Any Wireless Internet Cafes In Thailand

[melange]

Hello. I hope someone can help.

I am travelling to Thailand in the beginning of November and will be stopping off in Bangkok first. It will be my first time to Asia and i need some advice.

Firstly, my plan is to buy a laptop in Bangkok and i havent got a clue what kind of prices they are there or where is the best place to buy one. if anyone could advise me on this it would be apreciated.

Secondly i would like to know if there are there places in Thailand similar to internet cafes that we call in the uk wireless cafes? these are places where you can take your laptop and use the establishment's wireless internet connection. If so, are these cafe's common place in your country, or if not are there any alternatives?

As i say , any help would be greatly apreciated.

thanks for reading.

Steve

[Lesley]

http://www.thaiwirelesslan.com/modules.php...ategories&cid=1

[Chopper]

How susceptible is having a laptop to being hacked if you are using it at a WiFi spot. I have heard from an acquaintance that it leaves your commuter quite vulnerable. I would venture to suggest that the chances of being hacked might be modest then I suppose the risk/reward ratio applies dependant on the data stored on your machine. I am no Techie. Would appreciate any feedback.

Great list Lesley.

Edited October 18, 2005 by Chopper

[astral]

How susceptible is having a laptop to being hacked if you are using it at a WiFi spot. I have heard from  an acquaintance that it leaves your commuter quite vulnerable. I would venture to suggest that the chances of being hacked might be modest then I suppose the risk/reward ratio applies dependant on the data stored on your machine. I am no Techie. Would appreciate any feedback.

Great list Lesley.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The internet is just like sex.

If you stick your plug in you should wear a condom, sorry Firewall.

Zonealarm has a good free version.

Don't trust the one that comes with Windows XP.

[astral]

If you buy a laptop in Bangkok you will need to look very carefully at the warranty conditions.

Unless it is a top brand name, like HP, Compaq you will not get any cover if

the laptop fails when you are in another country.

The apparent saving, could end up costing a lot of money!!

Edited October 19, 2005 by astral

[Chopper]

How susceptible is having a laptop to being hacked if you are using it at a WiFi spot. I have heard from  an acquaintance that it leaves your commuter quite vulnerable. I would venture to suggest that the chances of being hacked might be modest then I suppose the risk/reward ratio applies dependant on the data stored on your machine. I am no Techie. Would appreciate any feedback.

Great list Lesley.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The internet is just like sex.

If you stick your plug in you should wear a condom, sorry Firewall.

Zonealarm has a good free version.

Don't trust the one that comes with Windows XP.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I have ZoneAlarm Pro, NOD32 and Kaspersky Pro but was still told that my machine is still quite vulnerable.

http://www.kaspersky.com

http://www.nod32.it/home/home.htm

My sex life is another matter.

[lomatopo]

Both Panthip and Fortune IT Mall have a huge selection on notebooks from all of the major manufacturers. I cannot comment on pricing here vs. wherever you are. The warranty issues should be carefully considered, as mentioned. It is not clear if you will be staying in Thailand or returning to your home country.

You can do a search here for keywords like Pantip/Panthip, Fortune IT, laptop, notebook to get a better feel for pricing and availability. Also look for the "on-line retailer" thread whch has a few URL's from which you might be able to determine pricing on globally available models.

As referenced there are many public, free and pre-paid WiFi hotspots. Between KSC and True there must be ~ 150 spots in/around Bangkok. The KSC/Starbucks combination may be the easiest for you? There are several pre-paid 'levels', you can buy the card in a Starbucks, but the one I remember is 20 hours for 1,500 baht. You can also find power outlets, and use them, in a few Starbucks.

There are many free WiFi hotpsots, either in establishments that require some sort of purchase (say a beer bar, pizza parlor, bookshop), or in generally accessible public areas, like a mall. Stickman's website has a list of free WiFi hotspots Bangkok. Just Google 'Stickman' and 'Bangkok'.

Re: Security WiFi networks, I think that your PC is reasonably safe from access and/or intrusion? The data you are transmitting over the radio link might be more prone to eavesdropping?

[melange]

Both Panthip and Fortune IT Mall have a huge selection on notebooks from all of the major manufacturers. I cannot comment on pricing here vs. wherever you are. The warranty issues should be carefully considered, as mentioned. It is not clear if you will be staying in Thailand or returning to your home country.

You can do a search here for keywords like Pantip/Panthip, Fortune IT, laptop, notebook to get a better feel for pricing and availability. Also look for the "on-line retailer" thread whch has a few URL's from which you might be able to determine pricing on globally available models.

As referenced there are many public, free and pre-paid WiFi hotspots. Between KSC and True there must be ~ 150 spots in/around Bangkok. The KSC/Starbucks combination may be the easiest for you? There are several pre-paid 'levels', you can buy the card in a Starbucks, but the one I remember is 20 hours for 1,500 baht. You can also find power outlets, and use them, in a few Starbucks.

There are many free WiFi hotpsots, either in establishments that require some sort of purchase (say a beer bar, pizza parlor, bookshop), or in generally accessible public areas, like a mall. Stickman's website has a list of free WiFi hotspots Bangkok. Just Google 'Stickman' and 'Bangkok'.

Re: Security WiFi networks, I think that your PC is reasonably safe from access and/or intrusion? The data you are transmitting over the radio link might be more prone to eavesdropping?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

are all the wi fi places in bangkok or all over Thailand?

ps thanks for all the advise everyone, very helpful.

[Prasert]

Firstly, my plan is to buy a laptop in Bangkok and i havent got a clue what kind of prices they are there or where is the best place to buy one. if anyone could advise me on this it would be apreciated.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Do yourself a favour and buy your laptop back home. And when you buy it back home, you won't have any warranty issues.

In general, prices for electronic equipment are higher in Thailand than in Europe or the US. The only exception on this, is mobile phones.

[Crushdepth]

How susceptible is having a laptop to being hacked if you are using it at a WiFi spot. I have heard from an acquaintance that it leaves your commuter quite vulnerable. I would venture to suggest that the chances of being hacked might be modest then I suppose the risk/reward ratio applies dependant on the data stored on your machine. I am no Techie. Would appreciate any feedback.

It is quite possible for someone to set up an access point and collect any information you send while connected to it such as logins and passwords to your email accounts or whatever (we accidentally did this at work in another context). I wouldn't worry too much, its just that you should avoid connecting to sensitive sites using a public hotspot.

It is also possible to set up false sites that look like legitimate ones to collect your account details (and if you use a hotspot regularly, to monitor what sites you like to connect to and then set up a copy).

If you connect to a 'secure' site such as (say) your bank, it is important to check *who* you are actually securely connected to! You should always check the certificate - click on the padlock icon and look at the registrant details. If the registrant name of the certificate doesn't match the name of the company you are trying to do business with (or was issued by some certificate authority you or your browser doesn't trust), then don't use it. Unfortunately, most people don't know and never check.

There are zillions of hotspots in Bangkok, both 'official' and 'unprotected'. There were 80 along the road between my house and Fortune plaza last time I looked (taxi).

WIFOO: The secrets of wireless hacking' was a top seller in SE-ED a while back (cooincidence?). And there have been complaints from people who think their bank account details were lifted via hotspots in this forum before (a hotspot in the Siam Discovery Center is claimed to have a reputation for this).

[Chopper]

Thanks Crushdepth that is a very insightful analysis.