Hi all,

i can't get a land line here is Ko Phangan so I was thinking of GPRS. I know AIS has a package for 900/month unlimited connection for 3 months then 250hrs/month after that.

does anyone have any experience with this or other GPRS service. what about the hardware, should i buy a GPRS phone and connect it to the computer or use a PCcard? which hardware is recommended?

any advice would be greatly appreciated.

thanks steve

I use it in Bangkok, its slow but I got by with it for months when my landline was broken, although for me its a bit unreliable - sometimes it just doesn't work. Anyway, if you haven't got a choice its certainly better than nothing. But you might want to check that you do have GPRS coverage in your area.

I'd suggest just buying a GPRS-capable phone, its a much cheaper option than buying a GPRS modem or card (if you have a mobile already chances are it is GPRS capable anyway). However, if you go with a new phone I'd recommend getting one with bluetooth and hooking it to the PC wirelessly. No messing around with cables, very nice.

I have been on AIS GPRS in Chiang Mai for over two years and it is as good as landline dial up that I had with loxinfo.

It worked fine in Pataya when I was there and reportedly is works anywhere in Thailand, as does mobile phones, since you use a sim card for the connection.

I have a Sierra Wireless card in my laptop and I have phone access as well as GPRS for the same price, although I suspect if I used the phone feature a lot, I might have extra charges.

I am on an unlimited use program and have never paid more than 900 baht even when the kids were here and spent 24/7 downloading their numerous messages.

I have had times when I couldn't get the internet web page to respond, but found it was my browser. If I reboot my computer when I have the message 'web site found, waiting for reply" I get connected right away. It can be slow at times, but satisfactory for me since there is little hope of a land line for me with adsl.

PM me if you have any further questions.