I use all 3 telcos for work so I agree with your statements on...

I use all 3 telcos for work so I agree with your statements on Vodafone outside of the metropolitan. Optus in QLD has come a very long way as well as Tasmania. WA has a long way to go as does Northern Territory but if your reception is terrible it might be your frequencies you have on your phone. TLS sure has more coverage, Optus has rolled out more 700 mhz 4G spots than Telstra and has been pushing hard on 1800mhz/2600mhz 4G. Is Telstra worth double the price of Optus? Hardly.

Now onto 5G.... Let's say Telstra spends a fortune (again... something that's hard to do with their current dividend), 5G generally operates on a much higher frequency (3500mhz for TLS) and therefore will need a LOT more towers. If you want to cover regional... no chance in the near future... city, not too difficult. The biggest issue is how do you increase ARPU from 5G? Yes, Telstra can charge maybe $40/month but they can't charge $65/month that they're accustomed to. Customers might not be able to justify the spend when TPG/Optus/Vodafone and their resellers will have a network that offers speeds that are reasonable at half the price. In my recent speed tests I often see Optus and Telstra 4G achieving between 50 and 200 mbps, I personally don't see a need for 5G however I realise there will be other applications that need the lower latency like IoT but again... it may be a while off.