Dtac Edge

[mussen]

Anyone currently using the DTAC EDGE service either through a mobile, or through the Sony-Ericsson air card?

[Crushdepth]

Is it actually available yet ? They keep promising but every time I chase it up its just a new announcement about how it will be available 'real soon' !

[mussen]

Is it actually available yet ? They keep promising but every time I chase it up its just a new announcement about how it will be available 'real soon' !

I picked up a brochure when I last paid my DTAC phone bill, and was talking to the staff member there about pricing etc. and got the indication it is available. I currently use the AXEN air card and a DTAC sim, can be a litle slow at times.

[Crushdepth]

Cool. I'll be heading down to sign up tomorrow - and throwing my AIS sim in the river. Woohoo !!

[george]

What is the connection speed with EDGE?

Is it available nationwide, or only in Bangkok?

[stumonster]

What is the connection speed with EDGE?

Is it available nationwide, or only in Bangkok?

real world 100-150kbps.

I don't think it is available anywhere yet, as crushdepth says they make the announcement but there is as usual no substance..

as far as I have been able to determine for the transmitting towers to be able to facilitate EDGE it is only a software upgrade of the GPRS hardware, so when it does happen it should happen quite quickly to a range of areas.

unfortunately most people with GPRS enabled devices cannot just flash the rom to upgrade the GPRS chip to handle the enhanced version ( though I think some of the texas instrument chips you can ).

when the nokia 6630 comes out, it has EDGE capability ( and bluetooth ).

[Crushdepth]

I have no idea about the DTAC coverage, but a while back I dug up some press releases on AIS's planned EDGE coverage, which will cover certain cities, won't be national. If it ever arrives !

I guess you'll still be able to use normal GPRS in the other places.

[kenk3z]

I have an EDGE card (Sony/Ericsson GC83) on the Cingular GSM/GPRS network (USA) provided to me by my workplace.

EDGE use is not all that widespread here because its rather expensive. In metropolitan areas I have done speed tests right at 5,000 kbps - equal to about three T-1 lines. I must have had the local tower to myself.

Out in the boonies, but still EDGE capable, I get about 300 kbps.

There is some data compression technology included in the EDGE installation software too.

Faster than I expected. Not sure if/when Thailand carriers will have such a capability. Its not so much the tower equipment, but the condition of the rest of the wired Internet infrastructure in Thailand to support the towers.

kenk3z

[grahamb]

Nokia 6230 also has EDGE and it's available now.

The DTAC billboard in the airport arrivals hall says that EDGE coverage is only for the Bangkok metro area and GPRS is in the rest of the country.

[joka]

nokia 6200 has EDGE also, but i have conflicting info as to the speeds, some say 40-80 kbps and some say up to 118.

the sony/eric card gc83 can do up to 384 kbps.

[Crushdepth]

The 'real world' speed of EDGE is meant to be 2-4 x what you get with GPRS (which is supposedly around 40 KB depending on your device but you'll be lucky to actually download any more than 4KB/s). At least, that's what I've read - haven't had a chance to bloody use it yet ! The Nokia 6230 is a really nice phone. The sound quality is in a league of its own.

EDIT: Ok so I bothered to look it up:

The peak data rates with EDGE are typically around 384KBps, with actual download rates ranging between 75 and 150Kbps, depending on the user's distance from the base station, among other factors

So sayeth Wireless and Mobile Design Essentials.

One of the 'among other factors' would be does the carrier actually have the wired bandwidth available to service their wireless network, and at the moment the answer is: NO !

[george]

Thailand gets its first EDGE network

BANGKOK: -- Thai mobile operator Total Access Communication, which operates under the DTAC brand, joined a select group of operators in Asia recently with the commercial deployment of its EDGE network in greater Bangkok.

While EDGE is in trial with a number of the region’s service providers, only CSL in Hong Kong and Malaysia’s Digi have provided commercial services so far.

The Thai operator, which has Norway’s Telenor as a strategic partner, also scored something of a coup by becoming only the second mobile provider in the world to offer Sony Ericsson’s EDGE PC card, which allows users to connect their notebooks to the Internet via a mobile network. AT&T in the US was the first operator to offer the cards. DTAC is partnering with SIS Distribution, an IT distribution firm, to sell the Sony Ericsson cards at major IT shops and will also do bundled deals with notebook computer vendors.

All ready for expansion

The EDGE upgrade has been completed at some 545 cell sites in Bangkok, with coverage of the whole of greater Bangkok expected by the end of this year. Four more cities have been earmarked for the EDGE upgrade next year: Chiang Mai, Phuket, Surat Thani and Hua Hin.

DTAC co-CEO Sigve Brekke believes that the company’s recent focus on preparing its network for data services gives it a lead in the market.

“We think technology-wise, we have an advantage, particularly the decision to go with one vendor,” he says, pointing to DTAC’s decision to swap out base stations from Motorola and make Nokia its sole network supplier.

“We learned a lesson with GPRS. With voice it doesn’t matter if you have different vendors, but for GPRS it does. We saw that,” he explains.

DTAC is currently the only operator in Thailand that has nationwide GPRS coverage. Users of its mobile data services can seamlessly move from the faster EDGE areas to GPRS without disruption of service. The Sony Ericsson PC card will also work on both EDGE and GPRS.

Sizing up the competition

DTAC’s new data service will be priced so that it is competitive with other fast Internet services such as DSL. A monthly package for unlimited “always on” use will be available for 1200 baht (US$40).

The two other major GSM vendors in Thailand are Advance Info Service (AIS) and TA Orange, but both are still working towards nationwide GPRS services.

AIS has a very small EDGE deployment, which only takes in one small shopping area in Bangkok. It is believed to be struggling to get seamless GPRS nationwide because of incompatibilities between different vendor equipment. Its network includes gear from Ericsson, Siemens, Nokia and Huawei.

It is likely that DTAC’s main competitor in mobile data services is CDMA operator Hutch, a one-year-old joint venture between the Communications Authority of Thailand and Hong Kong’s Hutchison group. While its subscriber numbers are still low, around 600,000, it has pushed multimedia services from day one and offers a similar PC data card for connecting to the Internet.

Who’s buying it

DTAC expects demand for its faster mobile data service to come from early adopter consumers as well as from the corporate sector, which can use it for remote access by a sales force and for other enterprise applications. But Brekke admits that the user experience of accessing mobile content still needs improvement.

“I think the technology is still confusing and until someone improves the interface it won’t take off,” he says, adding that DTAC is currently working on the issue.

While GPRS use is currently growing at around 20% per month, mainly from the business sector, says Brekke, it is still only expected to account for around 5–6% of revenues this year. DTAC aims to boost this to around 8% next year.

Meanwhile, Thailand finally appointed members for its new regulatory body, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), after it was first proposed some seven years ago.

The NTC will be responsible for issuing all new communications licences in the country as well as solving problems, including convoluted licensing arrangements between state-owned carriers TOT Corp and CAT Telecom and private operators, and appropriate fees for interconnect.

Most of the Thai telecom sector is thankful that there is finally an independent regulator after a long wait, including DTAC’s Brekke, although he’s not expecting change to happen fast.

“It’s a good thing because you now have a caretaker for the telecom law. The problem is that the law has been just sitting there for two years. It’s good, but we don’t foresee anything happening tomorrow,” Brekke says.

--Teledotcom Asia 2004-10-06

[Crushdepth]

There's now a lovely little flash movie about EDGE on the DTAC website. If you troll through the options on the bottom there is a map of coverage in Bangkok. I think. It's in Thai...

Woohoo ! I'm in the yellow zone !

[joka]

1200 baht is 30 dollars

what about upload speeds,,,,,i have read that this service is not very good for p2p or large downloads.

the US is giving the aircard away, but the service costs $80 (3200 baht) a month

[Mr_Dave]

I am using the DTAC Edge card right now.

In a nutshell: offers near-ADSL speeds, with wireless convenience, anywhere in Bangkok.

Easy to install. Works great. Unlimited time, unlimited traffic volume, so no charges per minute or per kilobyte.

I am using with Sony-Ericsson PCMCIA card. Not using any cell phone, but it is possible to connect to certain cell phones and avoid buying the card.

This NOT Wi-Fi. The coverage area is similar to that for cell phones - which means virtually everywhere in Bangkok metro area. At this time (late November, 2004) this service is only available in metro Bangkok. Future may extend to other areas - I don't know.

Finding information about the Edge service was very difficult. As of November 26, 2004, there is no website for this service. I asked a Thai person to check - not even a website in Thai language.

Even getting information from DTAC is difficult. I went to two DTAC shops but nobody there even knew the Edge service existed. At Panthip Plaza and Fortunetown IT Mall, nobody had any idea about this service. I finally found someone who had all the details at the DTAC shop in Silom road, right underneath the Skytrain station at Sala Daeng. But, even then, all service information is in Thai language. One brochure about the Edge card is in English, but it doesn't give any details about the service. Finally, I asked a secretary at my visa service company to research with phone calls. She got the information I needed, and found a DTAC shop which had the Edge card in stock. Bottom line: if you want this service, you'll need assistance from someone who can speak and read Thai.

One "hitch": This is a billed service - you pay after the month has ended. Because of this DTAC requires expats to have Thai work permit in order to open an account. I don't have a work permit, because I'm not working here, so DTAC refused to have me as a customer for this service. What I did was arrange with the visa service company to open the account in their name. They were happy to do it - I paid them a service fee. If you want to contact that company, send a private message to me.

Once I bought the card and got it home, installation was quite easy - plug and play. The software install from the CD was effortless. The user manual is in English.

Price of Edge card is 14,900 baht. Promotion price for the service is 600 baht per month for first three months, then 1,200 per month.

Overall, I'm delighted that I persevered to get the DTAC Edge service. I recommend it for anyone who wants high speed, wireless, Internet access in Bangkok.

[mussen]

I am using the DTAC Edge card right now.

In a nutshell: offers near-ADSL speeds, with wireless convenience, anywhere in Bangkok.

Easy to install.  Works great.  Unlimited time, unlimited traffic volume, so no charges per minute or per kilobyte.

I am using with Sony-Ericsson PCMCIA card.  Not using any cell phone, but it is possible to connect to certain cell phones and avoid buying the card.

This NOT Wi-Fi.  The coverage area is similar to that for cell phones - which means virtually everywhere in Bangkok metro area.  At this time (late November, 2004) this service is only available in metro Bangkok.  Future may extend to other areas - I don't know.

Finding information about the Edge service was very difficult.  As of November 26, 2004, there is no website for this service.  I asked a Thai person to check - not even a website in Thai language.

Even getting information from DTAC is difficult.  I went to two DTAC shops but nobody there even knew the Edge service existed.  At Panthip Plaza and Fortunetown IT Mall, nobody had any idea about this service.  I finally found someone who had all the details at the DTAC shop in Silom road, right underneath the Skytrain station at Sala Daeng.  But, even then, all service information is in Thai language.  One brochure about the Edge card is in English, but it doesn't give any details about the service.  Finally, I asked a secretary at my visa service company to research with phone calls.  She got the information I needed, and found a DTAC shop which had the Edge card in stock.  Bottom line: if you want this service, you'll need assistance from someone who can speak and read Thai.

One "hitch": This is a billed service - you pay after the month has ended.  Because of this DTAC requires expats to have Thai work permit in order to open an account.  I don't have a work permit, because I'm not working here, so DTAC refused to have me as a customer for this service.  What I did was arrange with the visa service company to open the account in their name.  They were happy to do it - I paid them a service fee.  If you want to contact that company, send a private message to me.

Once I bought the card and got it home, installation was quite easy - plug and play.  The software install from the CD was effortless.  The user manual is in English.

Price of Edge card is 14,900 baht.  Promotion price for the service is 600 baht per month for first three months, then 1,200 per month. 

Overall, I'm delighted that I persevered to get the DTAC Edge service.  I recommend it for anyone who wants high speed, wireless, Internet access in Bangkok.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thanks for your reply Dave, I've still got a few months to go on the regular DTAC contract but am pretty keen to try the EDGE service

[lingling]

I have a Sony Ericsson GC83 that is simlocked to AT&T. Does anyone know where I can have it unlocked in BKK? I have tried unsuccessfully in MBK and Pantip but it seems like most people in those two places don't even know what it is.

[Amethyst]

GPRS on Air card ...its not advisable ..do not buy them...its not worth...ive change from GPRS Internet from dtac to ais and now using hutch cable internet...its cheap and super fast...either you could buy the small usb modem attach to your notebook or pc or buy the mobile phone which could connect to broadband internet ....the higest get is 195kbps at 3 am morning and average 90kbps every hour

[GoodHeart]

There was an article in the Nation today about EDGE service. I just tried to find it on their web site, but had no luck. It didn't have much more to say than this thread, frankly, but it did mention some EDGE enabled phones which I found helpful.

I've been keen to get this going on my Mac Powerbook- in spite of some techy discourgement- and did a bit of web research today on the EDGE enabled phones. Hint: searching on EDGE as acronym produces poor results. Anyway, for the benefit of this thread, one of the most seemingly important sites I found indicated that EDGE enabled phones will *NOT* operate at the same speed on the network- far from it, actually.

Check it out for yourselves here:

http://www.gsmworld.com/technology/edge/terminals.shtml

^paying particular attention to the indicated EDGE speeds

While I'm at it, here's the the links I found most informative and kept for future reference....

EDGE defined:

http://www.vocal.com/data_sheets/edge.html

Spectrum efficiency and other techy info:

http://www.3g-generation.com/gprs_and_edge.htm

One pundit's opinion:

http://it.asia1.com.sg/newsdaily/news002_20030325.html

EDGE Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enhanced_Data...lobal_Evolution

If anyone else is attempting EDGE on a Mac send me a PM if you please and we might also discuss this in the context of Tiger coming on the scene in two weeks time.

Edited April 17, 2005 by GoodHeart

[Crushdepth]

Some details on DTAC EDGE service, a map subscription etc. May be getting a bit out of date but hey I want a CMDA phone now Edited April 17, 2005 by Crushdepth

[Para]

I installed Nokia's Field Test Display on my 6630 and whilst I could not understand most of what it does it shows EDGE is running and that UMTS is not. :-(

[baht&sold]

There was an article in the Nation today about EDGE service. I just tried to find it on their web site, but had no luck. It didn't have much more to say than this thread, frankly, but it did mention some EDGE enabled phones which I found helpful.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

According to the article, DTAC edge, 236 kbps vs entry level adsl 256 kbps and 4x faster than gprs. Of course, the real speeds weren't exactly bench-tested in the article . 999 baht per month unlimited apparently.

[GoodHeart]

Of course, the real speeds weren't exactly bench-tested in the article  .  999 baht per month unlimited apparently.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

And why I found little to learn from reading the article. According to that first link I provided, there is great variation amongst the EDGE phones on the networks. I doubt very seriously if *any* vendors would be aware of nor care about such essentials in securing a sale.

it shows EDGE is running and that UMTS is not. :-(

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

UMTS eh? Yet nother acronym I've yet to learn the meaning of. Is is just me, or do they seem to come upon you a tad quicker each day as well?

[Plus+]

I've used Sony Ericsson GC83 aircard for a few months with my notebook and the service, and especially speed, have greatly improved over the time, at least in downtown Bangkok. The highest download speed I've ever seen was around 370kbps (from P2P). My house is outside Edge coverage and the speed drops to the usual GPRS speed of 30-40 kbps.

[Para]

Sorry UMTS is better known as 3g!