mobile carriers

[helmszee]

hey guys my trip starts on sunday and as things are getting closer i was thinking about taking my mobile with me to contact back home and also to use to keep in touch with friends in phuket if we split up, my phone is unlocked so i can put other sim cards in it just wondering if some one can recommend a suitable carrier, and give me an idea of the price to sms and call with in phuket and then to sms and call to australia. will also be travelling to penang and spending a little time in bangkok.

[MrDK]

1-2-Call is one option. Last time I paid 50 baht for the SIM card, which included 15 baht of credit. Top-ups can be purchased in 100 and 300 baht denominations (maybe others). Calls within Thailand is just a couple of bahts per minute and about the same for a national SMS.
1-2-call SIM cards can be purchased in most convenient stores.

Don't know about the cost of the calls to Australia, but believe that dialing 009 or 008 first gives you the lowest rate, which is much less than roaming with your own phone. Perhaps someone else can confirm the 008/009 dialing procedure.

[fotonut]

I've always used DTAC with good results. I think I've paid 200 bt for the sim card and 50 bt credit, top up cards are 200 bt and up. Locals calls are cheap, calls back to the states vary between 10 and 30 bt/min depending on the time of day and whether you dial 001, 007, 008 or 009 first. Sending/receiving text messages is not a problem either.

[shez21]

Last November not long after clearing customs I purchased a 1-2-Call sim card at the airport.
Cannot recall the price but think it was around 200 baht with 50 baht credit.
Was always notified via sms when credit was getting low and then I'd simply walk into a 7-11 store and buy a top up card, usually 300 baht.
If I remember rightly sms from one Thai number to another was something like 2-3 baht....and calls weren't expensive either.
Sms back to Australia was around the 25baht mark and never made any calls to home.
You can always get a credit balance so what I would do was check the balance, send an sms or make a call, then check the balance again.
That way you'll know your costs.

[florry]

excellent info from all concerned. Thanks.
I'd like to expand question a bit... are pre paid phone cards available in Thailand, for phone calls to Australia and China and will they work from 1-2-call network?
If anyone has some info, it would be greatly appreciated.