[Update] DiGi have now opened a registration of interest (ROI) for the Xiaomi Mi 3. More below.

As speculated late last week, DiGi have now confirmed that they will be among the first local service providers in Malaysia to take pre orders for the Xiaomi Mi3 on the 27th May 2014, just a week after the limited launch on Xiaomi’s website. The Xiaomi Mi3 will be available with the DiGi SmartPlan on a 24-month contract.

Christian Thrane, DiGi’s Chief Marketing Officer said partnering with Xiaomi, is part of DiGi’s commitment to bring internet to more people by expanding its range of smartphones catering to different segment groups.

“Today, many more Malaysians are accessing the Internet through their mobile phones. We are very excited to work with Xiaomi to bring this sought-after smartphone to our customers. By combining the right device, with the right plan together with good usage experience, we are empowering more Malaysians to benefit from access to the internet,” said Thrane.

Hugo Barra, Vice President of Xiaomi Global added, “Mi 3 is our highest performing smartphone, consistently ranked at the top of industry benchmarks since we launched it. Our Android-based platform — MIUI — designed with the help of our user community, is a live operating system with weekly software updates. MIUI is incredibly intuitive while at the same time offers power users a high degree of customisation. We are pleased to partner with DiGi to give their 11 million customers easy access to the internet through the Mi 3.”

Users interested in pre-ordering the Mi 3 via DiGi can register their interest via the ROI page here.

If you’ve been meaning to get a Sony Xperia Z2, nows a good chance to do so with Celcom. Sign up for the Sony Xperia Z2 with any Celcom First + mPro plan and you could stand a chance to win an all expenses paid trip to Brazil to catch the World Cup quarter-finals. You’ll be getting:

1. A pair of flight tickets to Sao Paolo
2. 4D3N Stay at the Hilton Morumbi
3. A pair of tickets to one of the quarter-final matches
4. Domestic transport to and from Rio for the matches
5. Exclusive Stadium Hospitality from the Sony Xperia Suite with complementary food and drinks
6. Security and Insurance

On top of being in the running for such an amazing prize, every signup for the Xperia Z2 will entitle you to a FREE adidas Brazuca Mini Ball and Sports T-shirt worth a total of RM155.

The Plans

Click to enlarge

The promotion is on from today until the 31st of May 2014 so head on over to your nearest Blue Cube or Celcom Exclusive today!

Find out more here

Even though we have learned that the three major telcos in Malaysia will be offering Xiaomi Mi 3 to their customers very soon, only DiGi seems to be putting some effort into introducing the hotly talked about Android smartphone to their customers. Well, looks like the Yellow Coverage Fellow is not alone now.

Quietly, Maxis has revealed on its official website that it will be taking pre-orders for Xiaomi Mi 3 on 30 May 2014.

It is not known why Maxis only starts its three days later than DiGi but I’m pretty sure that there will be quite a number of happy Maxis customers out there. Then again, the telco didn’t reveal any other information regarding its Mi 3 pre-order apart from the date shown above.

In fact, the icon for the Mi 3 pre-order program that appeared on Maxis website is non-clickable at the time this article is written. Well then, guess we have to play the waiting game first before Maxis reveals more information regarding its Xiaomi Mi 3 pre-order program.

I complain about the state of Malaysia’s internet like the rest of you. I have experienced the golden pastures of Korea and Japan, clocking ridiculous speeds in coffee shops and seeing that Speedtest needle redline like a a drift car attacking a course. I have experienced the time where not even an instagram picture would load while my phone proudly reported H+ with a smug satisfaction, like it wasn’t just H, it was better than that.

But when people were sharing this article from a daily that based on a study conducted by Ookla (of speedtest.net fame) proclaimed Malaysia to have, on average, slower (therefore worse) internet than neighbours Vietnam & Cambodia, even my jaded eyebrow was raised.

Today I rise to the defence of our internet. The numbers don’t tell the full story and lead us on a roundabout journey of self loathing and MCMC complaints when in fact, we are not doing so badly at all. The number at the end of a speedtest is not the be all and end all, being able to take the test in more places anywhere in the country, is.

Numbers Don’t Lie… Or Do They…

According to the study and subsequent article in question, Malaysia is ranked 126 (now 124) in the world for average broadband speed coming in at a paltry 5.48Mbps (now 5.63Mbps). The article goes on to say how Vietnam and Cambodia are ranked above us and that Malaysia is BARELY above Myanmar. Compare these numbers to countries at the top of the table; Hong Kong sits pretty at the top with 80.46Mbps and Singapore coming in at 68.71Mbps, a far cry from the figures associated with Malaysia.

At a glance to someone who is not inclined to find out what the numbers mean and how they were extracted, it looks like the state of internet in Malaysia is pathetic. We are around 10 times slower than Singapore and may as well be living in longhouses and trees with this internet, after all we are slower than countries like Madagascar (13Mbps) and Moldova (33.71Mbps).

Understanding Where Ookla’s Study Goes Wrong

It all boils down to the methodology that Ookla employs for the Netindex survey. The survey as a whole is not wrong per se, but it’s extremely inaccurate. Ookla are the guys behind the broadband speed checker Speedtest.net. With apps on just about all the platforms, it is just about the most popular way to see how fast or slow your internet connection is.

How Ookla compiled their data was that they use location information of where you are, which servers you are testing to and take an average across all tests done from within the country. It doesn’t matter if you are testing your brand new 20Mbps Unifi connection at home or if you are seeing if your phone has been throttled after using too much data on the go, if you tested on a Malaysian server on Malaysian soil it will record it as data.

So what we have here is NOT a reflection on the state of the internet but an average SPEED across all speedtests that were run on the site from Malaysia. This already doesn’t sound like a test that can be used as any manner or yardstick, unlike a comparable one like say the Akamai State Of The Internet.

Here’s what MCMC had to say about the Ookla test

Sometimes More Is Less 

Let’s take the 2 countries that the article from that daily mentioned and look a little deeper into what it actually means and contrast them to Malaysia:

Cambodia

• Average Download Speed: 5.8Mbps
• Average Upload Speed: 6.7Mbps
• Internet Penetration Rate: 4.9%
• Smartphone Penetration Rate: -

Vietnam

• Average Download Speed: 18.4Mbps
• Average Upload Speed: 8.1Mbps
• Internet Penetration: 39.5%
• Smartphone Penetration: 19.4%

Malaysia

• Average Download Speed: 5.63Mbps
• Average Upload Speed: 4.2Mbps
• Internet Penetration: 65.8%
• Smartphone Penetration: 34.5%

From what we can see here, both have faster average speeds than Malaysia but with a lower internet penetration rate means there are LESS people in the country percentage wise who have access to the internet as well as smartphones. This will most definitely skew the results of the test if conducted how Ookla did the Netindex table. With less people online, both mobile and fixed line. the sample size is a lot smaller and less accurate.

Vietnam definitely has a very high average speed but if smartphone penetration and internet penetration is lower than Malaysia, it means that less people will be running this test on a smartphone (which has a slower capped speed) and less people will have access to the internet in general. Internet is only available in 1 city in Cambodia to a VERY small sample of people leading the average speed to be higher than Malaysia. Does that mean Cambodia’s internet is better than Malaysia? No. IT means the select few who get internet in the capital city, are very lucky indeed.

The Number At The End Means The Least In The Long Run

For me, I can live with 5.xMbps for my main line and 1-2Mbps for my phone. Most of the things I do online are not going to be any different on a 100Mbps connection. Sure, I can stream 1080p videos on youtube and download huge files in seconds but for the cost I’m happy with the minimum offered by UniFi here in the mainland. I do enjoy LTE on my iPad when I’m out and about but it’s more of a connectivity thing than the actual potential top speed.

I believe connectivity and internet penetration is key to the future. Granted countries like Singapore have extremely high internet penetration, super high average speed and close to the best tech money can buy but we all must step back a bit and think, Singapore is all fibred up and that is no small task by a long shot. Singapore is small enough to be able to execute such a plan and in fact when I was growing up there, I remember the 1.5Mbps connection that was the mainstay in the early years of cable.

Malaysia is not there yet, but not for the lack of trying.

I think we don’t cut our ISP or Telco enough slack in this aspect. I salute everyone who brings HSBB to our homes, with UniFi growing from a niche thing only lucky people could have to a mainstay in just about every home in suburban Malaysia. I have never experienced outages or extremely slow speed (with the exception of an underwater cable problem) or problems at all in this respect. UniFi may not be available everywhere just yet, but for the expansion plans, it looks bright for TM.

For the places that don’t have UniFi, telcos like YES have put towers in to give access to schools which are usually out of coverage range (despite the fracas over misappropriation of funds), DiGi is making inroads to bringing connectivity to Sabah and Sarawak, making good to their promise of “internet for all” and we even have a 100Mbps connection of our own with TIME and looking at the price, if you’re not bothered about a usage cap it’s pretty decent.

The internet has become a human right according to Sweden and that’s where we are headed. Giving Malaysians EVERYWHERE access to affordable internet is the end goal and we are on the way. It may not be 100Mbps in Sibu, Sarawak but the fact that there is 4Mbps ADSL connection there is a very encouraging thing.

The number at the end of a speedtest may be not as high as you want but at the end of the day, it doesn’t mean that money is not being spent to up the standard of the internet in Malaysia. Once we figure out how to drop prices to make it more affordable to the masses, how to get constant useable internet connections on our phones everywhere in the country and also how to make sure every citizen has access to a computer somehow, then we can look at that number at the end and push the boundaries there.

Still remember the RM 555 deal (RM 999 for non Standard Chartered JustOne Platinum Credit Card customers)  that U Mobile has for Samsung Galaxy S5? It turns out that the telco is planning to reduce the price even further, according to this yet-to-be-released artwork for U Mobile’s official website.

Details are still quite scarce for now since the website has yet to go live with this new artwork but seems like users will receive the extra discounts by trading in their phones. The RM 355 price tag is apparently reserved for Standard Chartered Just One Platinum Credit Card customers while for non-customers, they are charged at RM 799.

Just like previous plan, this newly reduced pricing will apparently involves the telco’s U Plus postpaid plan as well. According to our sources, the new pricing will be made available for only a short time period starting from today onwards.

So if you are interested to get your hands on the Samsung Galaxy S5 from U Mobile through this plan, just keep a close look at this page till it gets updated.

[UPDATE (24 May, 106AM): Till now, the new price above has yet to go live. Hmm.]

[UPDATE (24 May, 1019PM): The plan is now online. Accoridng to the site, the price of the phone after RM200 rebate will be RM355, RM799, RM1299, and RM1499 in respect to the accompanying postpaid plans.] – Thanks Mohamad Syazwan, for the tips!

What happens when one of the country’s biggest telecommunications companies decides to prank its own staff at its HQ? Maxis recently pulled three pranks on its staff – some of whom are part of the top management team – as an exercise to demonstrate the company’s new “It’s Not OK to Be OK” philosophy at its Menara Maxis office.

Maxis’ new philosophy was announced at the company’s AGM, where CEO Morten Lundal described just why it was not enough to just be OK, especially when it comes to its own consumers. The internal philosophy aims to motivate the Maxis staff to push for greatness, and ensure a marked improvement in customer services to a consumer base of more than 4 million users.

As a start, the company has already implemented a new Q-System in the Maxis centre in Menara Maxis that sends a ticket number directly to your mobile device and alert you when your number is about to be called, eliminating the need to sit around the premises in case your number is called.

Of course, other improvements are taking place, but Maxis is also making sure its own staff understands the issues its customers are currently facing. As part of the “It’s Not OK to be OK” initiative, the company launched the Unmatched Customer Experience (UCE) campaign…on its own senior management staff. The first video at the top of the page targets the Head of Sales and Services, Tan Lay Han, as well as the Head of Consumer Business, Dushyan Vaithiyanathan.

Besides that prank, the Maxis team were also subjected to two more, mirroring issues customers usually face such as long waiting times and being given the runaround when overcoming an issue, or even being given nasty surprises when the postpaid bill comes each month, something Maxis (and other telcos) have long been accused of doing.

These videos may just be promotional PR stunts for now, but it is definitely heartening to see a company finally addressing its customer services and making itself an example to other telcos. That being said, we sure hope that the entire effort is actually sustained.

In addition to these prank videos, Maxis has also shared more videos on its YouTube channel to promote its new “It’s Not OK to Be OK” philosophy. View them here.

A very reliable source has informed us that DiGi is set to open sales of the Xiaomi Mi 3 at midnight tonight, and will bundle it for free with a 24-month DG SmartPlan contract. The device will only be sold via its online store, and customers who successfully purchased the device can collect it at various DiGi outlets nationwide.

DiGi is the first local telco to be offering Xiaomi’s flagship device in the country. Given the low RM889 retail price, we were pretty sure that DiGi will bundle it for free in its offer, and the information provided by our source seems to confirm it. Apparently, the Xiaomi Mi 3 will be available to all current DiGi subscribers and MNP applications, and the device will be bundled with a 24-month contract of the SmartPlan 148, which comes with 6GB of data, 600 minutes and 600 SMS.

Upon each successful purchase, customers will be required to pick up their Mi 3 across 22 different DiGi outlets nationwide. [Update @ 5:59pm] Our source has confirmed that free home delivery options will also be offered. More importantly, pre-orders for the Mi 3 postpaid bundle is set to open and midnight tonight, and orders are on a first come, first served basis only. There’s no word yet on whether the initial stock, which is said to be in the thousands, will be replenished.

If you’re looking to grab yourself a Mi 3, and perhaps increase your chances of owning one given the limited stocks offered by Xiaomi Malaysia, this could be something worth taking a look at, especially considering that the only other high-end device available for free with DG SmartPlan 148 is the Sony Xperia Z Ultra.

Cover image: a leaked image of the electronic direct mailer which will be sent out to those who have registered their interest last week.

The HTC One M8 was one of the most talked about device of 2014, with its amazing build quality and interesting inclusion of a second lens, it’s certainly one of the best phones to come out this year.

Read our full review of the HTC One M8 Here

While Maxis has announced that it would be the only Telco to be carrying the M8 as well as all HTC devices from now onward, DiGi and U Mobile beat them to the punch, having their own plans and promotions for the device. Whether or not the M8 is exclusive to Maxis is one thing, but here is a comparison between ALL of the telcos offering it right now.

Click To Enlarge

Maxis

We’ll start first and foremost with the telco who announced the whole exclusivity in the first place. Unfortunately, the deals that Maxis were having as Online exclusives for the M8 have either been pulled in the case of the RM120 rebate for normal customers online and will expire today in the case of One Club members. If Maxis updates their promotions, we will update this list when we can as well.

Find out more on the Maxis Product Page

Click To Enlarge

DiGi

At first when DiGi teased the potential availability of the HTC One M8, we thought it was a troll attempt taking a jibe at Maxis’ “exclusivity” announcement after U Mobile released their deals with the M8. With plans of their own, DiGi are also the only telco which offer the promotion that existing DiGi subscribers of over 12 months will be entitled to a waived advance payment upon registration leaving you to pay for the device only.

Find Out More On The DiGi Product Page

Click To Enlarge

U Mobile

U Mobile were the centre of the “exclusivity” controversy having announced their deal before Maxis’. Arguably, U Mobile have the most attractive offer with the lowest initial payments with U88 and U Plus completely omitting any advanced payment and focusing only on device cost. On top of this, the device cost on the U Plus plan is the cheapest out there now. U Mobile is definitely one to consider if you’re in the market for a HTC One M8.

Find Out More At The U Mobile Product Page

Click To Enlarge 

Hot on the heels of their incredible HTC One M8 deal, U Mobile have given the 999 treatment to yet another impressive flagship, the Sony Xperia Z2. U Mobile plans have been extremely attractive as due to the lack of upfront payment and low phone price with the more expensive plans. Even at the lowest end plans, the Z2 will start from RM1,799 which is a pretty good deal as well all things considered.

Click To Enlarge

This promotion is valid until 30th June or while stocks last at U Mobile Stores Only.

Hit up the product page for more details

The Xperia Z2 is the followup to the popular Xperia Z1 which was one of my favourite phones of the year last year and today both U Mobile and DiGi have come up with their various plans for the device. Since 3/4 players have deals for the phone, it’s no better time than now to have a telco price comparison to help you decide which plans suit you best!

If you’re not looking for a telco plan the great guys at Storekini are selling the device too!

Click To Enlarge

DiGi

The last to come up with the Z2 plans, DiGI is always a decent choice for a good deal. It’s worth noting that this wasn’t published on their social media sites or the front page, rather relegated to the main shop side indicating either a quiet launch or maybe a premature debut of the plans. If anything changes on this front, we will update the table as we see fit.

Check out the Z2 product page on DiGi Here!

Celcom

Celcom were the first to debut their plans and they also have a pretty cool contest going on where the grand prize is an all expenses paid trip to watch the World Cup. While the plans are not exactly the cheapest, the draw is the 5GB limit for Data and of course the flexible free calls and sms. It’s worth noting that the upfront payment you make for the plans will be rebated to you evenly over a period of 10 months.

Check out the Z2 product page on Celcom

U Mobile

Lastly we have U Mobile who have been leading the way with their no upfront payment deals for higher price plans. As with the HTC One M8, they are offering the Z2 for RM999 with the U Plus plan with only that to pay upon registration. If you are paying that much for a plan at the moment, it’s a good idea to go on U Mobile.

Check out the Z2 product page for U Mobile

After announcing its postpaid bundle for the hugely popular new smartphone in town, the Xiaomi Mi 3, DiGi has now announced that the Mi 3 will also be available off-contract with a DiGi Easy Prepaid bundle. While many have criticized DiGi’s move to bundle the Mi 3 with a two-year contract, this prepaid bundle appears to be a lot more attractive.

DiGi is offering the Mi 3 off contract at the same retail price as Xiaomi Malaysia’s RRP, which is RM889. In addition, the bundle also includes the DiGi Easy Prepaid pack and an additional 250MB mobile Internet quota per month for 12 months – all of which amounts to RM196.80 – at a promotional price of only RM60. Hence, customers will only pay a total of RM949 for the device and the prepaid pack.

But of course, there are some points to take note of. First and foremost, this online-only promotion will only start tomorrow (May 29) at 12pm, and more importantly, there are only 1000 units available.

Considering the rather long postpaid contract that customers will have to commit to with the postpaid bundle, this prepaid plan really seems to offer better value for money – and even more so when you consider the crazy inflated prices scalpers are pricing the Mi 3 at these days.

(Source: DiGi (Facebook))

Thanks to overwhelming response for this afternoon’s deal at noon, DiGi have come up with 1000 more units of one of the most sought after phones around these days, the Xiaomi MI 3. The deal stands to be the same as the one this afternoon and is a decent one at that. Hit up the page here to grab yours before they run out!

It’s worth noting however that delivery of the MI 3 will only begin from 25th June 2014 onwards. If you’re in no rush, why not?

[Update] Maxis has just confirmed that it has renamed the plan into MaxisONE plan and MaxisONE plan lite. The changes have been reflected in the post.

Unlimited. That’s a word that Maxis feels has been used and abused too often in the telco industry. As such, the company’s new postpaid plan, called MaxisOne plan, opts for “limitless” instead. Offering limitless calls and SMS for a flat rate, the new MaxisONE plan aims to be the most compelling postpaid plan for the majority Malaysians.

According to internal research of its customer data, Maxis has found that most of its subscribers (both pre- and postpaid) make a lot more voice calls compared to mobile Internet consumption, where the nationwide average of its users only hovers around 1GB per month. On top of that, only about 3% of its users consistently used more than 2GB per month.

But at the same time, the company is readying itself for this 97% of consumers to slowly move away from feature phones and purchase their first smartphone, where mobile Internet consumption would gradually increase. To leverage itself on this phenomenon, the local telco has announced a new, fuss-free postpaid plan called the MaxisONE plan.

The MaxisONE plan offers unlimited calls and texts to all numbers both fixed and mobile (but adhering to its fair usage policy (FUP), the value is capped at 3000 minutes and 3000 SMS per month), while offering 2GB of mobile Internet at LTE speeds per month for RM128. A second, more affordable plan, called the MaxisONE plan lite, offers the same unlimited calls and texts but is only limited to Maxis numbers only, while offering 1GB of mobile Internet – all for RM78. Also, any usage of mobile Internet beyond the subscribed quota will not be charged on a pay-per-use basis; instead, users will be throttled to a maximum speed of 64kbps.

Here’s the breakdown:

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As you can see, the MaxisONE plan is not meant for heavy mobile Internet users. The mobile Internet quota is on the low side, and the data booster packs are inexplicably expensive. But to those who are constantly on the phone, this could be a pretty useful plan.

Maxis has also stated that while the introduction of this plan will mean the removal of some TalkMore plans, the more affordable ones (TalkMore 28 and TalkMore 48) will still be available for customers to subscribe. Further, the SurfMore plans will also still be available, although Maxis has stated that it intends to replace them with a new data-only postpaid plan for tablets that will be coming in September; Maxis did not disclose more information beyond that.

In addition to the MaxisONE plan, Maxis has also unveiled a total of eight device bundles on 24-month contracts. All the major flagship devices, such as the HTC One M8, Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony Xperia Z2 are all available alongside more affordable options such as the Sony Xperia M2 and the Huawei Ascend Y530.

For more information about the Maxis ONEplan, head on to the Maxis official website here.

[Update] Maxis has just confirmed that it has renamed the plan into MaxisONE plan and MaxisONE plan lite. The changes have been reflected in the post.

At the announcement of the new MaxisONE plan postpaid plan, the company has also unveiled a total of eight device bundles on 24-month contracts. All the major flagship devices, such as the HTC One M8, Samsung Galaxy S5 and Sony Xperia Z2 are all available alongside more affordable options such as the Sony Xperia M2 and the Huawei Ascend Y530.

Just like the MaxisONE plan, the new smart device bundles also feature uncomplicated initial payments. For any subscription to the MaxisONE plan or MaxisONE plan lite with a device bundle, the advance payment to be charged is set based on the price of the device, as explained below:

• RRP above RM400: advance payment charged is RM512 or RM312 (four months’ charge of the MaxisONE plan or MaxisONE plan lite respectively)
• RRP below RM400: advance payment charged is RM256 or RM156 (two months’ charge of the MaxisONE plan or MaxisONE plan lite respectively)

These advance payment charges will be rebated equally in customers’ bills over four or two months, depending on the RRP of the device. Hence, the total initial payment would be the advance payment added with the device price. On top of that, if you’ve been a subscriber with Maxis for over a year and posses a good credit record, these charges will also be waived, meaning that you only pay for the device when subscribing.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 and the HTC One (M8) are just two of eight devices currently on offer with the MaxisONE plan

The devices currently available as part of a bundle with the new MaxisONE plan and MaxisONE plan lite are:

• HTC One (M8): RM1499 with ONEplan, RM1699 with ONEplan Lite
• Sony Xperia Z2: RM1499 with ONEplan, RM1699 with ONEplan Lite
• Samsung Galaxy S5: RM1499 with ONEplan, RM1699 with ONEplan Lite
• Samsung Galaxy Note 3: RM1399 with ONEplan, RM1599 with ONEplan Lite
• HTC One (M7): RM799 with ONEplan, RM999 with ONEplan Lite
• Sony Xperia M2: RM339 with ONEplan, RM539 with ONEplan Lite
• Samsung Galaxy Ace 3: FREE with ONEplan, RM199 with ONEplan Lite
• Huawei Ascend Y530: FREE with ONEplan, RM99 with ONEplan Lite

On top of these rebated device prices, MaxisONE plan subscribers will also get to enjoy an additional RM10 rebate every month for the duration of the 24-month contract when subscribers add 1GB or above with the device purchase on the MaxisONE plan contract.

The Sony Xperia Z2 is another device available with the new MaxisONE plan postpaid bundle

For the HTC One (M8), Maxis OneClub members will save an additional RM120 (RM10 rebates for 12 months) when you sign up for MaxisONE plan + 1GB add-on data on a 24-month contract, giving a total savings of RM360.

As can be seen for now, the Xiaomi Mi 3 is not yet officially available as a device bundle with the MaxisONE plan, though we’re very certain that information is coming very soon. We’ll be on the lookout for more details on that deal, and update the post when it is confirmed. [Update] The Xiaomi Mi 3 is now available on a 24-month contract with the new MaxisONE plan. More details here.

[Update] Maxis has just confirmed that it has renamed the plan into MaxisONE plan and MaxisONE plan lite. The changes have been reflected in the post.

As promised, Maxis has finally announced a pre-order bundle for the Xiaomi Mi 3 with its new MaxisONE plan postpaid plan. Available only with a 24-month contract, the device can be purchased at a rebated price of RM389.

The Xiaomi Mi 3 can be purchased for RM389 with a 24-month ONEplan contract, or RM589 with a ONEplan Lite contract of the same length. The full device bundle breakdown is as below:

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As you can see, the plan does not differ from other MaxisONE plan bundles, as the plan fixes the advance payment to four months’ monthly commitment. Also, the only colourway available under this plan is Metallic Grey. Unlike DiGi’s plan for the device, the estimated delivery date for the Mi 3 is set to be two weeks earlier, starting from 13 June onwards. However, this plan does look like it offers less value for money compared to DiGi’s bundle, which offers the device for free with the DiGi SmartPlan 148.

Now that both DiGi and Maxis have revealed their bundle plans for the Mi 3, it is now left to Celcom to announce its bundles for the Mi 3. Judging by these two plans already in the market, however, let’s just hope Celcom manages to introduce a more competitive bundle. For more information, head on to the Xiaomi Mi 3 pre-order page on Maxis here.

After working on improving its network optimization program in the East Coast as well as in Sabah and Sarawak, Celcom will be shifting its focus to the Klang Valley and Kuala Lumpur areas. To achieve this, Celcom has roped in Nokia to use its optimization services and improve overall network, voice and data quality in the area.

Celcom’s network optimization program began with the local telco working on improving its network in the East Coast and East Malaysia. This initiative will now shift to the Klang Valley and Kuala Lumpur areas. This year alone, Celcom will invest close to RM1 billion to improve network quality and capacity for better data services, and it hopes to achieve its target of completing 2,014 4G LTE sites nationwide by the end of this year.

Nokia will use real-time network information combined with the latest geolocation techniques to plan and optimize Celcom’s 2G and 3G radio network infrastructure. By profiling device usage and behavior as well as traffic patterns, Nokia’s unique optimization service will pinpoint exactly where additional capacity or coverage is needed. Together, Nokia and Celcom will then plan the best solutions to handle rapidly growing data traffic, boost network performance and enhance the mobile broadband experience for each user.

These changes will not be immediately apparent, but Celcom users in the congested Klang Valley area will likely be seeing better network coverage as the year passes.

The new MaxisONE postpaid plans were revealed with a small batch of devices as part of its postpaid bundles, including the HTC One M8. Now, the local telco has added two more HTC devices into its MaxisONE postpaid bundle, with the inclusion of the HTC Desire 816 and the entry level Desire 310.

The MaxisONE bundles are pretty straight forward, where all devices have a fixed advance payment. For devices with a retail price of under RM400, customers are required to pay an advance payment of RM256 or RM156 for the MaxisONE and MaxisONE Lite plans respectively. For all devices priced higher than that, customers will pay RM512 or RM312.

Here are the price comparison tables for the new HTC Desire 816 and the Desire 310:

It must also be noted that the HTC Desire 816 and Desire 310 are only available with a 24-month contract. Also, Maxis has an ongoing offer for those looking to add more data to their MaxisONE: customers will receive a RM10 rebate per month for the duration of the contract when they add 1GB or more with the MaxisONE bundle.

For more information on the HTC Desire 816 and Desire 316 postpaid bundles, check out Maxis’ online store pages here and here.

Maxis’ YouTube video to promote its new MaxisONE postpaid plan was simple, with an equally simple message. Its serene, calm serenade of waves hitting the beach front is reminiscent of its “liberating” new plans that offer limitless calls and SMS to any number, any time.

DiGi, on the other hand, have had quite a reputation for trolling its peers, and it looks like the trolling machine has taken aim once again.

Using a rather obscure Internet reference, DiGi uses a similar beach front backdrop before a pandacorn (“a product of a panda and unicorn’s breeding”) enters the frame with a radio, before switching it on to some seriously questionable beats and dancing to it. A message then appears towards the end of the video, saying “Why be on an OK Internet Plan? Sign up with DG SmartPlan”, referring to Maxis’ current internal philosophy.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that DiGi has had a light-hearted jab at its competitors – though with some unpleasant responses from the public in some occasions. On the other hand, it is refreshing to see some banter between competitors in the industry. Either way, we trust that this won’t be the last we’ll see from DiGi’s mischievous team.

(Source: DiGi (YouTube))

[UPDATE @ 12:45pm] DiGi has updated its site with more details on the new iDiGi 50 plan. More below.

DiGi has unveiled a new, more affordable postpaid plan for the iPhone. The new iDiGi 50 plan offers a generous 2GB of data as well as free calls and SMS, and also offers a slight rebate on the iPhone 5s with a 12-month contract.
Information is pretty scarce for now, since the new plan does not appear anywhere else beyond the ad above on a national newspaper. [Update] DiGi’s website has been updated with more details on the new iDiGi 50 plan:

To commemorate the new iDiGi 50 plan, DiGi is also offering a bundle with the iPhone 5s at a rebated price of RM2159 (RRP: RM2399). You’ll get 2GB of data as well as a small number of free calls and SMS to DiGi numbers only. [Update] While call charges for this plan have been revealed, information on the iPhone 5s bundle such as the advance payment charges, are not yet available.

The closest competing plan to the iDiGi 50 is Maxis’ iValue Simple, with a similar RM50 monthly commitment but with less data and more free calls and SMS:

For more information, check out DiGi’s iDiGi 50 postpaid plan page here.

Maxis recently released the Hotlink RED app, which helps #Hotlink subscribers manage their accounts in a more efficient and modern manner. With the Hotlink RED app, users won’t need to key in tedious USSD codes to check balance, top up, or purchase mobile data.

The app is also designed to be as user-intuitive as possible, but if you’re having trouble navigating your way around the app, here’s a walkthrough from one of the app’s developers.