BANGKOK – TOT celebrated the finishing touches on the installation of second-generation (2G) mobile phone services today with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its head office.
44-year-old Thipiwan Pattriporn said he had been anxiously awaiting the arrival of 2G since it was announced by the Prem Tinsulanonda cabinet of 1987.
“I’ve been holding on to this early 1G phone for awhile now,” Thipiwan said, holding up an Analog Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, which weighs 1.2 kilos, features a six-inch long extendable antennae and battery life of four minutes.
Thipiwan, who waited 23 years for TOT to officially launch 2G, said his 1G phone had become a source of constant frustration. It only allowed him to make mobile phone calls within a 100-meter radius of any 1G antenna to any other people also using the 1G system within the same radius, or to anyone using a car phone.
The service means that now all mobile phones built between 1992 and 1996 are fully functional.
A TOT spokesman said that the completion of 2G implementation would allow Thais access to new technologies such as text messaging, voice mail recording and caller identification to their full capacity.
