Htc Desire Z Mobile

[THAIPHUKET]

Thinking of buying the HTC -Z in Germany, want a qwertz keyboard without Thai lettering. Price 370 Euro w/o contract.

Will it work here? Or consider altneratives? However, qwertz keyboard is important.

Or get it shipped in from somewhere??

[sandmike]

Provided the phone is unlocked then there should be no problem with it working in Thailand.

Whether you can get 3G where you are is another issue altogether ......

Another possibility if you buy it from elsewhere is to load / flash it with the german language pack or firmware.

[THAIPHUKET]

it's not about the software, it's about the keys getting awfully cluttered with Thai lettering.

Naive question= I got no idea about G3 etc. Would the phone not work everywhere or some minor drawbacks?

[MJo]

Without contract usually means phone is not locked to any German network. So it will work fine in Thailand.

If you need 3G data speeds it will work with TOT but not with True 3G network.

[Digitalbanana]

HTC phones only run 3G on TOT and AIS in the regions they have any 3G at all, which is by and large limited to a few key cities.

Amazing Thailand.

[THAIPHUKET]

SO, if the HTC -Z doesn't work in Thailand- throughout, which other qwertz/ smart phone do you like?

Or perhaps more important the question to those of you who work with PC and Apple, which I do

how important is for you the synchronization Mac-Iphone ? More important than a qwertz keyboard??

[Phil Conners]

3G is limited to Bangkok and a few other very limited areas. You still have EDGE/GPRS, it usually works, just painfully slow. This hasn't anything to do with what phone you have.

You can install German on-screen keyboard on any phone with Android 2.2 or later.

[lomatopo]

The Motorola Milestone, admittedly a bit long in the tooth re: HW, has a QWERTY keyboard (no Thai), and can be found locally with a 850/2100 Mhz 3G radio.

I guess it would help if you could share your requirements (other than a QWERTY keyboard; make/brand, price, data, monthly budget for voice/dataetc.), and if 3G is important/required, your exact location(s) as 3G is only available in select locations, outside of metro-Bangkok.

Almost any phone will "work" throughout Thailand; where "work" implies GSM voice/SMS and at a minimum, with the proper service provider's SIM, 2G (GPRS/EDGE) data. When it comes to 3G data you have to match the service provider with the frequency.

[MJo]

My wild guess is that OP is in Phuket. He also stated 3G is not that important but english qwerty is.

So yes, Desire Z will work anywhere in Thailand as will any other GSM phone.

3G will bring faster data if available and at the moment it looks like TOT is going nationwide before the others. Would not bet any money on it though. GPRS and EDGE is often said to be slow, in theory yes but in practice i.e. AIS EDGE is much faster than many HSPA networks in SEA region.

[whybother]

it's not about the software, it's about the keys getting awfully cluttered with Thai lettering.

Naive question= I got no idea about G3 etc. Would the phone not work everywhere or some minor drawbacks?

On my HTC Desire HD (Android), the Thai keyboard is separate to the English keyboard. You 'hold' on the text box to bring up the keyboard options.

[THAIPHUKET]

it's not about the software, it's about the keys getting awfully cluttered with Thai lettering.

Naive question= I got no idea about G3 etc. Would the phone not work everywhere or some minor drawbacks?

On my HTC Desire HD (Android), the Thai keyboard is separate to the English keyboard. You 'hold' on the text box to bring up the keyboard options.

SORRY, I DON'T FOLLOW= You 'hold' on the text box to bring up the keyboard options.

meaning there 2 seperate qwery keybords in the Z??? I guess a stupid question , but never too shy to ask :-)

How much did you pay for it? In Germany it goes for about 15.000

[THAIPHUKET]

Allow one more naive question by the uneducated=

What makes a smart phone interesting to me is,e.g the ability to make hotel, flight reservations on the go. Not emails, they can wait. But spontaneous last second hotel rooms would be a huge plus.

With a laptop + an aircard internet access is almost unlimited.

Does a smart phone have the same reach like an air card to pick up an internet signal or is the closeness of a hot spot required?

And if the reach is limited can an aircard be added?

PS In Germany there are wide rural areas with no internet cafe, no open hotspot. People have a PC at home.

[whybother]

it's not about the software, it's about the keys getting awfully cluttered with Thai lettering.

Naive question= I got no idea about G3 etc. Would the phone not work everywhere or some minor drawbacks?

On my HTC Desire HD (Android), the Thai keyboard is separate to the English keyboard. You 'hold' on the text box to bring up the keyboard options.

SORRY, I DON'T FOLLOW= You 'hold' on the text box to bring up the keyboard options.

meaning there 2 seperate qwery keybords in the Z??? I guess a stupid question , but never too shy to ask :-)

How much did you pay for it? In Germany it goes for about 15.000

"in the Z"?

You click in the text box, not on the keyboard. Holding your finger in the text box for a little bit. When you release, a pop up give is an "input method" message. Then you click on that and select the keyboard.

[Phil Conners]

I think the confusion is you are talking about hardware keyboard. It's not really Android related. If you want an hardware keyboard obviously you need to consider at purchase time which language it should be for.

Most Android phones have OSK (On Screen Keyboard) and this is where people suggest you can just change the keyboard in the software.

[dominique355]

Allow one more naive question by the uneducated=

What makes a smart phone interesting to me is,e.g the ability to make hotel, flight reservations on the go. Not emails, they can wait. But spontaneous last second hotel rooms would be a huge plus.

With a laptop + an aircard internet access is almost unlimited.

Does a smart phone have the same reach like an air card to pick up an internet signal or is the closeness of a hot spot required?

And if the reach is limited can an aircard be added?

PS In Germany there are wide rural areas with no internet cafe, no open hotspot. People have a PC at home.

If your smartphone has Internet access and a browser, you can basically do whatever you are used to do with your laptop. Android smartphone, such as HTC Desire HD have a built in web browser, which works quite well (I had no need to buy a third party browser).

Then there are specific applications for traveling, booking etc. Check out the Market in your Android phone. Latest news: Now you can even acquire paid application in Thailand with a Thai SIM.

Your smartphone may be a bit slower than your laptop, unless you connect to the Internet through a WiFi connection, which again the HTC Desire HD can.

Back to your original question about keyboards. The HTC Desire HD has an on-screen-keyboard, which some like and some don't. The advantage of the OSK is that you can change the keyboard with a single stroke, including the language of the predictive input. There are many apps available for Android with all kind of keyboards and predictive input methods.

[Phil Conners]

Actually all Android phones have a built in browser, OSK and wifi, not just Desire HD.

[THAIPHUKET]

MOST DELIGHTED by your comprehensive answers, from all of you!

[dominique355]

Actually all Android phones have a built in browser, OSK and wifi, not just Desire HD.

You are of course right, Phil. Sorry if I created a misunderstanding.