Dwindling Delights and Mobile Frights

A former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser told us life wasn’t meant to be easy, but his plagiarized quote left out part of the original message.

George Bernard Shaw added the more optimistic: “But take courage, it can be delightful.”

Unfortunately, those delights seem to be dwindling, and in the latest iteration of governments at Federal and State levels, it is getting less easy by the day on many levels. Malcolm may have had a glimpse of the future.

Put cost of living pressures and racial division at the top of my list, but I’m sure I’m not the only one who finds modern technology’s instant connectivity, AI, the push for digital IDs and ultimately a cashless society, of increasing concern.

For the past couple of weeks, my mobile phone has been leading the charge for my tossing and turning at night. Why? Blame Optus for its confusing messaging regarding the closure of its 3G network and the imminent switch to 4G.

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that my life does not revolve around my smartphone. I shake my head in wonder at the sight of girls, women, also boys and some men who walk along our beautiful beach with their phones glued to their ears; or who cross busy roads while texting or scrolling on their devices.

With practically noiseless electric scooters and bikes now sharing our footpaths and streets, it’s an accident waiting to happen.

But thanks to the “delights” of modern life, a smartphone is now a necessity rather than a convenience. Even without the need to make or receive calls, practically every major business and government department now demands a digital code sent by SMS to make contact or log in.

And those codes are sent to my smartphone. But then I received a text from Optus which made me wonder if my phone really was smart.

“IMPORTANT NOTICE: Hi there, we’re reaching out to let you know that you’ll need to turn on ‘VoLTE’ calling on your device settings… so that you can make voice calls over our 4G network from 28 October 2024. Otherwise, you won’t be able to make voice calls from this date, as we’re switching off our 3G network, and your ability to call Triple Zero may be impacted.

To turn on VoLTE see our handy guide at optus.com.au/volte…”

Well, that caught me by surprise as I thought my Galaxy Android phone had access to 4G when I bought it a couple of years ago, but that message sounded definite.

So I go to the site and the instructions sound fairly straightforward: “Once the latest software is installed, go into settings to request the 4G voice service and follow the prompts.

• Open Apps icon
• Locate Settings Icon
• Click Mobile Networks
• Select VoLTE to enable on the device.”

Yeah, right. I must be doing something wrong because I can’t find any mention of VoLTE anywhere on my mobile.

Seems I’m not alone, and it’s not just Optus, according to this ABC report:

“Queensland IT worker Serge didn’t think his 4G phone would be impacted by the gradual shutdown of Australia’s 3G networks — until one day when his device suddenly couldn’t make or receive calls.

“I was sort of in a bit of a panic,” he said. “I’m pulling my hair out. I’m connected to 4G. Everything seems to be working. Why can’t I make phone calls?”

“Serge said he was warned by his provider to upgrade his phone before telecommunications giant TPG (which now owns Vodafone) shut down its 3G network — but he ignored the warnings, believing his 4G device would not be affected.

“More Australians like Serge are likely to be caught out by further 3G shutdowns this year, with millions of Telstra and Optus customers (as well as those using smaller providers on those two networks) to lose 3G coverage in the coming months.

“The shutdowns are also causing concern for some people living and working in regional and rural areas…..

“VoLTE (short for voice over long term evolution) is what most modern phones use to send voice calls over the same 4G and 5G channels that also carry other mobile data.

“Essentially, VoLTE allows 4G and 5G phones to usually have better call quality, faster connection times, and the ability to use voice and data at the same time.

“After doing some research, Serge said he discovered his Android phone did have VoLTE capability, but the toggle to enable it was in a hidden menu he could only access by putting a specific code into his phone’s dialler.

“Serge said he also checked the phones of some family members and found some of their devices also didn’t have VoLTE enabled by default, which caused issues when their 3G network disappeared…”

Crikey! If an IT worker couldn’t figure it out. What chance would a non-tech Boomer like me have?

But there’s more: In evidence presented to a Senate inquiry in July, Australia’s second-largest mobile provider, Optus,  said up to 150,000 could be left without access to critical functions like triple zero calls, online banking and telehealth services after the shutdown in September.

“The migration experience that we’ve had to date is that you have to do two things: create awareness and remove barriers for customers to act, but then also prepare for the fact that some will not,” Optus head of new products Harvey Wright told the committee.

“It’s just human nature…”

Feeling more confused than ever, I phone a couple of my tech-savvy sons, one of whom suggests that maybe I don’t have to worry or I should have been receiving more warnings by text or whenever I made a phone call (which I don’t do often).

But with D-Day rapidly approaching, I finally decided to visit the local Optus office in a busy shopping centre. Half a dozen staff are already occupied dealing with others who could be facing similar problems or trying to buy a new device, but eventually, I am served by a pleasant young woman.

I hand over my phone and show her the text telling me I’m about to be cut off unless I download VoLTE. She only takes a couple of seconds before telling me, “No you don’t have to do anything, it’s all ok…”

“Well, that text has caused me a lot of wasted time and bother.”

“Sorry about that, it’s just a universal message sent out by some little robot..”

I thank her, but think to myself, “Bloody AI again”.

Sure enough, the next morning I received a text from Optus confirming: “We’ve determined that this device will not be impacted when the Optus 3G network is switched off from 28 October 2024. You won’t need to do anything..”

Great. Fingers crossed that the little robot got it right this time!

John Mikkelsen is a former editor of three Queensland regional newspapers, columnist,  freelance writer and author of the Amazon Books Memoir, Don’t Call Me Nev.