Frequency US and Thailand

[JohnIrish]

I am in the market for a new "Smart Phone".... I am confused as to the frequency covered in the US and Thaialnd. Specifically for data transfer. I assume it wont matter too much which freq is used for normal phone calls.

If I buy a US Phone that works with AT&T ... will it also work fast for data in Thailand? In other words, If I buy an HTC One in the US, is it the same phone with the same frequecy as an HTC One purchased in Thailand? Or, are the phones frequency coverage specific to the carrier such as AT&T is different coverage from other companies? I beleive Verzon does not accept a sim card so it is not being considered.

Is 4G over the GSM frequencies ?? Thaialnd is 900/1800 and it looks like US is 850/1900. Also, I dont understand the speed difference between the different standards.. 3G 4G 4GLTE and HPSA etc.

I am looking at the HTC One... Samsung S4, Note 3... possibly the Iphone 5S. (the usual suspects)

Is there any advantage to a Google Play phone (already unlocked) as far as frequency coverage?

To sum it all up.... what freq coverage do I need for Thaialnd that will also work in the US?

Sorry for all the questions!

[lomatopo]

Where do you plan to buy a phone?

How much time do you spend in Thailand? In the U.S.?

Do you use pre-paid services in both the U.S. and Thailand?

It sounds like you need 3G in both the U.S. and Thailand?

Any unlocked, GSM 850/900/1800/1900 and 3G 850/1900/2100 capable phone which accepts a SIM might offer the most/best coverage, both here in Thailand and in the U.S.?

AT&T or T-Mo have voice and 3G service in the U.S., and sell pre-paid services directly and via many, many, many MVNOs.

Any of the models you mention would be fine, as would the Google Nexus 4, if purchased here. The same models have different variants in the U.S. so it can be challenging to source the proper one. I use a Google Nexus 4, purchased in the U.S. from the Play Store here in Thailand (DTAC, TrueMove H, AIS/2100 MHz) and in the U.S. on T-Mo.

The only challenge is LTE, which has very limited deployment here in Thailand (TrueMove H/2100 MHz in Bangkok/SBIA). I'm not certain you can get LTE in the U.S. via pre-paid/MVNOs?

Edited August 22, 2013 by lomatopo

[Pib]

Don't most of the carriers in the U.S. use CDMA vs GSM like most of the rest of the world. According to this Aug 12 PC Mag article/link they do. However, but, this article on CDMA and GSM seems to conflict on certain statements with the first article as to which U.S. carriers use CDMA and which use GSM....then again, maybe some carriers use both. Confusing to me.

And if most U.S. carriers do use CDMA aren't most/all phones sold in Thailand GSM models? Appreciate any clarification anyone can give. I was thinking about buying my sister in the U.S. a smartphone from Thailand as a present and it her U.S. rural area Verizon and Sprint are the major carriers (with Verizon being much larger that Sprint in her area) and it seems 3G resellers (like StraightTalk) in her area just use a subset of the same Verizon or Sprint towers.

[chris1dna]

Don't know if this helps but I use my US based at&t iPhone in the US and Thailand all the time. Works fine in both.

Sent from my iPhone using ThaiVisa app

[lomatopo]

AT&T and T-Mobile operate GSM/3G nationwide networks in the U.S. "Nationwide" does not mean coverage in every single location in the U.S.

An unlocked AT&T iPhone would work in Thailand with a local SIM, or it could roam here while still on AT&T.

There are several different iPhone 5 variants, and at least two GSM variants: A1428, and A1429. Either/both would work in both Thailand and the U.S., but the A1428 is sold here in Thailand, The choice would really depend on your LTE' requirements.

For people who live in the U.S. they need to identify the best options for service providers and then purchase a handset/plan which works on that network. If you live in a rural area which does not have AT&T or T-Mo service then a GSM phone would be useless, except on WiFI of course.

Edited August 22, 2013 by lomatopo

[Pib]

After doing some more googling it sure appears Verizon and Sprint are CDMA networks.

Like this Wikipedia link list which shows which U.S. carriers use CDMA or GSM. And it looks like Verizon is the largest carrier in the U.S. and Sprint the 3d largest.

Edited August 22, 2013 by Pib

[JohnIrish]

I will mostly be using my phone in the US... so I think a phone with AT&T would be best and either buy the phone unlocked or unlock it myself. It does seem the 4G is limited in Thailand but they have plans to expand. 3G would be fine for calls and I would be using mostly WIFI for internet anyway.

Now I am waiting for the new Fall batch of phones to arrive before I decide on what to buy.

[lomatopo]

Carrier locked or subsidized phones purchased in the U.S. can be challenging to un-lock. In some cases carriers will provide un-lock codes for customers in good standing or those who've completed their contract.

Since, it sounds like, you spend the bulk of your time in the U.S., you really need to focus on the service provider, or MVNO, which offers the best service, plans, coverage to meet your requirements.

If it so happens that AT&T, or T-Mobile, meet your requirements then you could go with them, and even purchase an un-locked phone, and go with a pre-paid or month-to-month contract, wither directly or via an MVNO. While more and more people are doing this (MVNO), the total percentage still ~ 10% (MVNO).

There are some nuances to the GM mobile data market in the U.S., re: 3G and LTE, and while the Thai market is a bit less nuanced, and assuming you want a single handset to use in both markets, with GSM voice, text, data and 3G data, your options may end up being somewhat limited. Add to to that, many handset versions available in the U.S. may be different variants than those sold in other countries.

https://play.google.com/store/devices/details?id=nexus_4_8gb&hl=en

https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Samsung_Galaxy_S_4?id=samsung_galaxy_s4&hl=en

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=I9500&N=-1&isNodeId=1

https://play.google.com/store/devices/details?id=htc_one&hl=en

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=htc+one&N=-1&isNodeId=1

http://store.apple.com/us/buy-iphone/iphone5?cppart=UNLOCKED/US&product=MD293LL/A&step=accessories

Assuming you have AT&T coverage, you could go with StraightTalk, an MVNO which resells AT&T service month-to-month:

https://www.straighttalk.com/wps/portal/home/shop/serviceplans/!ut/p/b1/hYzLCsIwEAC_xR_Irsnm4THURyxYtR7UvUhaRIKmvYj9fRG8Wuc2MAwwnImQ0BmCE3AXX-kWn6nv4uPjbC5zLDdq74Osg9W43oXisLIVkldQAqcmi6HNAoU0aqZIO2PQTbVFDUfg0UOB48F2Kb8B_sD_ORBaqEKfr5B5ca_DMHkDBzQuZw!!/?s=y