Which internet provider to get when I am in Thailand?

[kevin401099]

I will be living in Thailand for awhile. I will be living in "Chan" road. I also study in an online program which are located in the west coast of the USA. I would like to know which internet service provider is the fastest and most reliable in those area. What is the best time for me to take an online test to avoid network congestion and disconnection?

[aircut]

3BB has great customer service and they provide what they are advertising.

AVOID True at any cost. they are the worst

Edited October 25, 2015 by aircut

[rwdrwdrwd]

CAT > 3BB > TOT > TRUE in general in my opinion, but fiber from any one of them is better than adsl from all of them.

[KhunBENQ]

Will you live in a condo/appartement building?

Often you do not have the freedom of choice.

Try to evaluate beforehand.

[kevin401099]

I think it will be a house.

[KhunBENQ]

Chan road is fairly central in Bangkok, so if you have the freedom of choice there will be a number of options available.

From the suggestions of the locals: go for 3BB first.

[martijn12345]

No idea about BKK. I have True Internet (cable not ADSL) in Chiang Mai and have no issues with them at all.

Edited October 26, 2015 by martijn12345

[RichCor]

I will be living in Thailand for awhile.

How long is 'for awhile'? Most 'wired' ISP's will want you to commit to a 1 year contract for ADSL or Cable DOCSIS, 2 years with some Fiber Optic subscriptions. If renting, you may be able to get the landlord to subscribe (so you're not committed to the full contract).

If you're here for less than a year then more likely you may have to settle for a PrePay/Pay-as-you-go 3G/4G/LTE mobile Internet, or WiFi HotSpot usage as your alternative.

[guru]

For me in central Bkk, CAT was a nightmare but happy with True docsis

[ThaiWai]

Why not use the search forum function?

[richard_smith237]

Why not use the search forum function?

Why not offer an intelligent response ?

Op: I've been using True... not really impressed, it seems to drop out frequently (in my previous condo and the one I'm in now).

The issue I'm now having (having moved to a new condo with the Router in the living room) is that I see my WIFI Signal clearly when in one of the bedrooms, however, the speed of the connection drops off such that I end up using my phone as a hot spot. This is something I have to get to the bottom of (once settled in).

Thus: Having a phone connection with Unlimited Data (capped at 5GB before it drops to 256 kb I think) works as backup for e-mails etc.

[RichCor]

Why not use the search forum function?

Why not offer an intelligent response ?

Op: I've been using True... not really impressed, it seems to drop out frequently (in my previous condo and the one I'm in now).

The issue I'm now having (having moved to a new condo with the Router in the living room) is that I see my WIFI Signal clearly when in one of the bedrooms, however, the speed of the connection drops off such that I end up using my phone as a hot spot. This is something I have to get to the bottom of (once settled in).

Thus: Having a phone connection with Unlimited Data (capped at 5GB before it drops to 256 kb I think) works as backup for e-mails etc.

WiFi (Wireless Ethernet) and Internet are two separate functions and issues.

Many people end up solving the a weak WiFi connection by purchasing an additional WiFi Access Point with external antennas, as they offer a better ability to send and receive WiFi signals through brick/cement walls (disable the built-in router WiFi and plug the new external into the LAN port).

Another alternatives would be deploy either a stand-alone WiFi extender (that re-transmits a signal to cover additional distance) or a 'PowerLine' WiFi extender pair (that uses home electrical wiring to provide a data bridge to a second WiFi Access Point) that you can deploy anywhere your electrical goes.

Just saying, the two issues, Internet and WiFi, shouldn't be confused. WiFi isn't an ISP issue (although many people try to make it one).

Back to the OP:

If you were to search through several years of ThaiVisa posts discussing Thai ISPs, you'd probably find mixed reviews on all of the providers. In some locations one ISP might be preferred over the others, while in another location that same provider is said to offer mediocre or even miserable service.

Best to get first-hand responses from people living in the same area ... which you've asked for (though writing, "I will be living in Thailand for awhile. I will be living in 'Chan' road." tends not to narrow down the location within Thailand much ... it looks like another poster may have narrowed your potential location down to the Bangkok area of Sathon, close to the BTS line (Surasak).

If you could clarify the location, and the amount of time you will be renting/leasing at the location, it might help in the responses you receive.

[hhgz]

I used to live on Chan Road, a block from Narathiwas. I used True, and I loved their service. When I first arrived in BKK, Apple products were not popular and, when I bought a router, I could not get it to work. True sent out 3 technicians, and had it up and running within an hour. The service call cost 500THB, very reasonable in my estimation. Every couple years, they'd be a snag, and True was there to fix it free.

[kevin401099]

I will be here at least two years. It will depend on my work. They say I will live near bts.

Thank you for all of your information.

[Globalist]

In my experience, TOT ADSL is more stable than True Cable for Internet access. That may however be due to True upgrading the network a lot, causing outages.

I have not tried fibre from any ISP.

Regarding speed, it's perhaps not that important unless you mainly access Thai servers, given that the Thai international gateway is the bottleneck anyway.