Here are some tips for mobile phone users in Thailand. Buy or unlock your phone, POIs, operators.
Buy or use your mobile phone in Thailand
If you often have to call France from Thailand you can buy a mobile phone, you will find new ones from 15 euros and. You can also use yours by making sure it is unlocked and buying a Thai SIM card (Visit
www.simoptions.com/ for more). You will find mobile phone or accessory stores everywhere in Thailand, whether it is new phones, second-hand or Chinese copies, and the choice is very wide and prices lower than in France.
If you want to buy one, you have to be careful about the fake batteries and make sure if you don't understand English that the French language is available. For the charger no problem, the electric current in Thailand is 220 volts as in France.
Reach France from Thailand
With a mobile phone: dial 007 or 008 or 009 + 33 + the number of your correspondent without the first 0.
Reach Thailand from France
You can dial 00 66 then the number of the Thai mobile phone without the zero.
Unlocking your mobile phone
If you want to use your French mobile phone in Thailand you must make sure that it is unlocked, contact your operator for that (you must generally have been in possession of the phone for more than 6 months).
If you can't unlock it in France you can do it in Thailand mainly in Bangkok in mobile phone shops in major shopping malls like MBK, Pantip Plaza or Fortuna, it will cost you around 300 Baht.
Mobile phone in Thailand: which operator to choose?
There are four main suppliers in Thailand, Dtac and 1-2-call is the most used (think about it if you have to buy a refill in a lost corner), you then have AIS and True Move.
I tested the cards with the 3g internet at Dtac and True move and I prefer Dtac. With True move I had many problems and the customer service is lamentable, the offices are often packed and the employees tired by the many complaints, with Dtac I never had a problem and the employees are smiling and efficient.
Price of a SIM card
A prepaid SIM card costs from 50 to 200 Baht and you can choose your number! The saleswoman will show you a pack of cards and let you choose, a bit like buying a lottery ticket; the Thai people give great importance to numerology.
Price of a refill
Scratch card refills cost 60, 100, 150, 150, 300, or 500 Baht. You can also recharge your mobile phone by giving your number to an accredited merchant or by using a kind of distributor, not yet widespread but with which the minimum recharge price is 10 Baht!