@Ray ****
What's stopping you from staying with the non-o retirement visa?
You can't 'work in Thailand' with either non-o or DTV, so what's the difference?
There are plenty of non-o retirees conducting offshore business, such as property/investment.
If it is a Thai company that asked you to consult for them, then you can't do that on the DTV. If it is offshore, then I see nothing at all preventing you from doing so on the non-o, like many others.
If I'm wrong, I'd love to be pointed to a source, because I can't find anything.
I was considering a non-o (retirement) myself, until the DTV was announced. I don't live in Thailand (yet), so DTV is more suitable for me at this time.