Android boxes now illegal in Thailand

[tomas557]

7 minutes ago, superal said:

when I made my comment there was not a local area option to buy on my screen but there is now

 

You should stop making things up mate, on every Lazada page is a local option, regardless if there are items available local or not. It's just part of the Lazada menu

 

9 minutes ago, superal said:

So Advice who did sell the boxes no longer sell them as per government instruction and that applied to all retail shop outlets

More drivel, since they quote ministry of education, which has nothing to do with Android boxes. The reason they stop selling is because first of all the Android box boom has passed long ago, and the hassle to get the license.

 

11 minutes ago, superal said:

It does not seem to be the case on line . Interested to see if anyone else can source them from a shop 

A few posters have already quoted name and locations of brick and mortar shops in Thailand that sell them, and if you click on the 1945 available items on Lazada, you will find that most also have a brick and mortar shop where you can go buy the item. There are at least 3 shops in Panthip and a few in Fortune that I'm aware of.

 

13 minutes ago, superal said:

Does not make sense if the only obstacle is a 10 baht tax issue

The 10 Baht is not the issue, it is the hassle to obtain the license. I have seen the documents and it are 6 forms which have to be completed by the seller abroad and the importer in Thailand. It needs to have the serial numbers of the devices that gonna be imported as well as some other details from the seller, and the license needs to be obtained before the boxes are shipped. Not many are interested in that, because it is made difficult on purpose to protect the business of a few major companies in Thailand

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Just now, KhunFred said:

Any box which allows you to access certain kinds of content, are not going to be popular with the current government. I can still access all sorts of "illegal" content. Only rarely do I get a message telling me the content has been blocked. Up until the last few years, YouTube was full of content which violates the Lese Majeste laws. It is beyond the capacity of the government to keep such content from being consumed unless they block the entire service.

 

That's not really a device issue you're describing. That's an internet connection/IP address you're describing.

 

If you have/use a Thailand IP address, then certain content is going to be blocked by the government from you no matter what device you're using.  if you took that same device and shifted it to using a non-Thai IP address, then all that banned content like YouTube content would suddenly be available.

 

The blocking by the government is done at the internet provider level, not the hardware level, generally speaking.

 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

5 minutes ago, Classic Ray said:

The AIS Playbox supplied with my fibre internet package is Android based and can have apps such as Kodi installed by the user.

 

 

Until AIS comes along and flash updates the firmware on your Playbox to disable external apps.

[tweedledee2]

Big C  and Tesco sell an android box called GMMZ Stream for around 3900 baht

[KhunFred]

3 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

 

The blocking by the government is done at the internet provider level, not the hardware level, generally speaking.

 

 

My point is that content deemed to be "blocked" is not always blocked. It seems to vary. Content providers change things around constantly to skirt the laws. Thai authorities have been gunning for Andrew McGregor Marshall for years with no success.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

6 minutes ago, tomas557 said:

The 10 Baht is not the issue, it is the hassle to obtain the license. I have seen the documents and it are 6 forms which have to be completed by the seller abroad and the importer in Thailand. It needs to have the serial numbers of the devices that gonna be imported as well as some other details from the seller, and the license needs to be obtained before the boxes are shipped. Not many are interested in that, because it is made difficult on purpose to protect the business of a few major companies in Thailand

 

That's a good description of what I've understood the NBTC licensing process and requirements to be for Android streaming devices, which is why it's basically impossible for an end user here purchasing the device from abroad to have it NBTC licensed prior to arriving to Thailand. And as a result of that, you thereby incur the risk of a potential Customs seizure upon arrival here for trying to import an unlicensed device.

 

On the other hand, if you can find a local retailer selling the same device, it's already been imported legally or illegally at that point, and you don't have to worry about or deal with the NTBC at all... Since you weren't the importer.

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

5 minutes ago, tweedledee2 said:

Big C  and Tesco sell an android box called GMMZ Stream for around 3900 baht

 

That's a local device for a local service. And a company here in Thailand behind it.

 

[NoshowJones]

7 hours ago, Pib said:

Can get the police to enforce most laws here; might as well let the Education Dept give it a try.  ?

Only if brown envelopes are available, filled of course.

[Rori ban khun fang]

No they are not illegal.

I have a LED tv with android installed.

Bought at lotus-tesco pattaya krang

[vogie]

6 minutes ago, Rori ban khun fang said:

No they are not illegal.

I have a LED tv with android installed.

Bought at lotus-tesco pattaya krang

I have an android smart tv, they are as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Does your tv have PlayStore installed on it, I have found the apps on a Smart TV are a very limited choice to say the least.

[tomas557]

Just now, vogie said:

I have an android smart tv, they are as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Does your tv have PlayStore installed on it, I have found the apps on a Smart TV are a very limited choice to say the least.

If you have one of the recent TCL's you can install almost everything, but you have to sideload them, because it is Android TV which is something different from AQndroid OS.

 

Android TV has only apps that are TV related in the Playstore.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

10 minutes ago, vogie said:

I have an android smart tv, they are as much use as a chocolate fireguard. Does your tv have PlayStore installed on it, I have found the apps on a Smart TV are a very limited choice to say the least.

 

I think different TV manufacturers do better or worse with their own apps stores, in terms of breadth and currency of apps.

 

For some light users, those might be enough. But if I was buying a Smart TV for me, I'd want to make sure it had access to the general Google Android TV playstore and had the ability to sideload Android apps by USB stick or email attachment or whatever.

 

I made the mistake of buying a TCL brand "Smart TV" a year or so back. It had its own TCL app store, not Google, and you could sideload. The TCL app store and the apps in it were horrible and out of date, and even though I could sideload, most of the sideloaded apps never worked well with the TV even though it apparently was running some pretty old version of Android under the skin.

Edited July 19, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Jeffrey346]

Plus I question the quality of the TCL TVs.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

When I was TV shopping a year or so back, I remember the Thai salesmen claiming to me, and having product brochures, claiming that a couple of brands had generic Android TV OSes. But I can't remember the names right now, maybe Toshiba, maybe Sharp, not sure.

 

Part of the problem was the TVs at the stores are never connected and live to the internet, so you can never really get a good feel of how their online elements work on the store shelf. But I'm assuming EN reviews and such would provide a better insight into that.

 

If someone here actually has a better feel for that from actually having used one of those particular Smart TV brands that are generic Android TV and app store capable, please do chime in and let everyone know.

 

Personally for now, I've decided to keep the "smart" out of my TVs and rely on comparatively low-cost hardware accessories to provide their smarts.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Jeffrey346]

8 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

When I was TV shopping a year or so back, I remember the Thai salesmen claiming to me, and having product brochures, claiming that a couple of brands had generic Android TV OSes. But I can't remember the names right now, maybe Toshiba, maybe Sharp, not sure.

 

Part of the problem was the TVs at the stores are never connected and live to the internet, so you can never really get a good feel of how their online elements work on the store shelf. But I'm assuming EN reviews and such would provide a better insight into that.

 

If someone here actually has a better feel for that from actually having used one of those particular Smart TV brands that are generic Android TV and app store capable, please do chime in and let everyone know.

 

Personally for now, I've decided to keep the "smart" out of my TVs and rely on comparatively low-cost hardware accessories to provide their smarts.

 

 

Sony Smart TVs run Android TV

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

3 minutes ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Sony Smart TVs run Android TV

I think there's one other brand available too in the Thai market....  I seem to remember it was two....

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I guess I should add, the reason I actually ended up buying the TCL I did more than a year ago was, at the time, the TCL model I got came with 3 HDMI ports plus 2 USB ports -- which was a feature I wanted because of my interest in streaming devices. And those have proved a valuable and good feature to have for my subsequent use of the TV -- unlike its built-in "smart" elements.

 

Whereas to my considerable surprise, most of the other Smart TVs from other brands I was looking at, at that time, seemed to come with only 2 HDMI and 1 USB or similar, even relatively expensive models.  Dunno if that's changed and gotten better in the past year as technology has marched onward.  BTW, at the time, I was buying a 15K baht full HD TV, not a 60K or 90K baht 4K version.

[watcharacters]

4 hours ago, giddyup said:

No. I asked if anyone had bought a cheap Kingston SD card from Lazada and was it any good. The answers said that they were rubbish, so I never bought. Understood?

 

 

Sorry but your punctuation completely mislead me.   

 

My fault.     ?‍♀️ 

 

"A Kingston 32gb SD card for 70 baht? I asked some questions on this forum before I did buy, answers were, stay away, definitely fakes. Others have made the mistake and got their money back from Lazada. They are still selling them though"

 

Good luck!

[tweedledee2]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

That's a local device for a local service. And a company here in Thailand behind it.

 

It can stream from the internet which isn't local.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

8 minutes ago, tweedledee2 said:

It can stream from the internet which isn't local.

 

My point was, it's not an imported device, and you're not buying it from abroad, so you don't have to worry about any of the NBTC licensing issues.

 

It's only the foreign, imported hardware the government here wants to hassle.

 

Edited July 19, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, tweedledee2 said:

Big C  and Tesco sell an android box called GMMZ Stream for around 3900 baht

 

BTW, obviously, I don't have/haven't used that box.

 

So for purposes of this thread topic, perhaps I can ask:

 

-- does that box have access to the Google Play Store or any other app store?

and

-- can you sideload apps onto that box such as Kodi?

 

[poosmate]

I believe the licence requirement was for iptv streaming devices. Android boxes that are not preloaded with kodi etc are not really different to a telephone. Android boxes are not required to be licenced but iptv boxes like MAG boxes are. I would love to be able to buy locally a Mag box. Lazada used to sell them and I bought 5. They are no longer listed. Easily available from Ebay etc but worry getting in past customs.

Before the suggestions of MAG emulators on an Andriod I know and they are not anywhere as good as the box.

[tomas557]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I think there's one other brand available too in the Thai market....  I seem to remember it was two....

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smart_TV_platforms_and_middleware_software

[Jeffrey346]

21 minutes ago, poosmate said:

I believe the licence requirement was for iptv streaming devices. Android boxes that are not preloaded with kodi etc are not really different to a telephone. Android boxes are not required to be licenced but iptv boxes like MAG boxes are. I would love to be able to buy locally a Mag box. Lazada used to sell them and I bought 5. They are no longer listed. Easily available from Ebay etc but worry getting in past customs.

Before the suggestions of MAG emulators on an Andriod I know and they are not anywhere as good as the box.

When you say MAG, are you referring to Magicsee ?

[tomas557]

1 minute ago, Jeffrey346 said:

When you say MAG, are you referring to Magicsee ?

MAG boxes are streaming devices. Magicsee is a Chinese company that produces crap.

 

https://www.infomir.eu/eng/products/iptv-stb/mag-257/

Edited July 19, 2018 by tomas557

[Jeffrey346]

5 minutes ago, tomas557 said:

MAG boxes are streaming devices. Magicsee is a piece of crap

 

https://www.infomir.eu/eng/products/iptv-stb/mag-257/

Thanks for the link.  They seem under speced. 1G RAM 512 mb memory

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

37 minutes ago, poosmate said:

I believe the licence requirement was for iptv streaming devices. Android boxes that are not preloaded with kodi etc are not really different to a telephone. Android boxes are not required to be licenced but iptv boxes like MAG boxes are. I would love to be able to buy locally a Mag box. Lazada used to sell them and I bought 5. They are no longer listed. Easily available from Ebay etc but worry getting in past customs.

Before the suggestions of MAG emulators on an Andriod I know and they are not anywhere as good as the box.

 

I've never before seen or heard that kind of interpretation of the edict the government issued. I'm not sure what your basis is for thinking that Android TV and similar devices were/are not covered. Basically, they were aiming at TV add-on devices that could enable streaming of illegal/unlicensed content.

 

And yes, I know, a person with a Windows PC, Android smart phone, etc. can do exactly the same things, and they certainly didn't pass an edict against those. But if you're expecting logic from the Thai government, you've come to the wrong place.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[tomas557]

3 minutes ago, Jeffrey346 said:

Thanks for the link.  They seem under speced. 1G RAM 512 mb memory

They are not under specced because they run Linux, and for streaming that is enough.

 

This are not Android boxes, and you can't install Kodi on them. They are used solely for IPTV streaming.

[tomas557]

1 minute ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I've never before seen or heard that kind of interpretation of the edict the government issued. I'm not sure what your basis is for thinking that Android TV devices were/are not covered.

 

On the NBTC license is clearly mantioned Android Box - Chromecast - Apple tv etc

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

18 minutes ago, tomas557 said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smart_TV_platforms_and_middleware_software

 

So, for Android TV OS platforms, that list is showing:

--Phillips (are they in Thailand?)

--Sharp (I thought it was an S brand I was thinking of)

--Sony

--TCL (although not the model I bought a year ago, unless they're using a very general definition for Android TV)

 

That list also is not specific to Thailand. For example, in the U.S., there are many models of TCL TVs that come with the Roku OS as default. But here in Thailand, I don't think I've ever seen any TV brand running the Roku OS, even though they're common in other markets.