EDGE - or is it?

I recently moved to Thailand and got myself an EDGE modem and sim card. Everything was fine for the first couple of weeks. I got 30 hours of internet access for 200 baht (SIM card) + 100 baht fpr a pay as you go top up. Then the 30 hours ran out, so I topped up with another 100 baht (one-2 call). This lasted about one hour. The next 100 baht was the same - one hour and all gone. So I bought a new SIM card and got the 30 hours for 300 baht again.

Can anyone tell me if I have to keep buying new SIM cards every time my 30 ours runs out, or if there's a way of topping up my existing SIM card and getting more than 1 hour for my 100 baht? (the shop I bopught my SIM card from doesn't know the answer).

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

The first time you got the package 30 hours - valid for one month.
If these hours running out before the 30days are finished, you have to cancel the package or asking at AIS (1-2 Call) to give you the next 30 hours after you toped up your card with the amount. Therefor you must call 1175 to AIS and tell the you want a new package or 30 hours more. By the way 250 hours cost 530Baht.
The easy way is to go in TukCom on the 2nd floor to the AIS shop and let them do this for you. Just bring the Sim Card with you.
I buy monthly 250hours = 530 Baht and make sure before end of the one month is 530 Baht toped up on the card and the reniew automaticly. Hope its clear and you understand.

Hutch are cheap because their country wide coverage is hopeless.

[Patexpat]

When you buy a 30 hour (or any other hour) package it is a monthly deal - if you go over 30 hours in any one month you then get charged 1 baht per minute; if this is the case simply go to an AIS or DTAC shop depending upon what SIM you have and ask them to up the package to 50 or 100 or unlimited. There is no need to purchase another SIM - just change the contract. Have done this many many times ....

[TrongpaiExpat]

Hutch are cheap because their country wide coverage is hopeless.

Yes, I got hutch 4 years ago with the promise of country wide wireless service soon and 3G broadband wireless also right around the corner. It never worked as promised and sometimes did not work at all. Pattaya and Bangkok coverage is all you get. It's ok if your not downloading anything and just using for e mail and web surfing. It's not fast enough for streaming or U-tube without continuing pausing to buffer and load.

Thanks for the info. I'll go for the 250 hour package. Happy to pay 500 baht per month. Problem is finding a shop that knows about the products they sell. (I'm in Isaan not in Pattaya. )

[Beachlover]

Are all the mobile modem broadband internet services charged by the hour/minute in Thailand?... Here in Australia and other countries I've been it's charged by download volume... so you get 3GBs or 6GBs or something per month.

Thanks for the info. I'll go for the 250 hour package. Happy to pay 500 baht per month. Problem is finding a shop that knows about the products they sell. (I'm in Isaan not in Pattaya. )

As already advised, phone 1175 (for 1-2 Call) and talk to an English speaking operator, then just top up the phone.

BL, there are no "mobile modem broadband internet services" available in Thailand. Edge/GPRS are charged for by the minute.

[Beachlover]

I was referring to "mobile broadband internet" services (didn't need to slip the word "modem" in there).

There seems to be a few... the ones I've seen so far charge by the hour:

http://www.hutch.co.th/mbi/1x/index_en.htm

http://www.edgethailand.com/product_inf ... 248c1324e1 (http://www.edgethailand.com/product_info.php?products_id=45&osCsid=7232402bb7aa86e55148cf248c1324e1)


This one looks interesting... at first glance it seems to give you access in multiple countries. I'll have to check out the details later: http://www.mobilitypass.com/internet_devices.html ... has anyone used this or knows how it works?

e: EDGE - or is it?
Author: Gone Fishing ┬╗ Tue 29 Dec, 2009 1:10 am

justinco wrote:
Thanks for the info. I'll go for the 250 hour package. Happy to pay 500 baht per month. Problem is finding a shop that knows about the products they sell. (I'm in Isaan not in Pattaya. )


As already advised, phone 1175 (for 1-2 Call) and talk to an English speaking operator, then just top up the phone.

BL, there are no "mobile modem broadband internet services" available in Thailand. Edge/GPRS are charged for by the minute.

Gone Fishing


Bullshit. Simply not true. I had a Sierra Wireless card THREE YEARS ago by CAT that was unlimited and utilized 3G. Why do you post like such a know-it-all and don't have the right facts? Do your research before you spout off. There IS unlimited service available via this delivery model.

From Thailand Guru:

Mobile Internet (GPRS, GSM, CDMA)

There are various ways to connect a notebook computer to the internet using the mobile phone network in Thailand -- anywhere, anytime, such as in your car's passenger seat, or out on the farm upcountry. You don't need to go searching for WiFi hotspots. The main disadvantage is that the speed is significantly slower (but still at least as good as a 56k dialup connection, often much better than 56k). You also must register a phone number with one of the mobile phone companies and enter a contract.

There are 3 options for connecting to the mobile phone network for internet:

Connect your mobile phone (if GPRS capable) to your computer by USB cable or Bluetooth
If your mobile phone doesn't support GPRS, and if you don't want to change mobile phones, then buy a GPRS computer peripheral which connects to your computer by USB or Bluetooth. Then you put your SIM card into the device, or else just buy a new SIM card (new number) for this. (However, it might be better to just buy a second mobile phone...)
Install a PCMCIA card into your notebook computer (such as the AirCard).
Instead of notebook computers, many friends and associates use PDAs and connect them to mobile phone company's internet link. (Opinion: I find PDAs to be convenient for their compact size and long battery life, but I don't like the small screen because it doesn't accomodate the applications I depend on such as my To-Do outliner and other applications, I much prefer a normal keyboard, and I carry a lot of data with me.)

I've known a few businesspeople with a driver and a notebook computer in their car using wireless connections on the highway, via the mobile phone companies. I've helped them since around 2004. It works well in Bangkok, and they've reported getting reliable connections and decent speeds while their driver takes them all around Thailand. None needed particularly fast connections. There are also a lot of foreigners in provinces whereby the only internet they can get (e.g., out on a farm) is by the mobile phone companies, and they are happy in general with email and ordinary web browsing.

If you don't want to figure out how to connect your mobile phone to your computer, and then set up internet service on your mobile phone, then just take your mobile phone and computer to Pantip Plaza in Bangkok (every taxi knows where it is), and on the ground level on the left side is a mobile phone shop called Suchart Phone. Go inside and tell Khun Suchart what you want. He will do it all for you. His English is good. If your mobile phone does not support internet (and if you don't want to buy a secondhand mobile from Suchart for a few thousand baht), then you can go elsewhere in Pantip Plaza for the alternative adapter discussed below.

As covered in the section on mobile phones, there are four mobile phone companies: AIS, True, DTAC, and Hutchinson. The first three are nationwide but the last -- Hutch -- is mainly in Bangkok and some major demand centers, offering special enhanced services there.

I use DTAC, partly because AIS has overbilled me before in a clearly ridiculous way but wouldn't listen to me. However, before that, I saw AIS degrade in performance in the years after its founder Thaksin Shinawatra sold it to Temasek while DTAC became a much better performer than AIS when I needed internet via mobile phone USB connection to my notebook. In early 2008, I quit using AIS for internet because DTAC had improved a lot while AIS degraded, with DTAC performance significantly and consistently better than AIS.

GPRS is the preferred method for most people, among the truly available options as of early 2009. With GPRS, you can slip in the SIM card of different providers and compare, then stick with the one which has the best signal strength in your area and the best internet performance. The disadvantage is that GPRS is limited to 40 kbps and lower, but the EDGE GPRS enhancement system is being installed in the major cities and some rural areas, which will go up to about 140 kbps. Laos and Cambodia have the slower GPRS, but Malaysia has upgraded to EDGE, so that seems to be the trend in this region of the world. GPRS is an acronym for General Radio Packet Service. EDGE means Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution.

Upcountry, GSM has been relied on for many years longer. (GSM is General System for Mobile communications.)

Unlimited service for both is available for under 1000 baht per month, and limited hours service for much cheaper, down to less than a hundred baht. If you go overtime from your commitment, then they just charge you per minute or per hour.

Hutchinson has CDMA (called 2G or 3G) which works in many areas and is fast, and they supply a USB device which you put your SIM card into (like the Sierra Aircard), or some Hutch phones can be connected. CDMA is Code Division Multiple Access. I'm not sure if Hutch is 2G or 3G. Anyway, it's different from GPRS / EDGE. I received an email in December 2006 in which one of my longtime readers in Phuket who reported this: "It took me 8 months of calling and waiting for TOT and TTNT to get me a line in. Which never happened." Then he went to Hutchinson. "Setup is done in about 15/20 minutes in their office. When you leave their office your laptop can now access the internet in about 50% of Thailand. Bangkok is not accessible. It probably has something to do with licensing. [Mark's note: I don't believe Bangkok's not accessible, so double check with Hutchinson.] Initial setup/software is 16,000 Baht and a 1,200 Baht monthly fee. My best friend and I both signed up and it works great with only an occasional bump offline that can last from 2/3 minutes to 15/20 minutes. Both of us are very happy with the service."

If your mobile phone supports GPRS but you are having a difficult time finding a special USB cable for your particular phone model, then check to see if your mobile supports Bluetooth, as some people have just bought a Bluetooth connection for their computer at around 1000 baht. Some notebook computers have Bluetooth built in already. Some phones take a standard generic USB cable, but most of them require a USB cable for a particular range of models, for around 500 baht.

Perhaps simpler is just getting a GPRS device to connect to your computer separately from your mobile phone, and the performance might be better. The brand Solomon is considered one of the more trouble free GPRS devices which connects by USB or Bluetooth, and offers EDGE models. The prices range from about 5000 to 10,000 baht. However, for that price, you can buy a GPRS capable mobile phone, perhaps a second mobile phone (I have one for business, another private), but I don't know the price for mobile phones with the EDGE enhancement. In any case, you just put a mobile SIM card into that device.

Unregistered SIM cards off the street are fine, and then you activate GPRS according to the instructions that come with your SIM card. You do not need to register your SIM card. However, if you register it then you get better rates. For example, I first got an AIS SIM card for 300 baht, and it came with GPRS air time of 50 HOURS (i.e., 3000 minutes). After that it's 1 baht per minute (yes, big rate hike) and you buy just recharge code cards off the street or from any convenience store, or else you register the card with your billing address and get much better rates.

If you're way, way out in the boonies where there's no mobile signal (and no landline), then you can connect by satellite via a service called IPStar, a Thai owned satellite (Shin Corporation, the former Prime Minister's company). Launched (literally) in August 2005, it offers internet starting at $50/month and phone service (some PR says phone services start at as little as $2/month) anywhere from India to New Zealand using 84 tightly focused beams, as well as a compact transmission dish for consumers. The internet speed goes up to multi-megabit. It's a first in Asia for many services, and an extremely large satellite, so I'd check around for peoples' experiences. I've had reports from a small business on an island, as well as a guy in the remote mountains of northern Thailand, who both reported it works quite well for them. As with all satellite communications, there will be a slight time delay (but still less than a second in theory) due to the satellite's distance and the speed of light (most internet goes thru an underseas fiber optic ring around the world). There's also an installation fee for the satellite dish, which is only about a meter wide. (It's the Thai company's 4th satellite since 1993.)

There is also the Sierra Wireless Aircard which works with the Hutchinson network wherever it exists. I received an email in December 2006 in which one of my longtime readers in Phuket who reported this: "It took me 8 months of calling and waiting for TOT and TTNT to get me a line in. Which never happened." Then he got the Aircard for his laptop computer. "Setup is done in about 15/20 minutes in their office. When you leave their office your laptop can now access the internet in about 50% 0f Thailand. Bangkok is not accessible. It probably has something to do with licensing. Initial setup/software is 16,000 Baht and a 1,200 Baht monthly fee. My best friend and I both signed up and it works great with only an occasional bump offline that can last from 2/3 minutes to 15/20 minutes. Both of us are very happy with the service."

[Patexpat]

Bullshit. Simply not true. I had a Sierra Wireless card THREE YEARS ago by CAT that was unlimited and utilized 3G. Why do you post like such a know-it-all and don't have the right facts? Do your research before you spout off. There IS unlimited service available via this delivery model.


Yes there are unlimited packages available for GORS/EDGE at around B1,000 per month, however whilst some Sierra Wireless cards did have 3G capability 3 years ago, 3G still does not exist in Thailand, other than trial areas in parts of Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Chonburi. The PM is pushing for 3G to be rolled out urgently as he realises Thailand is already lagging behind in the technology stakes and has a knock on effect to businesses and individuals, but the deputy PM things that 3G is not required urgently 'as there are only 230,000 handsets in Thailand that could use it .... talk about chicken and egg.

Of course the fact that the govt get 25% of all revenue generated from EDGE/GPRS as opposed to only a 6% of any new 3G licences wouldn't have anything to do with it surely ...

CDMA is not 3G and was dropped by Hutch late 2008 (I think, can't recall the exact date) due to technical difficulties. That's after many had already forked out the B16,000 set up fee.......

Bullshit. Simply not true. I had a Sierra Wireless card THREE YEARS ago by CAT that was unlimited and utilized 3G. Why do you post like such a know-it-all and don't have the right facts? Do your research before you spout off. There IS unlimited service available via this delivery model.

Yes there are unlimited packages available for GPRS/EDGE at around B1,000 per month, however whilst some Sierra Wireless cards did have 3G capability 3 years ago, 3G still does not exist in Thailand, other than trial areas in parts of Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Chonburi.

Thank you for that, Patexpat. Anyone who thinks that Thailand has "unlimited" 3G coverage is clearly talking about a different country - probably the same one where a 56k connection speed is considered broadband, and the IPStar satellite dish, which is delivered by truck and a permanent installation, has anything to do with mobiles!

The "right facts", which you can easily verify for yourself BL and justinco, are that Thailand does not yet have universal 3G coverage, or anything like it, nor are EDGE/GPRS the equivalent of broadband, or anything like it - the maximum theoretical download speed EDGE claim is 216kbps, while realistically anyone using it (like me) will be lucky to get a quarter of that most of the time in most areas.

Hutch are only too happy to supply anyone stupid enough to buy one with a 3G capable modem, just as you can easily buy many mobiles in Thailand with 3G capability, but it is useless if the system does not exist in Thailand, which it does not - it is a bit like buying a HDMI TV and then expecting to get Thai TV in HDMI.


Why do you post like such a know-it-all .....?

Because it is more useful than posting crap.

BL, there are no "mobile modem broadband internet services" available in Thailand. Edge/GPRS are charged for by the minute.

THAT was your statement, GF! NOT that there isn't universal service! Your contention was 100% WRONG. WRONG. WRONG. WRONG.

Only you would use someone else's post disproving your own point to appear to vindicate your wrong point. You really do have a god complex.

The "right facts", which you can easily verify for yourself BL and justinco, are that Thailand does not yet have universal 3G coverage, or anything like it, nor are EDGE/GPRS the equivalent of broadband, or anything like it - the maximum theoretical download speed EDGE claim is 216kbps, while realistically anyone using it (like me) will be lucky to get a quarter of that most of the time in most areas.

Thailand's internet limitations are obvious to anyone who's ever been here for a week. We've all lived with it for years. We don't need you to explain that to us, GF. THE POINT of Justinco's questions were based on his having to buy new cards allthe time. A point you completely lose sight of in your desire to prove how smart you are. There ARE unlimited avenues that he can pursue, as well as viable 3G options where a normal user would expect and need it.

The 'right facts' BL and justinco is that for all intents and purposes 3G is widely available in all the places you would ever need it: Metropolitan Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai and Phuket. If you're trolling the upcountry or little villages out in the boonies anyone with common sense can understand that the infrastructure will keep pace with the demand.

You can believe GF or you can believe Apple/True itself:

nor are EDGE/GPRS the equivalent of broadband, or anything like it

Right...'or anything like it'. Incorrect, it IS 'like it' even if it isn't up to Singapore standards. Perhaps GF pouts as he waits the extra minutes for his porn to download, but to contend that there aren't ways to enjoy decent download speeds is disingenuous. Broadband also considers the upload speeds as well, and Thailand's are satisfactory.


Internet in Thailand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
As of 2008, there were 16,100,000 internet users in Thailand. [1]
Broadband Internet is readily available in major cities and towns, but is still to be sought after in smaller villages and in the countryside. As the statistics have shown, the majority of internet users in Thailand still rely on dial-up access. TOT operates a nationwide local rate number, 1222, allowing dialing to most Internet service providers. Dial-up prepaid internet packs can be readily bought in convenience stores and other places. Subscribers of fixed telephone lines by True Corporation have access to dial up internet by dialing a certain number and then being billed on their normal telephone bill.
The majority of broadband Internet access uses Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL). Some areas are covered by Cable Modems and G.shdsl. Consumer broadband internet bandwidth ranges from 2 Mbit/s to 16 Mbit/s. Medium and large businesses use Leased Lines or Ethernet Internet/MPLS where fiber optic cables link many office buildings in the central business district areas such as Sukhumvit, Silom and Sathorn areas to the Thailand Internet backbone. Universities have access to fast internet access, including the Trans-Eurasia Information Network (TEIN2) research network.
A 3G UMTS/HSDPA network was launched in Bangkok and vicinity in December 2009 with speeds upto 7.2 Mbit/s on the 2100 Mhz band. Major mobile network operators in Thailand are testing their 3G networks in limited urban areas on the 850 Mhz and 900 Mhz bands. The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has plans to auction out 4 further licenses to operate 3G UMTS/HSDPA networks on the 2100 MHz spectrum in 2010. A 3G CDMA network with speeds upto 3.1Mbit/s is availble in 51 provinces nationwide.
There are initiatives to offer mainstream FTTH (Fiber to the Home) providing bandwidth of up to 100 Mbit/s bundled with IPTV and VoIP. FTTH with speeds up to 16mbps is available in limited areas in Phuket.
Thailand saw a rapid growth in the number of broadband users in 2005 with the initiation of unmetered broadband in 2004.[2]
There are 1,116,000 (2008) Internet hosts in Thailand being the highest in South East Asia.[3]

nor are EDGE/GPRS the equivalent of broadband, or anything like it

Right...'or anything like it'. Incorrect, it IS 'like it' ....

Unbelievable.

According to Edge (click on the link kindly provided by BL) the maximum download speed for Edge is 216 kbps, and upload is 108 kbps. According to your quote (a link would be better, as it can be read in context and in full) "Consumer broadband internet bandwidth ranges from 2 Mbit/s to 16 Mbit/s.", making Edge between 10 and well over 100 times slower than broadband. They are simply not the same thing, or even remotely similar, and they cannot be used in the same way.

Your photo is an advertisement for a telephone, not a mobile broadband service, which neither Apple nor True provide.

Your quote, as it concerns 3G, refers to tests, trials, plans and initiatives - the only 3G service they refer to which was actually operating (the 3G style CDMA network operated jointly by Hutch and the CAT since 2003) has not been operating for over a year. All current 3G services are on a limited trial basis only.


There may have been limited 3G service in the past, and there almost certainly will be "mobile broadband internet services" in the future, but (apart from the limited trials) at the moment "there are no "mobile modem broadband internet services" available in Thailand.".

My reply to justinco's question only concerned the simplest way for him to renew his internet account. My reply in the same post to BL's question concerned the availability of "mobile modem broadband internet services" in Thailand and how EDGE/GPRS were charged for. My subsequent posts were in response to your totally ill-informed and mis-informative post of "Bullshit. Simply not true. ..... There IS unlimited service available via this delivery model.". By now anyone who has bothered reading anything on it will know whether this service is available or not, so I will not bother wasting my time on you or the subject any further.

Happy New Year.