Internet on Samui

[Tropicalevo]

Hi Samuians

For the last two weeks I have been having major interruptions using the internet here in Plai Laem.

This morning, it has already 'dropped out' 7 or 8 times. (I am a keyboard warrior for a lot of the day.)

Current internet provider is 3BB and their techie says that I need a router upgrade - ok that will happen this pm (maybe).

BUT WhatsApp is amazingly slow at the moment. We only use it for business use - communicating with guests using AIS.

My partner  (lives next door) and she comes to ask my advice on a message that she has sent - the message arrives some minutes after she does.

I have a back up phone that I use as a wifi hot spot when I travel. I pay AIS for online unlimited access.

Even that drops out when I use it here.

So that is a problem here with both 3BB and AIS.

I am trying to establish if it is a problem only within the Plai Laem area, or if others are having similar issues on the island.

[Neilly]

12 minutes ago, Tropicalevo said:

I am trying to establish if it is a problem only within the Plai Laem area, or if others are having similar issues on the island.

 

Without wishing to tempt fate...the internet disappeared on Sunday for a few hours, but apart from that it's been okay, I'm in the south on TOT

[Tmoney]

I am with True and live in Plai Laem Soi 4. Not sure if this helps but we haven't noticed any problems here recently.

(our line comes direct from the main road).

[khunPer]

5 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

I am trying to establish if it is a problem only within the Plai Laem area, or if others are having similar issues on the island.

No problems here in Maenam – I'm on 100-200 Mbps AIS 5G wireless LAN-router, no wired connection – but occasionally some foreign sites can be slow or temporary down due to server load or routers on the some times long distance between the user and the server. AN can often be little slow – but much, much better than before – and sometimes even Facebook and Messenger has problems. I'm not a WhatsApp-user, so cannot comment on that.

 

Don't forget that you share the network with other users, so with more and more tourists on the island sharing their holiday pictures and travel-videos, the general communication speed slows down.

 

Best thing is to check speed of different sites. You should check speed, not up to the nearest connection point, but to the destination-area where you face problems, ro check if it's en-route, there are speed problems, or it's a server load issue.

 

If you use a Speed Test – like: https://speedtest.ink/เช็คความเร็วเน็ตais/ – you will automatically be connected to a nearby test-site (image: My speed right now)...

 

 

If you click on the flag next to the automatic chosen server – in the shown image: [TH] Phuket - 10 Gb/s - AIS – you can select a test-connection both around Thailand and outside in the wide World's web...

 

 

Now I chose Rennes in southern France – only because it catch my eyes, as I've been there and it's an exciting area – which has 100 Gb/s connection by ISP Orange. Rennes had long response times, and as you can see it's much slower than Phuket, even that the "cable" in Rennes can handle 10 times as much traffic...

 

[Tmoney]

K Per, OP is talking about interruptions to supply or 'drop outs' not speed (apart from WhatsApp sometimes being slow)

[steelerian]

 

10 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

Hi Samuians

For the last two weeks I have been having major interruptions using the internet here in Plai Laem.

This morning, it has already 'dropped out' 7 or 8 times. (I am a keyboard warrior for a lot of the day.)

Current internet provider is 3BB and their techie says that I need a router upgrade - ok that will happen this pm (maybe).

BUT WhatsApp is amazingly slow at the moment. We only use it for business use - communicating with guests using AIS.

My partner  (lives next door) and she comes to ask my advice on a message that she has sent - the message arrives some minutes after she does.

I have a back up phone that I use as a wifi hot spot when I travel. I pay AIS for online unlimited access.

Even that drops out when I use it here.

So that is a problem here with both 3BB and AIS.

I am trying to establish if it is a problem only within the Plai Laem area, or if others are having similar issues on the island.

Im with 3BB, around the corner from you in Plai Laem, and have had no issues recently.

[qwab32]

Re mobile data.  When I first moved to Samui I was with AIS and the signal was poor where I live (Bang Makham).  Switched to True and have not had any issues for months. 

[khunPer]

On 3/26/2025 at 10:32 AM, Tmoney said:

K Per, OP is talking about interruptions to supply or 'drop outs' not speed (apart from WhatsApp sometimes being slow)

Same-same, if the network is slow or overloaded you might lose packages, or have long response time between same. You can see the difference in Latecy in the two posted images.

[Tropicalevo]

Update

3BB said that I needed to upgrade my package.

Done.

They then said that I needed to upgrade the router.

Done.

They then said that the repeater should be directly wired to the main router.

Done.

Internet still drops out and takes a few minutes to reconnect.

This is happening on two separate computers.

 

Neighbour says to update phone software to latest version (for the AIS problems).

Done.

AIS mobile hotspot still dropping out (worked fine ever since it was available in the island ).

WhatsApp (via AIS account) still has delays.

 

Lived here forever and these problems have only happened this month.

I will be having a loooong conversation with 3BB next week

[Tmoney]

Have you noticed if the red light come on on your router when the drop out occurs which afaik indicates a local problem between your router and your connection their main line.

In our case a squirrel had bitten through the outer line casing  according to the engineers because they  like the taste of the 'fluid' encasing the optical fibre.

Their explanation, not mine, but replacing the whole cable worked.

[Tropicalevo]

Thanks for that suggestion. 

I am assuming that the problem is the cable as we have replaced everything else.

Many years in IT have given me pretty good problem analysis skills but here I am having to  convince the local engineers.

I have to go through their 'solutions' to show them.

 

This saga is never ending.

Changing the router meant that the CCTV does not work.

The CCTV guy came yesterday and 'played' with the router and told me that 3BB need to 'open the port'.

I am not a comms expert.

Anyway, after he left - no internet at all.

Nothing. Zilch. Da nada.

 

I have been using a neighbour's wifi since yesterday, be both switched to 3BB at the same time.

We had been using a private internet system before then (Blue Chip).

My neighbour's internet keeps dropping out, same as mine.

I am not sure if he is on the same cable or a separate one.

Separate routers of course.

 

Ho hum.

I cannot wait for next week's amazing instalment. 

[ChaiyaTH]

Since ESIM tech exists and I found out you can buy these data packages online with even like crypto / no verification hassle, at lower prices and tried one of the decent packages with full speed on 4/5G connection with like 50GB data.

Well in short you just never go back to these <deleted>ty fiber connections in Thailand again. It is way way better via sim cards, even if it means to just buy a Google pixel phone for that purpose like a router. People overestimate how much data they really use / need too.

[ChaiyaTH]

47 minutes ago, Tropicalevo said:

Thanks for that suggestion. 

I am assuming that the problem is the cable as we have replaced everything else.

Many years in IT have given me pretty good problem analysis skills but here I am having to  convince the local engineers.

I have to go through their 'solutions' to show them.

 

This saga is never ending.

Changing the router meant that the CCTV does not work.

The CCTV guy came yesterday and 'played' with the router and told me that 3BB need to 'open the port'.

I am not a comms expert.

Anyway, after he left - no internet at all.

Nothing. Zilch. Da nada.

 

I have been using a neighbour's wifi since yesterday, be both switched to 3BB at the same time.

We had been using a private internet system before then (Blue Chip).

My neighbour's internet keeps dropping out, same as mine.

I am not sure if he is on the same cable or a separate one.

Separate routers of course.

 

Ho hum.

I cannot wait for next week's amazing instalment. 

If you want the CCTV to work from anywhere you simply need to make some changes within the router itself and link it to https://www.noip.com/remote-access is entirely free too. That is how you can then access it from anywhere (while having a easy domain name for it too). Would normally not depend on a 3BB itself.

[khunPer]

3 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

My neighbour's internet keeps dropping out, same as mine.

I am not sure if he is on the same cable or a separate one.

Separate routers of course.

And that is where the speed test makes sense, as it tells you what happens on the line to various connection points. Long dropouts will even be visible in the speed-graphics.

 

Using wireless connection – like 5G – can avoid local cable problems; events like squirrels' dinner taste, falling trees and mistaken cut of cable. With a speed between 100 Mbps to 200 Mbps you are generally covered well. You need 20 Mbps for HD-streaming and 40 Mbps for 4K; however, more if several users at same time.

[Tropicalevo]

1 hour ago, khunPer said:

And that is where the speed test makes sense, as it tells you what happens on the line to various connection points. Long dropouts will even be visible in the speed-graphics.

 

Using wireless connection – like 5G – can avoid local cable problems; events like squirrels' dinner taste, falling trees and mistaken cut of cable. With a speed between 100 Mbps to 200 Mbps you are generally covered well. You need 20 Mbps for HD-streaming and 40 Mbps for 4K; however, more if several users at same time.

 

Thanks for the advice but my wireless connection keeps on dropping out as well.

It never did that before this month.

[phetphet]

I am on 3BB in Bangrak and no problems here. It did go out about a week to ten days ago. I received a text message from 3BB that a cable was damaged in my area. Another text a few hours later that all was back to normal.

On the whole,

I am very happy with 3BB’s service. Pretty solid and consistant. Unlike my electricity supply.

I did change a few settings in the router I am using (I have 3BB’s one in bridge mode) a few months ago due to Netflix buffering. Been OK since then.

I’m wondering if you might have a faulty cable or loose connection somewhere.

[Tropicalevo]

Thanks phetphet.

I am convinced that it is a faulty cable/connection.

A friend who transferred to 3BB at the same time as me is having the same problem.

I suspect that he is on the same cable.

I reached out to the community to see if it was a 3BB issue in their network v a one off.

The confusing bit is that AIS wifi hotspot also drops out now and that has not happened to me before in 20 years

 

I have about 10 other accounts with 3BB in my name and no problems other than the one that you had with damaged cables.

We have a good rapport with the engineers and they fix them quickly.

Unfortunately, it seems that this particular engineer is a newbee.

[Tropicalevo]

Just met an honest 3BB techie.

He says that many on our development have the same problem.

3BB are checking the cables and systemss at their end.

One customer just contacted us and said - 'No more 3BB for me - please change my supplier to Truevision'.

 

Oh the joys of living on a tropical island.

Thank you and it's good night from me