eSIM thread
Jan 15, 2024 | 8:08 am
#691
Join Date: Sep 2022
Programs: United Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,733
first thing I notice, not necessarily about their eSIMs but their service in general, is that they have speed tiers, including a lot of offerings at 10 Mbps or less?
Do you guys go for their high speed or “max speed” tiers?
Do you go to their big stores at the malls to get help in English, including registration?
Or can you register through their apps?
can you buy their 7 or 8 day offers repeatedly through apps or just top up with US credit cards?
Jan 15, 2024 | 8:14 am
#692
Join Date: Sep 2022
Programs: United Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,733
Also is there a good eSiM for Thailand and Singapore or better to get two different eSIMs?
I see Airlo offers dTAC packages at 50 GB for 10 days for $9.90 and unlimited for 15 days at $19.95.
but how fast is it and do they route traffic through another country?
can you tether it?
I see Airlo offers dTAC packages at 50 GB for 10 days for $9.90 and unlimited for 15 days at $19.95.
but how fast is it and do they route traffic through another country?
can you tether it?
Jan 15, 2024 | 10:58 am
#693
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,961
You can tether with Airalo eSIMs. Another option might be a prepaid eSIM from Singtel, which covers both Singapore and Thailand:
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
Jan 15, 2024 | 11:35 am
#694
Join Date: Sep 2022
Programs: United Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,733
You can tether with Airalo eSIMs. Another option might be a prepaid eSIM from Singtel, which covers both Singapore and Thailand:
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
Thanks for the link.
Interesting but I will be spending far more time in Thailand than Singapore so 5 or 10 GB roaming in Thailand may not be enough.
If it were reversed it might work.
Jan 15, 2024 | 6:16 pm
#695
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Brisbane, Australia
Programs: UA 1K/MM, Marriott Titanium, IHG Gold, Hertz PC, Avis PC
Posts: 8,529
This is generally one of the catches when using eSIMs through someone like Airalo - you don't know where the SIM is from, so you don't know where the traffic is going to be routed via as they almost always route back to the home country. eg, the Moshi Moshi eSIM for Japan was, at least when I had it, actually a SingTel SIM - so all traffic was routed via Singapore.
Thailand is one of the few exceptions for that. The SIM is clearly advertised as being dtac, who are a major Thai telco, so you know it's going to be local. I don't know that I did any speed tests when I was there, but the speed was plenty fast enough for general use.
Thailand is one of the few exceptions for that. The SIM is clearly advertised as being dtac, who are a major Thai telco, so you know it's going to be local. I don't know that I did any speed tests when I was there, but the speed was plenty fast enough for general use.
Jan 15, 2024 | 6:53 pm
#696
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,961
When I had a Moshi Moshi eSIM in December 2022, it was almost unusable. I complained to Airalo, and they refunded my money and gave me a customer service bonus. The customer support said that they had changed providers on the back end, and a subsequent Moshi Moshi eSIM card worked fine in January 2023. I'll find out how it is now in about 20 hours since I have a 12-hour layover in Tokyo and did a 1 GB, 7-day top-up for $4.50.
Jan 15, 2024 | 10:42 pm
#697
Moderator: Hyatt, American Express; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: WAS
Programs: :rolleyes:, DL DM, AA EXP, UA Silver, Hyatt Glob, Mlife Noir (=> Marriott Amb), invol FT beta tester
Posts: 21,651
You can tether with Airalo eSIMs. Another option might be a prepaid eSIM from Singtel, which covers both Singapore and Thailand:
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
https://www.singtel.com/personal/pro...ans/hi-tourist
The only quirk was: on a lark, I tried using it in Vietnam and it did not connect, but since the list of countries hadn't included it, I thought nothing of it. Upon arrival in Thailand however, it still didn't seem to want to connect. I had to go into the settings and change the APN from "Singtel (PostPaid)" to "Singtel (PrePaid)" and then it worked. Now I wonder if I could've gotten it to work in Vietnam after all
Jan 15, 2024 | 11:08 pm
#698
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,961
Jan 16, 2024 | 2:09 am
#699
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 724
I am going to be in Koh Samui on 1-17. It’s an island off the coast of Thailand and I was there last week also. I got good service and speeds on AIS and they seem to be a major Thai carrier since my T-Mobile roaming service always lists them and connects when selected. I ran a Speedtest with 127Mbps down, 40Mb up last visit. They also have an English website for tourists that is pretty well laid out and has decent pricing and top up instructions.
AIS Link: https://www.ais.th/en/consumers/pack...l/tourist-plan.
Disclaimer: I have not purchased directly from them, but they seem pretty legit from what I can tell. My converter shows 100 Thai Baht = $2.85.
AIS Link: https://www.ais.th/en/consumers/pack...l/tourist-plan.
Disclaimer: I have not purchased directly from them, but they seem pretty legit from what I can tell. My converter shows 100 Thai Baht = $2.85.
Jan 17, 2024 | 12:50 am
#702
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,961
It's been connecting to Softbank locally.
Jan 18, 2024 | 11:37 pm
#703
Join Date: Aug 2005
Programs: AA Platinum for Life (2MM), Marriott Lifetime Gold
Posts: 1,040
I have a DTAC eSIM I got at BKK airport a while back. I've topped it up in the DTAC app numerous times using my US credit card.
The DTAC app makes numerous offers and packages available. I typically choose a "4GB at max speed for 30 days" (sometimes there are offers for bonus data, so I would get 6GB instead, etc).
A speed test typically shows around 150Mbps download.
The DTAC app makes numerous offers and packages available. I typically choose a "4GB at max speed for 30 days" (sometimes there are offers for bonus data, so I would get 6GB instead, etc).
A speed test typically shows around 150Mbps download.
Jan 19, 2024 | 4:54 pm
#704
Join Date: Sep 2022
Programs: United Mileage Plus
Posts: 1,733
I have a DTAC eSIM I got at BKK airport a while back. I've topped it up in the DTAC app numerous times using my US credit card.
The DTAC app makes numerous offers and packages available. I typically choose a "4GB at max speed for 30 days" (sometimes there are offers for bonus data, so I would get 6GB instead, etc).
A speed test typically shows around 150Mbps download.
The DTAC app makes numerous offers and packages available. I typically choose a "4GB at max speed for 30 days" (sometimes there are offers for bonus data, so I would get 6GB instead, etc).
A speed test typically shows around 150Mbps download.
Thanks for the datapoint about the speeds.
Airalo offers a 10-day, 50 GB eSIM using DTAC network for $10 but it's not clear if it's "max speed."
The one advantage of going through Airalo seems to be that you don't have to take time to go and register your passport at a carrier store. I'm arriving at BKK just after midnight so picking it up at BKK probably isn't likely, so I'll have to hunt down a store in the city.
