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Special report brought to you by Deliver-IT Co Ltd, Chalong, Phuket, Thailand.
Mr. Ivo (18 March 1966, The Netherlands) studied Business Economics (University of Tilburg, The Netherlands) and graduated in 1992 with a major in Organization. In 1995 he finished a Master degree "Master of Information Management" (MIM). Mr Ivo is living in Phuket since 2001.
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Internet in Phuket Last updated: 24 Dec 2007
Several options to get Internet access in Phuket:
- ADSL
- CDMA
- Satellite
- Leased line
- GPRS
1. ADSL
Remember that you are NOT in the West, you are in Thailand. Infrastructure is not at the same level as in your country. In 2003 there was hardly no ADSL at all in Phuket. The last years the Thai did a good job to catch up with the ADSL availability around the island. The speed is, on the other hand, not comparable to the ADSL speeds you are probably used to.
Is ADSL available everywhere on the island?
No.
Where is it available?
Difficult to get reliable info. In most populated area's (Patong, Karon, Phuket-Town, Nai Harn/Rawai) the chance is pretty high that you can get ADSL.
 When you see this symbol on HouseinPhuket website, it means: The house is located within 5 kilometers of an ADSL point. You should be able to get ADSL in that area.
What do I need to get ADSL?
A normal telephone line (land line) installed in your house.
If you have a telephone line installed in your house, you can ask your telephone company if they have ADSL available in your area.
Which telephone companies are there in Phuket?
2 companies: "TOT" and "TT&T"
I don't have a telephone line in my house. It's easy to get one, isn't it?
No. Telephone lines are scarce, in some area's there are not enough lines available to serve everybody.
Ok, I have ADSL installed, let's do some high speed Internet!
Forget about the speed you are used to at home. At night, when everybody is sleeping, the speed increases but is still in no way comparable to the ADSL speed in the Western countries.
So what speed can I expect?
We have been monitoring our ADSL connection for some years now. We live in Chalong and have a TT&T + HiNet (CAT) ADSL connection (1500/500 mbps).
A screencap of the last quarter of 2007
I don't have a telephone line or ADSL is not available in my area. What gives?
You have 3 more options:
2. CDMA
CDMA is a rather new technology. It provides Internet by way of the telephone network. All you need is to buy an "aircard". Connect it to your laptop, or your PC at home, and you can travel anywhere and will have Internet access where the network is available.
What about the speed? In theory it is slower then ADSL but so far we heard many positive things about the speed. Here are some comments:
"I too am using CDMA with a Sierra Aircard in Phuket and I'm happy with it. The network hardly ever goes down unlike my experience with ADSL. One thing to consider though. If you have a requirement to upload large files or you want to use Skype then CDMA is not very suitable because the upload speed is very slow, about the same as dialup (around 45k kbs) Download is OK at about 500 kbs."
"I tested skype yesterday, and it was very clear, no lag."
"I've recently subscribed to Cat Telecom's wireless CDMA internet service here in Phuket. It works reasonably well but the speed varies tremendously thought the day....still it's better than nothing!"
"I use the Sierra Wireless 580 Aircard with Vista. I got a letter saying the connection isn't good enough yet, but it beats ADSL from TT&T and TOT by miles!"
The aircard sells for about 10.000 -12.000 Baht (December 2007).
3. Satellite
You can get Internet by Satellite (IPStar). The company will put a dish in your garden, so choose a package and you are online.
- Set up 3500 THB (= 92 $ = 72 €)
- Minimum contract 12 months, the company will charge 3 months fee if you cancel before 12 months.
Packages:
Package Speed monthly charge
Sat One 200 256/128 1500
Sat One 500 512/256 2200
Sat One 1 M 1024/512 2600
Sat Group 200 256/128 2500
Sat Group 500 512/256 3300
Sat Coporate 1024/512 4900
Sat Corparate Extra 2048/1024 7700
 NB: prices not include 7% VAT.
Rates can and will change often. Please contact Wellta from HouseInPhuket for most up-to-date rates or promotions.
More info from Loxinfo, an ISP in Thailand
4. Leased (private) line
Island Technology in Kathu can provide you with broadband all over the island. Check their homepage for prices and details.
5. GPRS
Connect you mobile phone to your PC, call to your network-GPRS-provider (AIS, DTAC, Orange) and you are online. Everywhere where your mobile phone has a signal, you can connect to the Internet.
Not high speed, but country wide. Expect 56K type modem speeds.
Summary.
Because the infrastructure in Thailand is not as modern as in the West, Thailand is not an early adaptor of high speed Internet and the lack of a decent backbone, the ADSL speed in Thailand is quite lower than you are used to. Especially in the peak hours speed can decrease drastically.
That will all improve in the coming years. The Thai did a good job in introducing ADSL to Phuket since 2003. Sure, there are shortcomings, the same we saw in our country years ago and the speed can be sometimes so frustrating slow, but ADSL is here to stay and it will only improve. CDMA is a welcome alternative if you don't have a landline and looking for high-speed Internet.
drs Ivo van der Vegt MIM
Phuket, Dec 2007
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