Yes 4G LTE service is now official ——— 4G Broadband (WiMAX) service gets revamped

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Update (2016-07-01): Added Yes Ultimate smartphone details.

The much-hyped Yes 4G LTE network that was announced about 2 weeks ago by YTL Communications was finally launched today, together with a revamped Yes 4G Broadband (WiMAX) offering as well at the so-called “Double Double” event (a nod to the twin 4G networks). The new LTE plans cater for both postpaid (a first for Yes 4G) and prepaid users, and subscribers to the former can also choose to get it together with a Yes Phone Bundle. For a limited time, Yes 4G will be giving away its brand new Yes Altitude smartphone via the bundle, which on its own is selling for RM 399 with GST, and is available in Gold, White, or Silver options. The plans and the device are now available from all Yes Stores, Yes Exclusive Retail Partner, and authorised Yes dealers nationwide.

Existing Yes 4G Broadband customers, who received an additional allocation of 12 GB/month of Broadband allocation on June 15, will now get an additional 8 GB of LTE allocation as well. They’d only have to get a SIM to get started.

To start off its LTE journey Yes has announced a total of 5 postpaid plans altogether, but of these only 4 are applicable for smartphone users, and of which only two are available via the Yes Altitude Phone Bundle (shown further down below).

Though the Postpaid 88 bundle shows a monthly commitment of only RM 70, the RM 18 difference is actually taken from the upfront payment of RM 198 that users will have to make when registering for the bundle. The difference will be given as a monthly rebate over the contract period, which is 11 months. Additionally, users will also be charged a one-time activation fee of RM 100. In any case, users will be able to save RM 5 a month by opting for auto billing.

Taking a look at the postpaid plans that are available for LTE users, it goes without saying that those with a WiMAX device/modem will benefit the most. This is because, on top of the LTE allocation, they’d also be getting the additional Broadband allocation with their monthly plans. Users can simply switch to the broadband connection or to a WiMAX modem, when at home or when the LTE quota gets low. But even without the additional allocation, the LTE plans are amongst the best around.

Here are the breakdown of the plans and their allocations:

 
As with most Malaysian data plans, the ones from Yes also offer ‘unlimited internet’; which means that instead of charging extra once the quota has been depleted, Yes will manage connections speeds (throttled down to 64 kbps for 4G LTE and 128 kbps for 4G Broadband). If there’s a need to get back to speed (literally), one will simply have to purchase one of the add-ons below:

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Going back to the table for the postpaid plans, the off-net calls there refers to those made to Malaysian numbers, but the rates are also applicable for calls to toll-free numbers (1300) and to Voicemail (121). Yes will not be charging anything at all for calls made to Free phone numbers (1800), Mobile Network Emergency Service (112), and Emergency services (999). For IDD calls and SMS, the rates can be obtained from the Yes-Life rates page by selecting the required country under the ‘International Direct Dial & SMS’ section.

Moving on to Prepaid users, subscribers can start their Yes 4G LTE journey with the available starter kit. It’s priced at RM 10 and comes preloaded with 500 MB of 4G LTE internet (valid for 7 days after activation), together with a RM 5 credit. Prepaid lines come with free basic internet (will be available as long as the account is active), and offer free calls and SMS to other Yes numbers. As of now, SMS and all other call rates are the same as postpaid; which is probably a first in Malaysia, where prepaid users are usually charged more for pay-per-use conditions.

Below are the prepaid data packs that are currently available:

 
As we’ve pointed out previously, one of the most important issue that Yes will need to address is to make their service available to as many devices as possible. For this, YTL Communications showcased some of the devices that will be able to support its LTE-TDD network as well as its VoLTE service. Apart from the new Samsung Galaxy J (2016) series phones that we already know of, Galaxy S7 edge, and Note 5 too can support the Yes 4G LTE network, along with the Sony Z5 Premium Dual. On top of those, Yes also showcased the Mi Max, Redmi Note 3, Redmi 3S, and Mi 5 from Xiaomi; P9 and P9 Plus from Huawei; Vibe C, A6010, Vibe X3, and Vibe P1 from Lenovo; as well as the Pixi4 (5”), Pixi4 (5.5”), and SHINE Lite from Alcatel. Some of these are already here, some are coming real soon, and some we’re not sure when, but it was nice to see options. Now, if only Yes will update their site with info on these and other compatible devices.

The Yes Altitude (M631Y) smartphone is by China Mobile Group Device Company Limited (China Mobile Device), which by the way has the same parent as YTL Communications’ technology partner, China Mobile Communication Company. Altitude is pretty much an entry level model that should give Yes 4G LTE users a decent device to start them off, and has much more to offer than to just act as a Wi-Fi hotspot.

Here are its key specifications:

• 64-bit quad-core (4x 1.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A53 processors) Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 (MSM8916) SoC, with Qualcomm Adreno 306 graphics.
• Runs Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with custom UI.
• 5”, 1280 x 720 (HD), IPS LCD display with a pixel density of 293.72 ppi. Comes with On Cell OGS.
• 1 GB RAM with 8 GB internal memory, and accepts microSD card of up to 32 GB.
• Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with Wi-Fi Direct and Wi-Fi Display (Miracast), Bluetooth 4.1, and USB 2.0 via micro-USB connector.
• GPRS, EDGE, HSPA+ and 4G LTE Cat 4 with VoLTE. Two micro-SIM slots with dual standby.
• 8 MP rear camera with CMOS sensor, autofocus, and LED flash; together with a 2 MP front camera. Camera aperture size is f/2.0 for the rear.
• 2,300 mAh, removable Li-ion battery.
• Dimensions are 142 x 72 x 8.7 mm.

Let’s just hope that YTL Communications, together with China Mobile Device, will not forget to keep the device updated with the latest OS as well as security patches.

It helps too that the device is bundled free with the Postpaid 88 plan, but Postpaid 48 users can still get one for RM 199; with total payments coming to RM 298 for Postpaid 88 and RM 299 for Postpaid 88 at the time of purchase. The option to buy the device online is available now via the Yes Shop but the colour options are limited to just two: White and Gold.

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For the first time, YTL Communications also introduced its new app for users to manage or pay for their plans, as well as to purchase additional data. The MyYes4G app is supposed to have been available on the Google Play Store but unfortunately, neither the provided link nor a search there was able to bring the app up. Looks like it’s still under the process of being published. The app does come pre-installed though on the Yes Altitude, but it doesn’t fully launch as it requires an update from, as one might have guessed, the Play Store. The Samsung Galaxy J series users, like the rest of us, will just have to wait for now.

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Yes 4G LTE package shown unfairly against its competitors

It is nice to see the competition between the telcos heating up now to offer more data, and we’re really hoping that they’ll keep this momentum, of placing users’ requirements first, will continue. Now that YTL Communications has fired its shot, we’ll just have to kick back and wait for webe, and to certain extent U Mobile too with its 30 GB promise, to officially counter this interesting development.

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