Voice Com With Gprs

[Tippaporn]

I use an Axen GPRS air card with DTAC service but haven't been able to use voice com services. I do make connections at times using Skype and MSN but the reception is terrible (I have a very good headset).

I've tried using NetTelePhone service to dial PC to landline/mobile but get disconnected from the internet almost instantaneously.

Is this an inherent problem with GPRS, a problem with DTAC, or am I too dumb to figure it out?

Sure could use advice because I don't have internet access other than the GPRS, yet I need to voice com with the U.S. for business.

[monty]

The quality of GPRS is simply not good enough for voice over internet! It's already of doubtfull quality with a decent landline/56k modem connection.

It's the result of a combination of the bandwith limitation of GPRS and the huge shortage of international bandwith of both Dtac and AIS.

My first decent VOIP communications have been after I installed adsl...

Better to find out about the cheap calls available by dialling 009 instead of 001. Not sure about the rates to the US but way cheaper then the normal rates and of reasonable good quality(they use VOIP as well)

[Tippaporn]

My first decent VOIP communications have been after I installed adsl...

Thanks, Monty. Then my next logical questions would be, what type of set up would I need for good VOIP, and what's the availability here? And if you could offer up an approximate cost. And lead time for putting something together (I'd like to get this up and running ASAP).

I'm in Huai Khwang, Bangkok, just in case location plays into the picture (it's tough to get a phone line in the condo I'm in, supposedly because of the area I'm in, though I do have a TOT line installed now).

What's ADSL? With that question you might have now gandered that I'm not all too computer saavy? So please pretend you're talking to a 1st grader (O.K., I'm not that bad).

Business calls can get frequent and be lengthy, so I'd just as soon exhaust any availabe options for free VOIP before resigning myself to traditional telecom methods.

NetTelePhone offers service PC to any landline/mobile in the States for $0.03, or approx. 1.26 Baht/minute. I could talk 24/7 for those rates. I'd certainly like the option of calling to a landline or mobile, and at times it will be necessary.

[Crushdepth]

I used Skype recently to talk to a friend in Vietnam PC to PC, worked brilliantly. The quality was better than our office landline (which sucks). I don't know how much bandwidth it needs but probably not too much - check the faq on their site. If you can get ADSL in your condo should be ok.

(You might want to read about people's experiences with different ADSL providers before signing up though).

[monty]

For voip, the better the internet quality, the better the quality of the communications.

GPRS is completely at the bottom of the quality line.

Next up would be a regular dial up account (56k modem and regular phoneline). Quality of voip can be pretty good one moment and bad the next moment. The capacity of this connection is enough for voip, but there is no spare capacity, so any degradation due to overloaded networks etc. is immediately noticed in the form of chopped up communications and delays.

Next up you have adsl. This system uses the regular telephone wires, but your local telephone exchange has to be upgraded to be able to give you this service as well as you will need a special modem at your end. The availability of this service is therefore dependent wether your phonecompany (TOT) has upgraded their exchange or not. Internet conectivity will be at least 5 times as fast with the most basic adsl package (256/128, check the local isp's websites) giving you the necesary spare capacity for good voip communications.

If you want to be communicating asap, get yourself hooked up to the internet by modem/phoneline and check if the quality is good enough for you. Use only the more expensive internet packages from the reputable big ISP's since every bit of internet quality counts!

If the quality doesn't cut it, go the adsl way. If you have the phoneline already and the exchange is adsl capable you should have this connection up and running in under 2 weeks. It took me 11 days, but I'm located in Pattaya, so no idea Bangkok is faster or slower in setting you up!

Good luck