get to a Vodafone shop to see if they can shed any light on this?

[HaarisKh_574974]

After doing loads of reading across multiple forums. It's clear it's not a VOLTE issue with the phone as the gentlemans phone worked in one part of australia and then not another. Sydney have removed their 3g network. It's since this 3g network was removed that people are having an issue. If you travel someone where 3g still exists it may work. Your best bet is order a simcard to a relative or friend back home and having them complete your 2FA. 

[MSF]

@HaarisKh_574974  Once 3G is turned off, phones that are non-VoLTE an no longer move 'down' to 3G to make calls. The VoLTE compatible phones can work on 4G.

Your phone will still need to be VoLTE compatible to be sure of a chance of roaming in Australia. Many Australian phones have also been rendered useless it seems.

[ShaneOMZ]

I have an iPhone 12 that is set to use VoLTE, I too am unble to use my UK Smarty sim in Australia. My wife also has an iPhone 12, but with an O2 sim and she has no problem using her UK sim here. The problem seems to be that Smarty sims won't work with the new set-up in Australia. But why should that be, and what are Smarty proposing to do about it>

[MSF]

@ShaneOMZ  I believe this is because not all VoLTE protocols are the same. The problem also exists in the UK to an extent and has been widely reported in posts on the forum.

I have no idea what smarty are proposing to do about it as I do not work for them - I suspect not much as it is a small problem from their perspective and they will most likely point out that they are not responsible for roaming, only for providing some service in the UK.

A fix for the problem is to either buy a local PAYG sim or else consider an Esim - I have just signed up for a Roamless Esim, hoping to use it overseas as a cheaper way of roaming than using my Smarty sim with top up.

[ShaneOMZ]

Unfortunately neither a PAYG local sim or an esim will work for 2FA, and that is the crux of the matter. If Smarty can't resolve the issue, then I will have to change my primary sim provider to one whose sims will successfully roam in Australia. Some institutions allow 2FA by email or Whatsapp, but not my bank, sadly!

[MSF]

@ShaneOMZ  Sadly, if 2FA texts are important, I think that you will need to change if your travel to Australia with any frequency. The problem may be in finding which networks will definitely work.

Does your bank not offer an app that will work with something like face recognition?