thexfactor

Another question:

The 299 THB Happy Tourist SIM (http://store.dtac.co.th/en/priceplans/happy-tourist-sim) says:

"Happy Tourist SIM is based on pay as you go. This sim includes everything you need : 100 Baht calling value, unlimited internet and speical international calling rate"

But then lower on the page it says that Happy Internet costs "10 baht / MB."

Which is it? Unlimited or 10 THB per MB?

ETA: Or perhaps its 10THB per MB after the "Free 7-day unlimited internet (3G/wifi)"?

transpac

Yes, I am pretty sure that with this SIM/promotion you get unlimited 3G, with a FuP of 384 Kbps over 1 GB, for 7 days. On day 8 you would start paying 10 baht/MB, or you could (re-)subscribe to a daily, weekly or monthly mobile data plan.

thexfactor

Great, though I wasn't able to find a daily or weekly data plan on their site. To what are you referring?

Also, anyone have any idea whether the promo ostensibly ending 31 March 13 has actually been extended?

transpac

Daily (49 baht) and weekly (199 baht) pre-paid data plans are detailed here:

http://www.dtac.co.th/en/prepaid/pro...t-package.html


I would assume that the Happy Tourist SIMs are still available post 31 March 2013, probably just a place-holder which has not been updated.

Ripper3785

Well I'm about to find out in about 48 hours...

Crossing Fingers.

Ripper3785

Happy tourist SIMs still available. The 299THB for 7days unlimited internet and 100baht credit package is still available. Process at the DTAC booth in arrivals hall was incredibly simple.

thexfactor

What airport? BKK?

transpac

BKK (Suvarnabhumi Bangkok International Airport), all three major mobile service providers: AIS/One-2-Call, DTAC/Happy and TrueMove/H all have staffed store-fronts on level 2/Arrivals, just outside Customs. I've personally seen these shops open as early as 6:00 AM and as late as 12 midnight.

But if the line to get a SIM is long, and I've seen dozens of people queued up there, just go to any convenience store or mobile phone shop - of which there are several million in any 2 block radius - to purchase a SIM and top-it up. Any DTAC/Happy SIM (49 baht, usually comes with 50 baht of calling time) can be used to layer on a weekly internet plan (199 baht) and 100 minutes (100 baht) for essentially the same promotion.

Ripper3785

Yes, BKK.

transpac

The three major service providers: AIS, DTAC and TrueMove (H) all kicked off 2100 MHz 3G services in the Kingdom this past week.

Additionally, TrueMove H also launched 4G/LTE on 2100 MHz (Band 1) in metropolitan Bangkok.

For the most part these services are targeted at post-paid customers, and details are just starting to become available. I don't think most tourists/visitors will be impacted, at least over the next ~ 90 days.

I think I'd continue to recommend TrueMove H and/or DTAC/Happy for pre-paid voice and 3G data - assuming your phone supports 850 MHz/3G.

dtsm

For years, I used the One-2-Call plan and was able to keep the same prepaid number. I misplaced it and now need to get replacement to give to the Mrs. She also recently upgraded to iPhone 5 so can access 3G speed.

What would you suggest between the above. She'll be visiting with friends for about 7-10 days and needs just voice, data for checking emails and skype. Ideally we'd like the keep the number and be able to top off for future visits; but not a requirement.

transpac

Keeping a SIM active during infrequent visits creates challenges. And Skype (assuming VoIP) can use a great deal of one's allotment of data.

Without understanding the different locations you/wife might travel to in Thailand I might continue to recommend a TrueMove H nano-SIM for the factory/carrier unlocked iPhone 5, as they have the most geographical coverage, and the least utilized network - this is actually a CAT network and TrueMove H is a MVNO/reseller. One potential downside is the TrueMove's traditional GSM network, onto which TrueMove H customers roam when outside of coverage, is due to close on Sep. 15, 2013, also leaving 18 millions subscribers without service. Whether this ultimately happens remains to be seen, on 16 Sep.

DTAC/Happy also remains a recommended option, maybe nearly equal to TrueMove H save 3G coverage. DTAC/Happy do offer 3G coverage in all of the provincial capitals, and larger cities and tourist destinations.

Perhaps the easiest way to keep a SIM active would be to leave it with family/friends and ask them to maintain it. In the case of a TrueMove H SIM this simply requires originating/receiving a 5 second voice call once every 60 days - with this activity the expiration is automatically extended 60 days. With the Krong Kra Pun DTAC/Happy SIM, the same activity extends the validity 43 days. Or you could leave some money here and ask people to top it up. You could even enable international roaming, and top-up as required in your home country, assuming GSM coverage. This would work in the U.S., for example with T-Mo or AT&T.

With Skype VoIP calls you can consume a lot of bandwidth, using up your 3G allowance quickly, so maybe best to use WiFi for Skype calls, or even just one of the low-cost long distance prefixes like 009.

dtsm

Many thanks for the update

With my other 1-2Call, as long as I topped off before leaving the Kingdom with B250, the number remained valid for one year. And I remember being able to top off remotely by dialing some code.

Mrs. will be in metro Bkk the entire time and will have occasional access for skype and facetime.

Anyway, her visit isn't until mid July so let's see how the new changes shakeout.

transpac

Service providers here have greatly reduced the validity periods associated with different value top-ups. So a 250 baht top-up might get you 30 days. AIS/One-2-Call did have some graduated/accelerated top-up schemes so over 10+ top-ups, the associated validity accelerated,a nd if you topped up before the validity expired then you eventually built up a validity whereby any top up value pushed the validity out to 365 days. I was a One-2-Call customer for 8+ years.

There are some means to extend validity; DTAC/Happy have a scheme where you can purchase 30, 90 or 180 days for 2, 6, 18 baht with a code ( *113*nn#, where nn= 30, 90 or 180 days), but you may need to be a customer for at least 90 days before you can use this process. AIS/One-2-Call also have a similar service, but just 30 days for 30 baht - not sure if you need to be a customer for some period or if you can do this more than once?

There are also ways to transfer balance and validity from one number to another.

There are also requirements which require some usage every 60 - 90 days, and these are reinforced sporadically as the pool of available numbers is shrinking rapidly and service providers need to recycle numbers more frequently.

The regulatory authority here, the NBTC, has been making noise for a year or so re: abolishing any validity/expiration, and an accord may have been reached whereby any top up gives a minimum of 30 days, but the usage requirement will be enforced. So you may be able to do do 12 top-ups at 10 baht each to get one year? YMMV.

You could also check with your service provider at their shop at SBIA/BKK on departure to inquire about extended validity.

I am currently on a post-paid contract with DTAC so am no longer impacted.

olisch

I apologize for annoying anyone, especially transpac, but does anyone know, if you just can top up your sim card at the mobile shops at the airport?