Bluetooth

[Phil_ne_uk]

After been told it would take about 3 months for TOT to install a phone line I decided to use Bluetooth. I’m curious what speed anyone else gets who uses Bluetooth as my connection is only a very slowwww 115.2 Kbps aghhhhh still, its better than trailing out to the internet café! I think.

Does anyone know of any alternative option at a similar cost?

Phil

[Phil_ne_uk]

I forgot to say that the internet connection is via an I-mobile. Anyone else use Bluetooth?

[nikster]

I forgot to say that the internet connection is via an I-mobile. Anyone else use Bluetooth?

Umm.. Bluetooth is what connects your computer to your phone.

Your phone then connects to the internet. There are three different ways to do that in Thailand:

All speeds in Kilobytes (KB) per second, not Kilobits (Kb). 1 KB ~= 10 Kb.

- GPRS at max. 4KB/s

- GPRS EDGE == fast GPRS at max. 20KB/sec

- 3G at max. 50KB/sec

Depending on your provider and location. 3G is offered only by Hutch and only in BKK and "central provinces".

AIS and DTAC offer GPRS. AIS has way better EDGE coverage than DTAC.

But whether you use GPRS or EDGE, both will seem painfully slow compared to a normal connection. Only Hutch 3G will seem comparable. EDGE has great theoretical speed but in practice it's just as slow as plain old GPRS most of the time and for most people.

Hope that clears things up

[billd766]

I have done a rough calculation using the amount of received data divided by the time used a couple of times now and each time it has come up with around 1.5 KB/s.

My laptop shows 115KB/s from the mobile to tha laptop but that is just the link.

I have been waiting for a landline out here in the sticks for more than 3 years and as I am 62 I may die before it gets here.

[lingling]

I have done a rough calculation using the amount of received data divided by the time used a couple of times now and each time it has come up with around 1.5 KB/s.

My laptop shows 115KB/s from the mobile to tha laptop but that is just the link.

I have been waiting for a landline out here in the sticks for more than 3 years and as I am 62 I may die before it gets here.

You may want to take a look at ipstar.

http://www.csloxinfo.com/ipstar_promo_e.asp

Some users praise it, others hate it so check out the other ipstar threads before you order. (I haven't tried it myself yet)

[Gary A]

I tried to check the Bluetooth connection speed today and it is pathetically slow. This is the worst it has been so I also tried my cable connection. It was no better. Both work but both are too slow to be able to check the speed.

Loxinfo Ipstar SUPER sucks. I suffered with it for a year and a half. TOT Ipstar also sucks but is usable at least most of the time. This past week it has been pretty bad.

I pay 2,200 baht per month for TOT Ipstar 512/256 service. That's a rip off for the service that I actually get. Unfortunately it's this or the pathetic GPRS.

[monty]

All speeds in Kilobytes (KB) per second, not Kilobits (Kb). 1 KB ~= 10 Kb.

- GPRS at max. 4KB/s

- GPRS EDGE == fast GPRS at max. 20KB/sec

- 3G at max. 50KB/sec

Depending on your provider and location. 3G is offered only by Hutch and only in BKK and "central provinces".

Not completely correct

1kB (kilobyte) is exactly 8 Kb (kilobit)

GPRS has a maximium speed of 48kbps (or 6kBps). Practically it'll average half of that due to the fact that most of the time the data arrives in short bursts...

GPRS Edge (in 4+1 configuration, most commonly used) downloads at a top speed of 236.8 kbps and uploads at a topspeed of 59.2 kbps athough up to 384kbps down should be possible.

CDMA 1x (Used by Hutch) tops out at 144 kbps

Hutch is NOT 3G, but just like Edge it is most often referred to as 2.75G

There are currently no 3G services available in Thailand, Although CAT is trialling 3G services in Phuket using CDMA EVDO technology, with speeds of over 1000kbps reported!!!

So if you have an EDGE capable device, then there is a big chance your Bluetooth connection at 115.2 kbps is limiting your speed, since edge is capable of over 200kbps!!! If only standard GPRS it wouldn't matter since the bluetooth would almost be twice as fast...

I have Sierra Edge wireless card in my Laptop, and the Thaivisa speedtest (located in Singapore) regularly gives me over 200kbps!

Unfortunately, the rest of the world gets me seldom over 120 kbps

When browsing Thaivisa, I do not notice a lot of difference to my 256kbps ADSL link, the rest of the world's websites are pretty slow though!

[monty]

And for those doubting the speed capability of Edge GPRS, following picture is a speedtest done from a Thai server (TT&T) while connected through AIS Edge with my aircard...

For those in serious doubt you can check the IP address here

which will tell you its Advanced Info Service (AIS)

Unfortunately AIS is in short supply of international bandwidth, from Singapore I get between 100 and 220 kbps, and the USA/Europe between 60 and 140 kbps...

[Phil_ne_uk]

Thanks for your feedback everyone. I’m at a friends just now using a wireless connection which shows as 54.0 Mbps. The http://speedtest.thaivisa.com/ result was

Download Speed: 267 kbps (33.4 KB/sec transfer rate)

Upload Speed: 209 kbps (26.1 KB/sec transfer rate)

I’ll try the speed test again when I’m using Bluetooth to compare.

I sympathise with billd776 waiting 3 yrs for a phone line. I’ve been waiting 1 month here in Pattaya for TOT to install a phone line. First they said it would take 2 weeks, great I thought. Then after 2 weeks they said 2-3 more weeks. Then they said 2 more months!

One things for sure though,,, internet/phone service in Thailand is crap! But we knew that already! Lol

Amazing Thailand!

Phil

[Guest Reimar]

Thanks for your feedback everyone. I’m at a friends just now using a wireless connection which shows as 54.0 Mbps. The http://speedtest.thaivisa.com/ result was

Download Speed: 267 kbps (33.4 KB/sec transfer rate)

Upload Speed: 209 kbps (26.1 KB/sec transfer rate)

I’ll try the speed test again when I’m using Bluetooth to compare.

I sympathise with billd776 waiting 3 yrs for a phone line. I’ve been waiting 1 month here in Pattaya for TOT to install a phone line. First they said it would take 2 weeks, great I thought. Then after 2 weeks they said 2-3 more weeks. Then they said 2 more months!

One things for sure though,,, internet/phone service in Thailand is crap! But we knew that already! Lol

Amazing Thailand!

Phil

The 54 Mbps is the speed of the wireless router/Access point, my Level1 has 108 Mbps! Most of the ADSL Modem Router having 8 Mbps and ADSL 2+ 25 Mbps!

The newest and highest service in Thailand is from TRUE max. 5 Mbps down and 512 kbps up!

267/209 kbps looks like a 512/256 ADSL Account?!

DTAC Edge works at max 430 kbps (100-200 m from the station) and 256 kbps max 1.5 km from the station. But shows at all time 430 kbps, even in an un-covered area (more than 3 km away from the station) while the speed is there 40 kbps maximum.

DTAC Com Center at Srinakarin Rd. has high level Edge senders but at intersection Theparak the signal is gone down and the speed as low as 40 kbps, distance 2.5 km!

Same happens with AIS!

Hutch CDMA System has max 153 kbps and same to CAT in the areas of CAT-CDMA!

I tested both of them because my new house and office hasn't any phone line. IP-Star from CS-L totally unuseable (95%+ corrupt Data) and VoIP impossible.

[g00dgirl]

And for those doubting the speed capability of Edge GPRS, following picture is a speedtest done from a Thai server (TT&T) while connected through AIS Edge with my aircard...

monty, where did you buy your AirCard 775 ?

And do you have any instructions on setting it up, from buying a new AIS SIM card, what to ask for in the shop in terms of package for using GPRS/EDGE, getting it activated on the SIM card and installing, configuring the Aircard connection etc .. ?

Do you know of a reasonably up-to date coverage map or database showing where in Thailand EGDE is available at a base station?

Is the software that comes with this Aircard also in some way customized for a network operator, like it seems to be the case for the CDMA Aircard? (I saw several warnings on the Sierra Wireless homepage about not downloading any software for the CDMA aircard that comes from another network operator .. and CAT wasn't even listed.

[g00dgirl]

The newest and highest service in Thailand is from TRUE max. 5 Mbps down and 512 kbps up!

Do you have any links to this offer, and do you know where in Thailand (what DSLAMs) the phone exchanges already support this speed?

Also which phoneline do you need to have TOT or TT&T or CAT or doesn't matter?

[nikster]

All speeds in Kilobytes (KB) per second, not Kilobits (Kb). 1 KB ~= 10 Kb.

- GPRS at max. 4KB/s

- GPRS EDGE == fast GPRS at max. 20KB/sec

- 3G at max. 50KB/sec

Depending on your provider and location. 3G is offered only by Hutch and only in BKK and "central provinces".

Not completely correct

1kB (kilobyte) is exactly 8 Kb (kilobit)

As per the definition, yes. I said 10 because of 1 start and 1 stop bit. However looking this up in Wikipedia, only old analog modems use start and stop bits, so nowadays it's more correct to just go with 8. I stand corrected.

For an _exhaustive_ list of all sorts of connections and their speeds, check out this page - it has all speeds in both kilobits and kilobytes:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_device_bandwidths

GPRS has a maximium speed of 48kbps (or 6kBps). Practically it'll average half of that due to the fact that most of the time the data arrives in short bursts...

GPRS Edge (in 4+1 configuration, most commonly used) downloads at a top speed of 236.8 kbps and uploads at a topspeed of 59.2 kbps athough up to 384kbps down should be possible.

CDMA 1x (Used by Hutch) tops out at 144 kbps

Hutch is NOT 3G, but just like Edge it is most often referred to as 2.75G

I thought Hutch has over 300kbps - 144 is rather disappointing. Hopefully, it's still faster than EDGE in real life.

The main problem of EDGE is the difference between theory and practice. EDGE runs over the normal GSM network and voice calls always take precedence. So the lady across the street makes a call, and your connection speed drops by half. I found it consistently bad in crowded areas.

So if you have an EDGE capable device, then there is a big chance your Bluetooth connection at 115.2 kbps is limiting your speed, since edge is capable of over 200kbps!!! If only standard GPRS it wouldn't matter since the bluetooth would almost be twice as fast...

The 115.2 is an artificial limitation, you can just set it to 921,600 bps. I did that and noticed some slight improvement with EDGE over my phone. In order to use EDGE properly you need a class 10 EDGE device - not all phones qualify.

Here's how:

-> Network Connections

-> Right-click on Bluetooth Modem, select "Properties"

-> In the dialog, under "General", "Connect Using", highlight the entry with the checkmark, then

click on "Properties" under the list.

-> In the next dialog, set the connection speed to 921,600.

That's it - use EDGE to its full potential. Won't blow your socks off, but better than nothing.

AIS is way better for EDGE coverage than DTAC. I have both - DTAC has EDGE in Bangkok, and in very few other select areas. AIS has EDGE coverage nearly everywhere. I have now switched to using mostly AIS because of that. Also, AIS has GPRS packages on prepaid phone cards, which I find very convenient.

[monty]

Hi Goodgirl,

Bought my aircard in dataIT, one of those big computershop chains you find in in Pantip plaza and TukCom Pattaya...

Setup is very easy, you just install the software from the cd included before inserting the aircard!

Put your simcard in the aircard and plug into your laptop.

All the rest happens automatically from then on!

The cards you buy in Thailand are pre-configured for both AIS and Dtac, but configuration is very easy anyway.

If you connect to the internet without subscribing to a package, you get deducted 1 Baht/minute.

With one2call you can subscribe to the packages by dialing *138

You then have to push some numbers (2 for English etc) and navigate to the GPRS offerings. Then you chose a packae which best fits you. I have 100 Hrs/month for 350 Baht.

Not sure how to go about getting a package on Dtac pre-paid.

I have both a Dtac sim and an AIS sim, every so often the AIS internet gets very slow, so I just change to the Dtac sim and surf away. In general AIS is the fastest though.

At the moment however, AIS has ground to a standstill, but Dtac is still working ( over 100kbps on Thaivisa servers)

The aircard 775 can freely be upgraded with the latest software from Sierra, I did thid, and the card retained the previous settings! The upgrade did improve general stability and speed, before the upgrade I had quite a few disconnects, now it stays connected happily for hours in a row...

[monty]

I thought Hutch has over 300kbps - 144 is rather disappointing. Hopefully, it's still faster than EDGE in real life.

Sorry, not 144kbps but 153kbps!

http://www.hutch.co.th/Hutch_PCMCIA_Sierra.htm

Maybe I'm lucky being in Pattaya since I've never had timeslots taken away (reducing the speed) even at busy times during weekends. The speed does go down a lot sometimes, but not because of the increased voicetraffic on the network, but because of the limited international bandwidth available. At slow times, a test to TT&T's servers or adslthailand's speedtest still gives close to or over 300kbps indicating that my edge connectivity has all slots available.

Most countries limits to 4 slots for downloads, but it seems AIS allows more since 4 slots would alllow only 236.8kbps and the highest ever I tested was 345kbps!!!

Dtac I guess limits to 4 slots, I've never tested over 200kbps on them, but their international bandwidth seems to be a bit more stable (less edge areas?) so I do have a Dprompt sim standby for when AIS's bandwidth is low...

In real life speed seems to be better then Hutch most of the time, especially to Singapore where Thaivisa is hosted