Warnings for older mobile phones, medical devices as 3G shuts down

Tens of thousands of older mobile phones and other devices will cease to work from Monday, when the nation’s 3G network is shuttered.

Australians are being urged to help older family members or neighbours check devices, amid concerns about people losing access to triple-zero services and medical monitoring equipment.

When will Australia’s 3G network be turned off?

Telstra and Optus will switch off their 3G coverage from Monday, affecting mobile phones, tablets and medical devices that still use the older network.

The telcos had intended to start their 3G shutdown earlier this year, but concerns about hundreds of thousands of users still on the network led both to delay the change.

Which devices will be affected by the 3G shutdown?

As of last week, there were 18,000 3G and 70,000 4G non-VoLTE Telstra mobile phones, both of which use 3G for calls, representing 0.3 per cent of the telco’s handsets.

A further 58,000 4G VoLTE phones that use 3G for triple-zero calls will be blocked when the network is shut down, as a safety measure. These phones are older devices often purchased overseas.

Telstra and Optus users can text “3” to 3498 to see if their handset will be affected. Affected Telstra customers have heard a pre-recorded message before outgoing calls, and both telcos have sent warning text messages and emails.

Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland urged people to “check their tech now”.

“This is a commercial decision taken by the network providers and industry has undertaken significant efforts to identify and contact potentially affected customers and share critical public information about the 3G switchover,” she said.

“Our focus is that the switchover takes place in a safe way.”

The Therapeutic Goods Administration has said the shutdown may affect medical devices including personal medical alarms, glucose data transmitters, pacemakers, fall monitors and telehealth devices.

It said some devices imported from overseas suppliers or bought online may not work as promised once the 3G network is switched off.

“Even if they claim [to use] 4G, some of these devices may not work on Australian networks,” it said.

Who may be left offline by the 3G shutdown?

Advocates for older Australians have expressed concern about the impact of the 3G shutdown on the elderly, who are more likely to rely on home medical devices or own older mobile phones.

Council of the Ageing (COTA) Australia chief executive Patricia Sparrow urged people to ask older family members or friends about whether they knew if the shutdown would affect their devices.

“If you have an older neighbour or someone you think may need assistance with working out what the switch away from 3G will mean for them, please help them out,” she said.

“Changes of this scale can be anxiety-inducing for many people; it’s crucial people are given the support they need.”

Why is the 3G network being shut down?

First announced in 2019, the 3G shutdown is designed to free up the radio spectrum for higher speed 5G networks.