Posted originally on January 11, 2012

Beeline, formerly Tigo Lao recently became the last mobile operator in Laos to upgrade from GPRS and EDGE, by launching a “3G+4G” service from January 2012 in Vientiane and Luang Prabang and Savannakhet in March. Other 3G providers are Lao Telecom, ETL and Unitel.

Depending on user location and traffic, Beeline 3G service is faster than the others if using a high-speed capable phone or USB modem. A typical 3.6 Mbps phone or 7.2 Mbps modem will probably produce similar results to the 1-2 Mbps download speeds from LaoTel or ETL. Unitel performance should be better than those, although throttling is imposed on some plans.

Beeline sells a badged locked ZTE MF 656A (14.4 Mbps) and MF 668A (21 Mbps) USB dongle for 300,000 and 350,000 kips respectively. Data plans are suited to mobile phones with low daily, weekly or monthly internet requirements; plan prices are comparable with the others. See more below.

A Tigo or Beeline SIM (with phone number, so not data only) should automatically switch to 3G on a capable phone or device where service is available, so there’s no need to upgrade or change any settings. APN is beelinenet.

Beeline is testing a 4G/LTE network for Laos – not WiMax as employed by Lao Telecom and Planet. This is still in development and service is not yet available. LTE requires compatible phones and modems such as used for LTE systems deployed in the USA, Korea and Singapore. See related post.

Get more Lao mobile and internet information on the R-A Lao communications and Lao data plans pages.

April 2012 update

The Beeline AD1 and AM1 ‘unlimited’ data plans now have restrictions due to what the operator feels was excessive downloading by some subscribers. Limits are currently 1GB per day with a monthly maximum of 10GB. Connection is not affected, bandwidth reduces to 256Kbps if the limits are exceeded, sufficient for email and web browsing.

Current coverage in Luang Prabang is between the airport and the stadium. In Savannakhet it’s from the airport in the south to beyond the Dinosaur.

Although ‘unlimited’ plans were made available, excessive usage by some subscribers has resulted in limits being imposed and these are 2 GB per day or 10 GB per month. Other Lao operators also have limits or use bandwidth throttling on certain plans. See Lao 3G data plans.

While higher speeds and lower ping times will be achieved from relatively nearby Vientiane, Bangkok or Hanoi servers, what happens in the real world upstream (between Vientiane and servers in say London or New York) is another story and of course download speeds will be affected by many different factors.

Using the well-known SpeedTest.net, I was quite surprised with some of the results. I used the 21 Mbps USB modem from Beeline, a 7.2 Mbps dongle from Unitel and Planet’s 4G WiMax Indoor CPE modem. While having seen increased speeds from local servers, I certainly wasn’t expecting to see over 5 Mbps download speeds and very low latency from many thousands of miles or kilometers away from Southeast Asia. Here are the results:

Unitel Lao (Star Telecom) HSPA – London, UK server

Unitel Lao HSPA – New York City, USA server

Planet Online Laos WiMax – London, UK server

Planet Online Laos WiMax – New York City, USA server

Beeline Lao HSPA+ (ex Tigo Millicom) – London, UK server

Beeline Lao HSPA+ (ex Tigo Millicom) – New York City, USA server

This was by no means a definitive test which, in fairness, ought to be made at different times of the day, night and week, using different local and overseas locations and servers.

Currently, Beeline’s new HSPA+ service using a high speed USB modem such as the ZTE MF 668A wins hands down. Both the ping times and download speeds were impressive and unexpected. Let’s hope as the subscriber base expands that performance doesn’t deteriorate too rapidly as it has with Unitel.

Here’s a more recent Beeline test using a Los Angeles, CA (US West Coast) server, done at 6.30 pm Wednesday 18th.

Beeline is part of VimpelCom, a huge Russian-owned mobile provider. I found even less latency to Moscow – 48ms.

Strangely, I have since received much higher ping rates using Pingtest.net from these and other locations. I am looking further into why there should be such discrepancy.

See the Lao Communications page on our website for details of phone and internet services in the Lao PDR.

There are quite a few types on the market from manufacturers such as Kingston and SanDisk, and they come in different capacities; several gigabytes are common on today’s new phones and tablets. For many, this extra memory functions as part of the system, without needing setting; they may not even be aware of the card or its features. But problems can arise when the card is nearly full and files need deleting, transferring to other storage, or replacing the current SD card with a higher capacity one.

Having had issues myself, I created a Micro SD page on the R-A website several years ago. Since then it has been consistently one of the most popular, receiving hundreds of hits every day – over 85,000 by 2010 and over 180,000 by 2012. There’s no doubt that many have problems and card failures; there are numerous forums where people post, including phone and card manufacturer support sites.

Two common problems:  microSD file transfer & Nokia phones with password-locked cards

1.  If a microSD cannot be recognised by a computer (read, write, format etc), it may not be the card itself but a microSD to SD adapter typically needed for it to fit in a standard size card reader slot. The adapter usually comes with it. This is the first thing to check for a fault. Try using a different adapter (Kingston seem to have dud ones); better still, get  a USB reader with a Micro SD slot for $3.50; in the UK for £1.40.

2.  Nokia phones with locked microSD cards that need a password for access (happens suddenly without user intervention). Retrieving or removing the password depends upon the model. Some Nokias have an “MMC store” folder; copy this to a computer and open with Notepad to find the password. Reformatting the card (losing all content) allows a new password e.g. 1234 to be set if needed.

Ways to copy/move files between SD cards or transfer to and from a computer

There are different options for working with files. One is with the USB cable supplied with the phone and used in conjunction with a software program also supplied by the manufacturer. e.g. Nokia Data Suite. Another is Bluetooth – a wireless link between the two, as also is WiFi. If you have a built in or USB card reader, removing the microSD card from the phone and connecting directly to a computer is easiest.

Some card readers now accept a micro SD card directly (see above); previously it needed a micro to standard size SD adapter often but not always supplied with a micro SD purchased separately and often the cause of problems, one of which is the write protect switch (on the adapter – the micro SD does not have this).

Whichever way you connect the card to a computer,  a file manager such as Windows Explorer should see an extra external hard drive . The drive letter (G in the image) depends on how many drives are already in the computer, including the CD or DVD drive.

The card’s folders and files (not always all of them) will be visible too and can be copied or moved by dragging and dropping them to a folder on another hard drive or perhaps burning a CD for archiving purposes.

Sometimes they are hidden or copyright-protected by the manufacturer and other means are needed to move or copy them. See our main MicroSD page for how to copy all SD card content to another location.

Due to the sheer scope of this topic, and the different problems that users experience, the web page  is long and rambling – even more so than this post – especially for someone looking for a ‘quick fix’. When I find the time, I will sort the information into categories and incorporate a summary on this blog, where issues will be easier to identify. Readers can also comment below and see answers which hopefully help others with similar problems.

NOTE: Before posting a problem with your SD card, PLEASE visit the MicroSD page at Retire-Asia.com. There are a lot of things you can try and tools you can download and use; most are free.

If you cannot find a solution there, (or you have found one and want to help others) you are welcome to post a comment. BUT you must provide the make and model of the phone, camera or other device, the card type (SD microSD, SDHC, SDXC etc), brand name and capacity (Gb) of the card. Describe the nature of the failure and the procedures you have already tried to fix it with the tools offered here or elsewhere.

Don’t comment “My card doesn’t work, I’ve tried everything; what can I do?” and expect an answer, but if you don’t see your problem listed here, below in comments, or on the R-A MicroSD page, then I am probably going to suggest you replace the card under warranty if possible, go to a phone service centre or ‘byte the bullet’ and just get a new SD card! They are pretty cheap now.

You can find all the information you need about Asia, part or full time retirement and how to earn extra income on the many pages of Retire-Asia.com.

We also have a compact R-A Mobile version as well as the associated RetireAsia App for Android which were launched in late December. There is limited content at the moment, but new pages are being added regularly and the App shows new topics immediately they are published on the website.

May we wish all our Retire Asia visitors and followers – young, mature, old or new – a happy and successful 2012!

Except for Nokia which is now tied to Microsoft, virtually all popular phone brands like Google itself, Samsung, LG, HTC, Acer, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, and tablets from Samsung, Acer, Asus, ViewSonic – and many more including Chinese copies – run on versions of the Android operating system.

The ‘apps’ (applications for Apple and Android are like computer programs, games and utilities for desktop and laptop PC operating systems like Windows, Linux or Mac) list is already huge and can be seen on the official Android Market, as well as several other websites which also cater for devices not ‘authorized’ by Google. Only those with a ‘legit’ phone or tablet can download apps direct from Google’s Android Market, but there are ways to get around these restrictions (some technical knowledge may be needed).

Android Apps are mostly free, such as the popular Angry Birds games or if charged for, around $1 -10. You choose the apps you want and have them sent to and installed on your phone, wherever you are, automatically via your Gmail account. It’s a very simple process. Storage memory is not a problem as all these devices have micro SD cards which hold gigabytes of data for apps, videos, photos and music files.

In these days of economic hardship for many, any way to save money shopping, eating out, hotels, local tourist attractions, servicing the car, or whatever, is very welcome and most people are aware of coupons which can be redeemed against purchases from a local outlet or a special limited time offer (often loss-making for the vendor) but which can save you a lot of money, up to 60% or more in some cases. Groupon is the best known of these services and operates in over 50 countries including a growing number in Asia, but there are more; this a rapidly growing market.

You can find these coupon sites on a computer, but what is really needed is to know of savings offers available in a particular location, or even better, near where you are right now. There are apps designed just for this purpose. They often work in conjunction with Groupon or other company, and then use the Android phone’s built-in GPS navigation and Google Maps features to locate particular offers or daily deals as they have become known.

With a good ‘deals app’, settings let you to choose an offer category (or see all) either in a particular city or town you want to visit; better yet, be able to search and notify you of coupons or daily deals near your present location – or you may even be looking to meet someone located near you!

This is great idea when you think about it, as you carry your phone (or tablet) wherever you go and you can be advised instantly when a new local savings offer comes up near you – in real time. Or you can plan activities with money-saving offers in advance.

There are several of these apps to choose from, but one I found does all it is supposed to, and works well. It’s available free on the Android Market and called Local Coupon Savings.

Apps are fun to use for anyone with an Android phone or tablet, so give this one a try – wherever you are.

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on an Android phone. I bought an LG Optimus Me P350 aka Pecan for about £100 or $155 and I am very happy with it, although one problem with touchscreen phones is clumsy fingers, but there are apps that can improve keying in text dramatically like SwiftKey which now costs just 10 cents or pence from the Android market. There are free keyboard apps too.

The phone costs less than I paid at Amazon.com (click photo); it’s also at Amazon UK.

The dispute began more than a month ago (see previous post). It is unlikely the details will be published or made available to the public.

However, there has been a mobile phone operator problem in Laos for the past month, with no change by November 16 when this post was previously updated.

On November 23, Lao mobile communications were almost back to normal – see later post.

The four local networks: LaoTel, ETL, Unitel and Tigo (now Beeline) have a cartel-like agreement that limits competition between them (relating mainly to free calls and messages); a dispute between Beeline and the others is making life difficult for all phone users, both fixed line and mobile and including incoming international calls to Laos. Relations turned sour on October 14 when Beeline (VimpelCom) – or Tigo which was previously majority-owned by Millicom – apparently refused to comply.

This resulted in immediate cross-network call blocking to and from Beeline numbers by the other three networks. After a month, there has been no resolution in sight.

Since mid-October,  Tigo/Beeline numbers have only been able to make and receive calls on the Beeline network. Additionally, Lao Telecom also controls most of the international lines, so incoming calls to Tigo numbers from overseas are affected too.

As is often the case in the Lao PDR, very few outside the government ever know what’s really going on. Speculation and rumour are rife. Some say it’s the Lao government (which owns the other telcos either outright or in joint venture with the Vietnamese military) wanting a larger interest in the Beeline ‘nest’ than 22%. They presumably couldn’t get it from Millicom and the new majority owner VimpelCom (with strong Russian government connections) is not giving way. The stalemate continues. At some point in time, normal connections will probably be resumed.

In the meantime, one solution for mobile subscribers in Laos (especially visitors) is to use another operator’s SIM (costing about $2.50). Lao mobile phones are almost all sold unlocked. Alternatively, dual and multi-SIM phones are available cheaply now. Chinese mobiles are sold in phone shops throughout the country, but try before you buy!

While it’s more important to learn how to use your phone rather than to try and fully understand the technology (a bit like driving a car without needing to know how automatic transmissions or airbags actually work), those of us who have inquiring minds do like to know at least something about aspects of modern technology that affect our daily lives. However, this can be rife with confusing acronyms like 2G, 3G, 3.5G, 4G, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSPA, HSDPA, IMEI, USSD, SMS, MSISDN – and there are plenty more…

Mobile phone users were once grateful to be able to leave home and be able to make and receive phone calls in their car, then being able to carry a large, heavy ‘hand portable’.

The modern mobile can be tiny or have a decent size screen, but not only that, it is capable of infinitely more functions than simple voice calls. Cell phones, PDAs and pads or tablets are also still and video cameras, music and video players, internet browsers, emailers, GPS navigators; they even act as modems for laptops, tablets and full size computers too and can run similar programs and applications (Apps).

Another handy little gadget is the ‘stick’ or ‘dongle’ 3G modem that plugs into a computer’s USB port and provides a fast internet connection anywhere in the world there is a GPRS or 3G mobile phone network signal in range.

The communication ability for all these portable devices is the tiny card inside known as a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) that allows connection to local mobile phone networks in most countries of the world. While some phones are ‘locked’ into a particular network as they sold with a usage plan, most can be unlocked inexpensively, making them usable with other mobile operators as well. This is an issue to consider when taking your phone out of the country. Another is the ‘frequency bands’ that the phone can use. The US and Canada use different ones to most of the rest of the world, so to be ‘globally mobile’ you need a ‘quad band’ model. Fortunately, cell phones can be very cheap to buy, especially in Asia, as Korea and China manufacture most of them. Buy a second phone, a local SIM and away you go, chatting, browsing, even navigating!

Visit Retire-Asia’s GSM Mobile page to have some of the confusing letters and acronyms explained in layman’s terms; you may find it useful to know at least something about them.

I am from an older generation and feel this is a bit of a pity; it takes away most of the surprise and destroys the ability to discover something new and different – “been there, done that, got the t-shirt” etc. With today’s printed and online travel guides, Google Earth and GPS plus Apple and Android apps. Now there’s really nowhere on earth that remains undiscovered by satellites if not tourists. Everywhere you go, hordes of “fellow travelers” have been there already and reported it in minute detail. How sad is that?

Laos has been a bit of a late starter in technological and industrial terms compared to nearby Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore – not to mention ‘Big Brother’ China. However, digital communications have been seen as something of a priority and much of the country is quite well served by mobile phone operators and to a lesser degree (due to less local demand) internet providers, with both government and private enterprise involved.

Some of the ADSL, GPRS, EDGE, 3G, HSPA, WiFi and 4G Mobile WiMax services are soon to be extended outside the capital Vientiane by Planet Online and Lao Telecom to cover parts of other provinces.

For tourists and short time visitors LaoTel has possibly the best overall coverage in Laos, although Unitel provides higher 3G speeds. Of the other two main operators, ETL has been a late starter, its 3G NET service only beginning on August 31 while Tigo (now Beeline) has made no announcements regarding 3G. All offer 2G GPRS and EDGE as a fallback if UMTS 3G is not available. When travelling around Laos, it’s wise to carry SIMs (phone and/or data) from more than one provider. Refill cards for all companies are available country-wide.

Read more on the  Retire-Asia.com Lao Communications page which is updated regularly. There’s mention of Chinese-made Android WiFi/3G tablets, costing a fraction of the Apple iPad or Samsung Galaxy, and seen everywhere. $100 or so is not a lot to lose if your “ChiPad” fails. Note that WiFi and ADSL/LAN may work, but the 3G USB feature is for Huawei modems. Laotel, Unitel and ETL all sell ZTE MF190 dongles, which won’t.

Note that only unlocked USB 3G modems and quad band phones can be used in any country.

A related topic is electronic banking.  Cashpoints or ATMs have been around Laos for several years and are seen in a growing number of locations, not only in Vientiane and Luang Prabang, but in most provinces as well.  See Retire-Asia’s Lao banking page for more detail of banking facilities available in the Lao PDR. Exchange rates for main currencies are updated regularly.

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