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Mobile Phone Network in Thailand, and Koh Tao Internet Access

Fortunately, the last few years have brought some welcome technological improvements and infrastructure to the tropical island of Koh Tao.

Previously, mobile phone reception on Koh Tao, Thailand was weak or non-existent, with very few internet connections and residents having to run private generators to make electricity. That's all changed now, so thankfully Koh Tao has left the 'dark ages'.

Powered from a small station hidden towards the south of the island, almost all of Koh Tao receives government electricity, which is reliable and stable (most of the time). And on the rare occasions when government power can't meet demand, there's also a private company offering backup power for Sairee Beach, where Simple Life Diving and our dive internship accommodation is located.

Electricity in Thailand runs at 220 volts, with a 2 pin plug system. Charging electrical appliances such as phones, cameras and laptops is no problem - you just need to get hold of a simple plug adaptor.

Mobile phone coverage is good, with two major networks [AIS and DTAC], each of which are fine. You can pickup a Thai Sim card very inexpensively in any convenience store, and use your phone on a pay-as-you-go basis. There are several companies offering cheap international calls from Thailand, where you simple add a prefix to the number you're dialing to get cheap overseas call rates (008 and 007).

There are lots of internet cafes across the island, costing about 1-2 baht per minute. Internet connections on Koh Tao aren't rapid, but it's a lot better than no internet.

Connecting your own Laptop or Mobile Phone to the Internet in Thailand.

If you bring your own laptop to Koh Tao and want to use it to connect to the internet there are several options.

The easiest is via WiFi. Many cafes and restaurants offer free WiFi internet and we have free WiFi internet in the Simple Life dive school, so you're welcome to use the internet. For connecting to the internet from your accommodation, there are a couple of commercial WiFi providers, who sell prepaid cards.

For heavy internet users or if you require a more stable internet connection, a better option is to use a 3G mobile connection (sometimes called USB air card / Edge card). These can be picked up in Thailand for a few thousand baht. You put a Thai sim card into the device, then connect to the internet through the mobile phone network. The speed of the connection is comparable to other internet connections on Koh Tao, and the rates are very cheap.

Using the AIS network, packages are available from just a few hours, through to unlimited monthly usage, (which comes in at about 700 baht per month).

More Koh Tao dive internships information: