Newbie Help Request - Roaming Internet Access

[julesandmartin]

Hi all....

Could any of you experts advise a newbie the cheapest method of keeping my laptop 'online' for emails/basic browsing primarily during the many Koh Samui power cuts but also while travelling (mainly Middle East & Europe)?

I guess this would involve some form of 'usb dongle' with associated sim card but my questions are:

• Is there a 'global' sim card that allows me to connect t a local 3G ISP and be billed at a standard international rate no matter where I login?
• If not are the roaming rates for a 'Thai Dongle/Sim' reasonable compared to other countries PAYG offerings?
• If not can I buy just a 'PAYG 3G sim' on arrival in most developed countries and plug-and-play in my Thai dongle?

Apologies in advance if answers are obvious..... they are not to me

[Tropicalevo]

For Samui - I believe that there are two options.

1 - CAT CDMA. Buy the dongle (6,000 baht at the beginning of this year) and subscribe approx 600 - 700 baht a month. There are deals, I had 6 months free. Works really well - more reliable than the TOT ADSL land line, and only slightly slower. At the moment, it works all over Thailand except Bangkok. Bangkok should be available next year.

2 - DTAC similar to the above but you pay as you go instead of a standard monthly charge. Friends say that it is fine for emails and general surfing. (Film and music downloads not too good.)

I am sure that AIS have something similar.

Overseas - sorry, no idea. Best to ask the suppliers.

Sorry that I cannot help further - but all of the above are good for Samui

[Richard7]

6000 Baht for a dongle???? That's about £120? Must be cheaper alternatives?

[Tropicalevo]

6000 Baht for a dongle???? That's about £120? Must be cheaper alternatives?

It was cheaper a while ago. it was 85 GBP - but then the baht took off.......

If you find a cheaper version, please let me know. Most of the folks that I know are on the 6,000 baht one.

There was an old - SIM card almost a phone thingie. Speed - 56 kbs or whatever. It even looked like a phone, without the keypad. (I don't know if you can even buy it on Samui anymore.) I assumed that we were after a fairly decent internet access.

My mistake - sorry.

[Richard7]

Are they cheaper in the UK?

[julesandmartin]

Thanks for replies and advice....

We do have an existing TOT ADSL Line in Samui and even though the connection is occassionaly unreliable (as is the 240v) I am not sure I can justify an extra 700baht/month to just cover outages.

The main requirement was the international roaming but it looks like a pipe-dream with some horror stories about charges, I think buying cheap dongle in UK and stuffing it with a local PAYG Data Sim on arrival seems the cheapest option.

[MJo]

Get a decent dongle that is not locked to any operator sim card. The more frequencies the better and should be capable of 7 megs seeds on HSPA. Even operator locked ones can be opened for use with other sim cards very easily.

In thailand during outages use your AIS, DTAC or other local sim card for GPRS access which is still good for emails and basic internet etc.

While overseas the cheapest way is to buy local sim card on arrival. Roaming rates with your Thai sim are extremely high.

[Eureka]

Also consider using your mobile phone as many now have very decent inbuilt modems which can be used quickly via Bluetooth. If you are looking for an International modem you should have a minimum of 3G as the only asian countries yet to have a national 3G system are Thailand and India.

[sumrit]

6000 Baht for a dongle???? That's about £120? Must be cheaper alternatives?

Edge dongle start at around 900 baht while you can get a 3G dongle for around 2-3000 baht. At the moment there's only a few places in Thailand where 3G is available.

[Digitalbanana]

Are they cheaper in the UK?

The 6000THB dongles referred to are CAT CDMA technology (not GSM) so come as hardware/account all in one. (They cost be closer to 8000THB last yr). There is no other option in many parts of Thailand so far until 3G GSM gains coverage (whenever that will be?!) and the plethora of cheap 3G USB generic dongles that can handle separate SIM accounts take off. Lots of vested interests holding things in check of course.