Lannig

Well, for an old guy like me it all sounds too familiar.

The US of A. are back to their old habits of supporting dic... err, not completely democratic regimes they had in the 70s and 80s, e.g. in Latin America, after a couple of decades trying to make people believe that they weren't doing so anymore.

Mind you, not that I'm holding my breath until EU moves an ear, though. I'm not that stupid.

About the bloody (literally) hoe: have I missed something or nothing has been said yet about DNA match of the said blood with the victims' ?

Well, not only they will not be fully enforced, but they're probably not going to be enforced at all because that's close to impossible.

Death penalty for causing an airport closure. Well, how many heads would have rolled in 2008, then?

Imagine the international outrage...

Anyway, yellow or red, this seems to be Thailand's speciality to come up with laws that are so ridiculously strict that no one seriously considers ever enforcing them. It's been like this for decades.

This country will start making progress towards policital maturity by the day they will realise this and start inventing laws that make sense and provide for practical enforcement of not ridiculously harsh penalties. They're still quite far away from this.

I won't even start arguing about the last sentence of Lukecan's post... not worth the effort.

I'm sure we don't have the full story here. There probably already was some kind of conflict between these two youngsters, be it girls, debt or whatever, and this agument about kitchen chores is likely to have been the final spark to this horrible explosion of lethal violence.

Because of this, I find the title of this thread and the corresponding article a bit over the edge.

Not that it makes this event any more acceptable...

There is only one reason why foreign tourists in bikinis are tolerated on Thai beaches, and that is because of the $$$ earned from these tourists.

Most Thai people are conservative in outlook and frown upon the wearing of such clothing. Remember that most Thais are Buddhist, with a large Muslim minority (majority in the south).

Don't think for one minute that you would be welcome on the beaches of Thailand in your bikini if it were not for your money.

I'm really not sure how much of their wearing t-shirts on beaches comes from conservatism and how much comes from their terrible fear of becoming sun tanned and therefore dark.

On the few occasions I've discussed this with "ordinary" thai ladies (i.e. not from Pattaya or similar places) of the right age for wearing bikinis, the fear of becoming dark seemed like their main reason.

Of course, they might not want to openly admit being shy either.

I've just watched a live report of the protests on BBC and I was amazed to notice that the crowd of protesters seems to be almost completely female. Well, at least the ones who accept being filmed (I almost wrote "shot" but that was inappropriate) and accept to talk to the reporter.

Tells a lot about the Thai society, I think.

Hello folks,

Geez, here in the central-northen region, it's as dry as in April and almost as hot. Well, OK, not quite, but still unusually hot.

I haven't seen a single drop of rain in 5 days.

I was planning to take my thai family to Hua-Hin for a 4-day vacation, a long time request. We were supposed to leave tomorrow and now I'm wondering whether this is a good idea or not. How's the situation there now? The picture looks awfully like what we've endured for weeks here in 2011. You people have all my sympathy, I know the feeling.

Also I've heard that whenever there's heavy rainfall over Hua-Hin, the beaches are litterally infested with jellyfish. This would make the stay even more unpleasant since the kids want to enjoy swimming. Truth or rumour?

Any comments and tips from people there are more than welcome, I need to make a decision quick now. This is going to be an expensive vacation, so I wouldn't like it to be ruined.

Thanks in advance.

Seems that your little grey cells are fading.

Remember what I wrote?

If using the Net SIM and have used up your five hours and want another five hours for 39 baht(plus VAT), add some credit(at least 42 baht) and then *133*36*008615# Send

.

But you decided to pay 50 baht plus VAT and then complain.

Oopsie. Indeed, I had overlooked this particular tidbit. My bad.

Not to get the last word or anything, but (unless I've missed it twice) this particular offer seems nowhere to be seen on the two AIS pages linked in one of your posts. Unfortunately they are the ones I had printed before leaving as a reference.

Which brings up the next question: where did you find this?

Mind you, I didn't really complain. Just wanted to tell my little story because it was some fun after all to realise all I had to go through for the bloody 5 hours of online time

I need to rethink all of this anyway until my next trip, and I've got good pieces of advice to help me think. Thanks.

Wasn't about you... BUT, since you are here...

You wrote earlier

Folks, thanks for all the technical tips and questions but I've had all of this covered. I know for sure that both my Nexus One and my 3G stick work flawlessly, are 100% unlocked, give me full 3G in areas of coverage in Thailand (with AIS at least),

The problem with that statement is that now you are also claiming that you picked up a 3G signal from DTAC with the same modem. That is simply not possible. The Huawei E160 is UMTS 850MHz/2100Mhz or 900MHz/2100MHz or 2100MHz only. So it would not be possible to get both AIS 3G and DTAC 3G using the same modem.

So yes, you wrote that....for sure ;

Well, you might be right on this. I'm not 100% positive that I was using my own 3G stick at that time. However you may want to consider that there are several variants of the E160 model which might have support for different 3G bands. I'm not sure which one I have because it doesn't even bear this name. I've bought it as a rebranded Vodafone product bearing a completely different model name and possibly some tweaks, I don't know.

Anyway, point taken.

So, currently being in the LOS and the next SIM card in my stack of AIS Net SIMs reaching the end of its bundled 5 hours of online time, I've tried to apply the bits of advice received here. Due to my (admittedly very atypical) usage pattern, I've opted for another 5 hours bundle at 50B. Not a huge gain compared to the price of a new SIM (59B) but still. So I've been to my nearest friendly 7-11 and bought a 50B refill coupon. I've entered it into my phone, so far so good. I've dialed *138*57# and... huh? insufficient credit? WTH? oh yeah... read the fine print, dumb. 50B VAT excluded. How clever... so I need to add some credit eh? This is starting to look like less of a bargain. Since I'll be away in less than a week, I've opted for a 10B credit from one of these online top-up booths. Heck. They charge 2B for the service. So it's 12B to you, Sir.

So let's do a recount : 50+10+2 = 62B, compared to the price of a new SIM I can pick up easily at the Lotus nearby? At 59B? still makes sense to me to use one SIM after another, doesn't it?

Now, please don't shoot me. I still appreciate all the helpful tips received here. Would my usage pattern be a little less atypical, it'd certainly be much more convenient to switch to some of the offers presented here. This little 5 hours top-up adventure was even funny considering the tiny amount of money involved. I may reconsider my way of being online while in the LOS completely such as having my (probably another) smartphone online all the time and using tethering when I need my notebook online. Heck, I'm over 50, I don't switch habits easily.

Thanks for your time reading me and helping, folks. Will be back to this never-ending winter in Europe in a matter of days. Well, I might appreciate some cool weather at first... >40 daily and not a single drop of rain in two weeks here on the central plain was a bit harsh.

P.S. and oh yeah, AIS does suck. Their service even seems to have gotten significantly worse since my last trip. From not being able to turn data on for several minutes to nonexistent bandwidth (like not a byte getting through, not even a short mail) in remote areas, even when the phone claims receiving a full strength GSM signal and EDGE being shown as up.

Secondly, had he bothered to read the thread, he would have discovered the the phone is compatible with AIS/One2Call only. So True and DTAC are out anyway.

Huh? sorry? who said that? not me for sure.

I can't tell for sure because I can't remember having tried with other SIMs. Wait... yes I did I think, at least once with my 3G dongle on DTAC and it did catch 3G in BKK. Don't know about the others.

Admittedly I have tried nothing but AIS on my Nexus One. Will do soon since I'm on my way to LOS, and I shall report.

Oh and by the way I don't leave the data enabled on my smartphone when I don't need it. So time-based packages are fine to me. I don't like the idea of being tracked all the time anyway (yes I know there are plenty of ways to avoid this, I just don't want to bother).

Thanks for all the tips given, I'll try to make the best use of them.

Guys, maybe things have changed since january, but I can tell for sure that neither AIS nor DTAC had 3G coverage in my place 30km away from downtown Nakorn Sawan at that time. Haven't tried True, though.

So maybe "nationwide" should be taken with a grain of salt, shouldn't it?

The same equipment picked up 3G alright in BKK.

@Jiu-Jistsu : at least something immediately usable. Thanks. If I don't switch to anything else, I can use my AIS Net SIM more efficiently at least. Strange that no one could give me this hint at various AIS / Telewiz desks around Nakorn Sawan

Folks, thanks for all the technical tips and questions but I've had all of this covered. I know for sure that both my Nexus One and my 3G stick work flawlessly, are 100% unlocked, give me full 3G in areas of coverage in Thailand (with AIS at least), I'm happy with the way I use them etc.

My mentioning a data-only SIM was because I've been using the same voice-only SIM for several years, it doesn't have data and I put it in a cheap feature phone. I'm fine with this also and switching to another phone number would be a major annoyance.

This wasn't my question, anyway. It was about the pre-paid or subscription plans available based on my periods of presence on Thai soil and usage patterns described above.

I've got some interesting suggestions here, thanks for this. The 50 hour/200B plan seems like a possible fit, however what happens when you leave it dead with zero balance remaining for several months? can I re-activate it when I return? how? do I need to visit an AIS shop for this?

The other plans in the 500B+ range seem like overkill for my needs. I can get along buying 3 to 5 of these 59B SIMs with 5 bundled hours during my stay, although having to switch SIMs is a (small) pain.

Then DigiLife shop at Pantip Plaza is your friend. Make sure tablet has IPS or MVA panel, not TN panel (cheaper tablets use TN panel which can't be seen from other directions). RK3066 chip is pretty good.

Thanks. Do you have some recently seen prices and models in mind?

I know the difference between IPS and TN.

Well, I can order from China while staying in my home country as well. Many people do it here.

I just don't want to. I like to hold a tablet in my hands before buying it. I'm ready to pay a bit more for this.

Thanks for the suggestion anyway.

First, thanks to all for the replies so far. I'm still kind of confused but starting to see some light.

I guess it would help if you could share the exact brand/model of your smartphone and USB aircard, so we can attempt to match you up with the potentially best service provider.

Smartphone is a Goole Nexus One. Works OK on both 3G and EDGE in Thailand.
USB 3G dongle is a Huawei E160. Both of these have been extensively tested over several trips with AIS Net SIMs. No technical issue so far.

And if you could share any details re: your usage, locations, budget, frequency of visits.

Usage: some e-mail, some navigation (Google Maps), some news reading using media apps, some listening to western radios.
About most one hour/day average and probably only 10 Mb or so/day average.
Locations: mostly around Nakorn Sawan (not downtown though: no 3G available on AIS at least), a couple of day trips to BKK, depending on the season I might spend a few days in Hua Hin as well.
I come 3 or 4 times/year, for 2 to 3 weeks stays.

>Most people purchase a SIM, add value and then subscribe to a mobile data plan. You can add value using many different channels: 7/11, ATM, scratch card, etc. Most mobile data plans auto-renew each month. You can subscribe to a time-based plan, or a volume-based plan.

It's my belief that to subscribe to a monthly plan, you need a work permit don't you?
Anyway considering the amount of time I spend in the LOS every year, it's probably not worth it.

I'm familiar with the different channels one can use to refill a prepaid card (as I've mentioned, I've lived several years in the LOS), just that the amount of service I get for my money when I refill my AIS Net SIM doesn't make sense. Some people have mentioned "choosing the right promotion" to me, which does make sense, but no one (including the local AIS shop) has been able to tell exactly which one :-)

Seems that prepaid data-only 3G SIMs are very little known.

There are many, many potential options for you but I'm not sure the current one you are utilizing is the ideal one?

Not sure either, hence my asking here :-)

Hello folks,

Not being a resident anymore, I can't use a subscription-based SIM. I need a data connection when I'm in the LOS.

I used to buy the AIS Net SIM. These were giving 10 hours of air time for 59B. A few months ago they've slashed this to 5 hours, which still isn't bad, but I'm wondering whether there might be better bargains.

I need something that will work (possibly not in 3G, I understand the coverage issues) out of greater BKK because I spend most of my time upcountry (and not in any tourist high place either).

I need it to be usable both in my smartphone (for data only) and in my 3G stick on my computer.

Furthermore, has anyone found the "right" way to refill one of these SIMs and get decent online time per baht? Seems that every time I've tried to refill my AIS Net SIM after the free hours were exhausted, I got like less than one hour of very moderate usage for 50B. This just doesn't make sense. So I kept buying new SIMs and dumping them after the bundled free online time is exhausted. What a waste.

Thanks in advance for your tips.

Hello folks,

Last time I was in Thailand in January I saw a couple of Android tablets based on the (more or less) latest generation CPUs, namely the dual-core RK3066, sold for ca. 4000B at Zeer Rangsit (7" and 8" size). They looked reasonably well built. I almost bought one. They were local rebrands of no-name chinese tablets but I can't remember the name. Not G-net, not I-Mobile either I think... it just escapes me. Anyway...

I'm about to come to the LOS for a few weeks quite soon. I see similar tablets starting to appear in local (EU) online stores for 130-150 (7"/8") to 170-200 euros (10"), although most of them are in pre-order only. I'm wondering whether there might be better bargains and/or available tablets at this time in Thailand. Anyone been looking around in Panthip or Zeer (or another place) lately?

Oh... before I get a deluge of replies warning me against buying cheap chinese crap: yes, I know perfectly what I am doing with this kind of stuff. I already have a few ones. I know the risks, I accept them. Furthermore I like to have different sizes available depending on my usage and my mood of the day, so I can't afford the big brand names.

And yes, I used to be an expat there. *Sigh*.

Less than 10 posts before the anti-Thaksin obession raises its ugly head this time. That was a far shot, starting from TPB, Sweden and Cambodia. Congratulations.

OB on-topic post : guess what? It's only a matter of how much money you are ready to put on the table. Sweden probably is going to pay a lot if he's extradited. Let Thailand make an offer for you favourite devil and sees what happens.

Well well well.. Yet another post deleted by Mods... It was a valid point... Drugs are ILLEGAL in Thailand so why are they being discussed on your site? HYPOCRITES...

Er yes, so is prostitution. Taking both these topics away would certainly harm TV forums' activity.

On the other hand, there's no law that prohibits discussing these AFAIK, whereas there are laws against discussing some other specific topics. One could regret this, I do, but that's a fact of life TV operators who value their business have to do with.

Rarely do I enter into the petty arguments here, but had to comment on Southernman. And what do you know someone beat me to it. My expensive overinsured

cars and my big police friends, give me a break!!

If you are a falung and you injure a Thai in an accident, does not matter if he is drunk and comes out of a side street into your car, you better have bail insurance as an option on your vehicle policy. I know people that have had huge expensive dramas in these cases.

I can report a completely different story heard from a close friend. A couple of months ago he has hit a guy walking right in the middle of the road at night, most likely a drunk farm worker (pay day, you know). The victim was severely wounded but has recovered. This has happened in the middle of nowhere in central Thailand on a desert secondary road. He wasn't overspeeding, but he saw the poor guy too late to stop before hitting him. He has done what Mr. Sailblue above would probably consider very unwise: stopped and called for help. Although there was no direct witness of the scene, his account of the accident was accepted by the cops, who knew that such drunk people wandering at night on the road is a common occurence in this area. He was taken to the police station, questioned and released without his car which was held and required to report back about a week later. He has had to fork a fair amount of money for hospital care to the victim plus compensation for him being unable to work for several months (I think in the 100K THB range). However his insurance has reimbursed most of this and he could get his car back. As far as I know no tea money was asked for and none was given.

The funniest part of this story is that one of the cops who has questioned him has expressed his surprise at him not fleeing the scene. He said "you know, most Thais would had fled. You are a good person".

I have to mention that my friend has been living in Thailand for over 20 years now, speaks Thai fluently and despite being almost 2 metres tall blends so well with Thais I sometimes find him having more thainess than the Thais, even the slightly irritating aspects :-)

That certainly helped.

let me see, an electric vehicle gets around 150kms from a full charge and it takes between 6 - 8 to achieve a full charge. If I was driving from Chiangmai to Bangkok (around 900 kms) I would have to stop and recharge 6 times. 6 X 8 hrs = 48 hours + 10 hours actual driving = 58 hours for the trip. 2 1/2 days to get to BKK, no thanks I will stay with a petrol vehicle and cut 2 days off my trip.

The only thing that has a chance to work are hot-swappable batteries at service stations. Takes only a couple of minutes and you leave with fully-charged batteries. I think at least Renault has plans to offer such a car. Of course there are huge problems to work around: standardising battery packs not being the least one. Also this can only work with some kind of vehicle long-term rental including this service. People owning their car would not easily accept to have its batteries swapped with others from unknown origin and state. Kind of a niche market at this time, I'd say.

One of the cheapest roundtrip tickets you can get from Paris to Bangkok is on Emirates and (at least) the Paris-Dubai part is on an A380, so I really don't see a premium price being paid for flying the whale jet.

I prefer Etihad myself, but I digress.

We know that Thai people are not disgusted by corruption when it means "commissions" (in farang countries, this is called lobbying) but when the judges act so obvioulsy like xxxxx, don't be gullible, poor Thai people are not gullible, they know that these judges are enemies of the justice, enemies of the poor people (let's say reds).

This is oversimplification. I know people from the mid-low layers of the Thai society who claimed that they wouldn't mind having different kinds of low-life forms such as motorcycle robbers or yabaa dealers being shot on sight by the cops and therefore wouldn't expect the said cops to get into the slightest kind of trouble for this. Would the poor sods whose lives have been taken by the judged cops qualify as worth the trouble by them? not sure.

Not all Thais care about justice. Actually some of them, otherwise nice and friendly people, can sometimes say things that really give me goose bumps. Things that would place them ideologically just a bit further right than the hard-core neo-fascists we have in Europe.

This kind of judges are making the bed of a new society, without the corrupted bangkokian elites.

I think you really need to go live out of Bangkok. You have something against Bangkokians ;-)

More seriously, I think that corrupt cops aren't especially linked to the bangkokian elite, whatever this is. The worst of the worst do their daily evil deep in the Thai countryside. Some of them are close friends to local high-ranked red politicians as well.