Cat Telecoms Wireless 3g (cdma 2000 1xev-do) With Sierra Wireless Aircard 580

[kudroz]

Do you guys know if I could buy a EVDO Express Slot card off ebay that works on a Mac and just configure it with CAT settings? Because Macs don't have PCMCIA slots, they have only the new Express Slot.

Called CAT and they say it isn't possible - and from what I've read online it isn't possible either. Oh well.

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

When I tried it I didn't get any lag either and what I was hearing was OK but the person I was speaking to said that I was breaking up. I put that down to the slow upload speed. I'll try it again though.

Oh. I agree with you here, 45kbps upload isn't enough for Skype.

Pavee

Would be interesting to see what kind of ping times this service offers.

from the Skype FAQ.... http://www.skype.com/help/faq/technical.html

How much bandwidth does Skype use while I’m in a call?

Skype automatically selects the best codec depending on the connection between yourself and the person you are calling. On average, Skype uses between 3-16 kilobytes/sec depending on bandwidth available for other party, network conditions in between, callers CPU performance, etc.

Edited April 1, 2007 by CobraSnakeNecktie

[monty]

3-16 kilobytes/sec

which equals between 24 and 128 kbps!

This test: http://www.voipreview.org/voipspeedtester.aspx

is more extensive testing some other parameters which affects the quality of VOIP connections...

[nikster]

Last I checked 3G was not available in the north. But that was a while ago, when only Hutch offered 3G.

Does anybody have a coverage map, or even better know when coverage is going to be expanded? If available, I will be the first to have it... no question.

Update: It's available in the north now. Will sign up ASAP. Apparently you have to go to the CAT head office in Chiang Mai or Mae Hong Son, whichever you prefer.

[LivinLOS]

My speed right now in Nai Harn, Rawai, Phuket

with Cat Telecoms Wireless 3g (cdma 2000 1xev-do) With Sierra Wireless Aircard 580

###### its look very good, even the upload is better than most of DSL packages...

Today feels slow day.. Thats a cheapie TOT package.. Was lots faster a couple of months back in pings and uploads.

That tracert showed 700 ms pings to a thai server.. OK if you cant get ADSL I guess but not a 1st choice..

Also the OP states you cant get this without a work permit.. I have got one (for someone else) in Patong without one but with a non imm O.. I put profession as retired (I am 34 and dont have a retirement visa) and when they said work permit I said cannot I am retired.. They looked confused but I just kept saying cannot have work permit, retired and they issued the aircard.

[tigerbeer]

Last I checked 3G was not available in the north. But that was a while ago, when only Hutch offered 3G.

Does anybody have a coverage map, or even better know when coverage is going to be expanded? If available, I will be the first to have it... no question.

Update: It's available in the north now. Will sign up ASAP. Apparently you have to go to the CAT head office in Chiang Mai or Mae Hong Son, whichever you prefer.

i am still confused to how CAT would offer this 3G service. does it come with one of the providers? ie. DTAC, AIS, HUTCH or TRUE? or its a mobile phone service with voice and data by CAT? sorry if its a dumb question but am really confused.

[monty]

CAT indeed offers full mobile phone services using the cdma system!

They only offer this in the provinces where Hutch is not present, but Hutch and CAT have roaming agreements so that you can use your CDMA phone pretty much all over Thailand seamlessly.

The roaming however is only for voice services, not data!

CAT is currently upgrading their CDMA network to the EV-DO standard allowing the fast 3G internet access. It seems Hutch is dragging their feet, they are still at the CDMA 1X standard with max speed of 144 kbps...

Actually part of Hutch is even owned by CAT!

[Khun Jack]

My speed right now in Nai Harn, Rawai, Phuket

with Cat Telecoms Wireless 3g (cdma 2000 1xev-do) With Sierra Wireless Aircard 580

For my friend Mike I tried to install the Sierra aircard with a PCMCIA PCI adapter from CAT with a Ricoh chip in an Asus main board for an XP1800+ AMD processor and this PCI adapter did not work.

Message in the device manager was "device can not find free resources"

Bios setup changes did not work to resolve any resources conflicts.

In my PC this pcmcia adapter did work and installed the Sierra Aircard without problems, but internet surfing was very slow, and I do live in the same Nai Harn area as g00dgirl.

Think that it doesn't pick up to much signal, aircard has a small antenna behind the metal case of a destop tower close to a wall.

CAT does give a full refund if you return this aircard before 2 PM so there was very little time to test it further.

[geoffphuket]

My speed right now in Nai Harn, Rawai, Phuket

with Cat Telecoms Wireless 3g (cdma 2000 1xev-do) With Sierra Wireless Aircard 580

For my friend Mike I tried to install the Sierra aircard with a PCMCIA PCI adapter from CAT with a Ricoh chip in an Asus main board for an XP1800+ AMD processor and this PCI adapter did not work.

Message in the device manager was "device can not find free resources"

Bios setup changes did not work to resolve any resources conflicts.

In my PC this pcmcia adapter did work and installed the Sierra Aircard without problems, but internet surfing was very slow, and I do live in the same Nai Harn area as g00dgirl.

Think that it doesn't pick up to much signal, aircard has a small antenna behind the metal case of a destop tower close to a wall.

CAT does give a full refund if you return this aircard before 2 PM so there was very little time to test it further.

As an experiment I took my laptop around Phuket town yesterday, starting with the park on top of Rang Hill. The signal strength was at a maximum 5 bars as you'd expect being next to the Tx towers, however the download speed came in at about 80kbps, with the upload being considerably less. From there I tried in Central Festival and obtained an even worse result despite still having 5 bars on the aircard 'Watcher'

Tonight at home Near Thalang I've got only 3 bars of signal and this result:

Last Result:

Download Speed: 326 kbps (40.8 KB/sec transfer rate)

Upload Speed: 42 kbps (5.3 KB/sec transfer rate)

Test Time:May 25, 2007, 9:10 pm

So it would appear the speed of the EV-DO network is inconsistant with the siganl strength, which has come as some surprise to me.

geoffphuket

[LivinLOS]

The lower the signal the lower the speed.. All else being equal..

But having overloaded network and not enough bandwidth for users will also lower speed..

[nikster]

So it would appear the speed of the EV-DO network is inconsistant with the siganl strength, which has come as some surprise to me.

geoffphuket

Maybe it's more about contention at the cell you are using. Eg. many users sharing the same tower will be worst in places with many people, e.g. shopping malls etc. With GPRS/EDGE, every phone call nearby will make it slower as voice has precedence, perhaps EV-DO is similar in this respect.

Pretty disappointing speeds nonetheless

Does anyone know if CAT has an ExpressCard or USB modem? I have a PC but no PCMCIA slot, only an ExpressCard slot.

[g00dgirl]

Yes they have many USB products for desktops, too, just go to their office in Phuket town they have them all there to show you.

[LivinLOS]

However none of thier USB products work at the higher speeds.. Expect to top out at a max of about 150kbps from what I have seen..

[Kunchai]

The ExpressSlot to PCMCIA adapters are quite expensive. I know only one manufacturer to offer this product, the price is $119.-

http://www.duel-systemsadapters.com/?productid=DP-0001

Fortunately there are the cheap ExpressSlot to USB adapters in the market, they cost about $30.-

By the way I have a brand-new EVDO modem (USB type) which can be used with CAT CDMA. Since it is connected to your PC over the USB port you can use it with any computer (both laptop as well as desktop). It comes complete with USB cable, headset (for voice calls), user manual and software CD.

Since I do not need it any more (I have a good ADSL connection now) I can sell it for just $200.-

I am based in Udon Thani, North East Thailand.

My e-mail: [email protected]

Tel. +66 868618833, +7 4957294659

Regards,

Alex.

[phallang]

Is any fellow thaivisa poster (or her/his spouse) able to translate the current CAT-CDMA "promotion" into pasah angkrit?

http://www.catcdma.com/product/promotion.html

I signed up in april 07 and was told that it's like 500 THB *flat*.

With my limited knowledege of thai language i still wonder if that was true and what i will be billed tomorrow or whenever the billing will start.

But the main issue is: Downlink is *very* fine at around 800kbps , uplink however is limited to about 40kbps. I wonder if this is a technical limitation of Sierras Aircard 580 or due to the contract / service level and could possibly be increased by paying some BBB more...

Any hints / ideas?

Marco

[g00dgirl]

Is anyone using the Aircard in the Bangkok area with Hutch? If yes do you know the username / password that is set up in the aircard software? If you can't see the password and only see stars, you can use Iopus password recovery to make it visible in Windows. (http://www.iopus.com/password_recovery.htm)

I just tried if the CAT service I use in Phuket might roam in Bangkok, you never know, but the error was that the username/password was invalid on the domain. So I was wondering if I change the details if it might work ..

[monty]

I doubt Hutch and CAT have a roaming agreement for their data (internet) service.

They do however have a roaming agreement on their voice network, giving both Hutch and CAT cdma phone users virtually nationwide coverage.

Hopefully this will change later on, Hutch is currently upgrading to the EV-DO system, with several stations in Bangkok upgraded already.

More info here: http://www.hutch.co.th/mbi/evdo/index_en.htm

[frenchFARANGbkk]

We went yesterday already, without laptop, and were told the Aircard will not work in Nai Harn because they are 100% sure that it is too far from the nearest base station at the Post office in Chalong.

There is another CDMA base station near the Or Bor Tor office at the end of Rawai beach.

Hello,

I'm looking for a map of locations where it is possible to connect with an aircard in Thailand (bought at CAT Phuket) ?

Does it work in Bangkok ?

And does anybody still have problems with Windows vista and his aircard ?

Thanks.

Edited September 18, 2007 by frenchFARANGbkk

[Kaker]

Hi, I recently got a good land connection and will no longer be needing my Sierra 580 AirCard. If anyone is interested in buying it from me (it's only about 2 months old) let me know - reply here or PM me. If you are not sure whether you get a signal in your area, I would be happy to let you test it using my card, as long as you're genuinely interested in buying it. I figure about 10,000 baht would be a fair price.

EDIT: Um... I should mention I'm on Phuket so this amazing one-time offer is only available in the area

Edited October 21, 2007 by Kaker

[Kaker]

I was told it does not work in Bangkok but I don't know why it wouldn't.

There are many open questions, for example in Thailand the network from what I understand is owned by Hutch(inson) and CAT together.

And a lot of information about the service is on http://www.hutch.co.th/mbi/index_en.htm. There are also promotions listed on this website, however in the CAT shop in Phuket town they told me Hutch was another company and they don't have these promotions ...

Just strange that on the Hutch website the CAT shop in Phuket town is listed with address and phone number as one of the places to sign up for the service / buy the hardware.

There are also many many shops / office locations listed to sign up for the service in Bangkok, so why this, if it would not work in Bangkok.

I would not take any information I get from staff for granted (after all they insisted I have no service in my area). I would also not listen to any rumours. If this is important to you, go to one of the dealers / offices and ask to try out the card yourself and keep calling other phone numbers and asking different people for answers.

Here is a list of all locations in Bangkok to sign up: http://www.hutch.co.th/wheretobuy/index_en.htm

I've tried using it in BKK and it didn't work... It dialled in ok, but my username & password were not recognized for some reason. I can't really explain why...

[g00dgirl]

I've tried using it in BKK and it didn't work... It dialled in ok, but my username & password were not recognized for some reason. I can't really explain why...

Because in Bangkok and some other provinces the network is not owned by CAT Telecom, but by Hutch and they don't have roaming for their data service (yet).

[Orita]

Hi, I recently got a good land connection and will no longer be needing my Sierra 580 AirCard. If anyone is interested in buying it from me (it's only about 2 months old) let me know - reply here or PM me. If you are not sure whether you get a signal in your area, I would be happy to let you test it using my card, as long as you're genuinely interested in buying it. I figure about 10,000 baht would be a fair price.

EDIT: Um... I should mention I'm on Phuket so this amazing one-time offer is only available in the area

Kaker, I would be interested in your AirCard. Please email me at [email protected]

or call me at 089-871 9152 or 076-202 670

Thanks.

[nikster]

Do you guys know if I could buy a EVDO Express Slot card off ebay that works on a Mac and just configure it with CAT settings? Because Macs don't have PCMCIA slots, they have only the new Express Slot.

Called CAT and they say it isn't possible - and from what I've read online it isn't possible either. Oh well.

FYI I just got a CAT USB modem yesterday, a Korean model made by C-motech. Works fine on the Mac, I plugged it in and it was detected automatically and showed up in my Internet Connect control panel. The box says "Windows 98 and XP" and the drivers CD is PC only but dont let that deter you. CAT says it's Mac compatible and it is.

Speed is as advertised here in the north 600Kbit down / 50 up. It feels slightly slower than the DSL - higher pings - but way, way faster than EDGE. Doesn't compare. It's a very worthy backup connection

The USB modem was BHT 10,900 and unlimited data is 790/month now. I think it used to be 590 before but back then they didn't offer the EV-DO USB modem.

CAT also has a Motorola Q for 19,900 that can do EV-DO. catcdma.com

[hasniper483]

I am a new member and I am wondering about Aircard cdma 2000. Please help me some question,ok?

- I am living in Ban Chang, Rayong now. Should I use service of CAT or Hutch?

- My laptop cannot be inserted Sierra Wireless Aircard 580, so I have to buy a C-motech USB, but now Hutch still does not sell it (I saw in Hutch's webpage). Could I buy it from CAT Telecom and use it for Hutch?

Thank you so much for your help!

[monty]

I am a new member and I am wondering about Aircard cdma 2000. Please help me some question,ok?

- I am living in Ban Chang, Rayong now. Should I use service of CAT or Hutch?

- My laptop cannot be inserted Sierra Wireless Aircard 580, so I have to buy a C-motech USB, but now Hutch still does not sell it (I saw in Hutch's webpage). Could I buy it from CAT Telecom and use it for Hutch?

Thank you so much for your help!

Rayong province is covered by Hutch, not CAT.

I don't think the CAT modem will work on Hutch, since people report that they are hard coded by your respective provider to work with them...

In any case, Hutch is still on CDMA 1X in Rayong, so the theoretical top speed will be 153 kbps.

Currently Hutch has only a few antenna's in Bangkok and a few in Pattaya upgraded to the EV-DO network.

Hutch just signed a deal with CAT, whereby Hutch will hand over their network to CAT (Hutch has 20 odd provinces, CAT 50 something) so the complete nationwide CDMA network will be owned by CAT.

Hutch will however be the marketing arm of CAT, so for everything concerning EV-DO or CDMA you will have to be in Hutch shop and not in the CAT office anymore. Not sure when this becomes effective though...

[hasniper483]

Thank you, monty. So I will have to wait for a time to use EV-DO technology from Hutch. Wait and wait ...