Malaysia To Block File Sharing Sites

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC)'s letter to local Internet Sensorship Providers was leaked revealing that it has ordered all ISPs to block well Malaysian visited file sharing sites.

The move is said to be caused by the huge use of such sites to illegally download copyrighted material over the internet.

Malaysian netizens have vented their unhapiness over the internet by creating a Facebook group condemning such move.  At time of this post, 8,300 have chosen to 'LIKE' the group.

The Desire S Review

Read on Engadet that they reviewed the Desire S, which is HTC's latest smartphone model slated to replace the Desire (I wonder what happened to Desire 2?).  Anyway, the phone looks amazing with it's aluminum body, and Engadget said that this phone is much better than the original Desire and is just so good esspecially with it's improved camera and battery life.  The question now is when this beauty would be available in Malaysia? Well, thanks Engadget, you just made me feel like I should now change my phone this year, and I just thought of getting a retractable car charger for HTC Desire which would leave my worries of low battery life away.

Comparison Between Well Known Intel i5 Processors In Malaysia

When it comes to selecting a laptop, many will be confused with the types of processors there are in the market. While every processor may seem the same, but many of us will wonder what's the other codes about. For example; Intel i5-460M and Intel i5-480M.  Which is better?

Well, I did a simple comparison and found out that there isn't much difference between i5-560M, i5-480M, i5-460M and i5-450M Intel processors.  The share practically the same traits and abilities except two, which are the clock speed (how fast the processor can perform an activity) and Max Turbo Frequency(How fast the processor can work with Inter Turbo Boost-which means maximizing your processor speed).  Nonetheless, the comparison I obtained also revealed that these 4 i5 processors does not benefit for the 2.0 version of the Intel Turbo Boost which would enable optimum usage performance.  

Based on that, the best and fastest processor among the 4 would be the i5-560M, i5-480M, i5-460M and finally i5-450M Intel processor.  These processors are normally well found in HP, Asus, Lenovo Toshiba and Dell notebooks.

Acer on the other hand seems to be using the i5-2410M Intel processor which has the 2.0 Intel Turbo Boost Technology, but this comes at a price as the i5-2410M has a low clock speed of 2.30Ghz.  This means that you can get an optimum clock speed if compared to the previous 4 i5 processors.  The i5-2410M processor also benefits from better graphic support and better memory specification.

With that said, it seems that the i5-2410M processor is the better option, and this is followed by the i5-560M.  Click the image to get the full comparison of the 5 i5 processors.

iPad Plans from DiGi & Maxis

If you are planning to get an Apple iPad, two of Malaysia's major telcos are giving out the following plans for those intending to have data/internet access on their iPads:

For DiGi customers, you have 6 choices:

1. DiGi Easy Prepaid (10sen/10kb, maximum RM3/day) Check it out here.
2. DiGi Prepaid (10sen/10kb, maximum RM5/day) Check it out here. 
3. Prepaid Internet (RM2/day) Check it out here.
4. DiGi Broadband Discover Day Plan (RM38/month for 3GB quota). This is the best option for iPad. Only RM33/month when you sign up for autobilling. Full speed from 7am to 7pm (limited to 128kbps from 7pm to 7am, when you’re most likely to be on your home WiFi network).  Check it out here.
5. DiGi MiFi (RM360 up front purchase for MiFi device, RM128/month for 16GB quota with rebates). This is the best option if you purchase the plain vanilla iPad with WiFi. You’ll be able to share access to DiGi Broadband with up to 5 devices, including your brand new iPad. Check it out here.

Note :

• Existing customers can switch to an iPad-compatible microSIM for a one-time payment of RM20 from these outlets.
• DiGi Prepaid, DiGi Easy Prepaid and Prepaid Internet microSIM are available for purchase at the DiGi Online Store. 

And as for Maxis customers, here's a better graphical detail for you since they already released the plans.

The Maxis iPad Prepaid plan

The Maxis iPad Postpaid plan

Choose your plans wisely.  One thing good to note is that Maxis has better coverage, but when DiGi says they are giving UNLIMITED DATA.. they really mean it, which is so unlike Maxis which has an unlimited cap on their data plans.  Both telcos have yet to say when they are actually going to sell the ipads, but we think it will be very soon.

YES 4G Now In Malaysia

Yes Broadband by YTL Communications is now available in Malaysia covering over 65% of West Malaysia.  According to reports, YTL plans to expand its network coverage to 80% by next year, and also penetrate Sabah and Sarawak.  This is indeed good as they are the first broadband or as they say it broader-band service to launch with such a wide coverage.

While tech savvy Malaysians are eager about the latest 4G offerings by YTL Communications, it's launched did hit a snag when their main website yes.my is inaccessible during launch time.  This was indeed a major blow for many, as skeptics were quick to rebuff Yes as the next big thing, hence putting direct 4G rivals, P1 ahead.

As for the rates, nothing concrete can be found on their website after it was fixed, except for the following image.

The Yes plans or rather plan

Apart from their confusing yet plain website, it seems that YTL Communications is still unprepared to say Yes to Malaysians.

With that said, there is a lot of things people in Yes needs to figure out and learn from other broadband providers as their plans seem to be very difficult to understand, hence making it hard for me to say yes to them.

iPhone 4 DiGi Launch in Malaysia

The latest iPhone, which is the iPhone 4 is slated to be released by DiGi next week.  According to an email from the telecommunication company, data plans on the new phone will be also released next week, and those which have stated their interest will be the first to know more about the launch, the price and the DiGi package details.

iPhone 4 in Malaysia

DiGi and also Maxis have both declared recently that they will be bringing in the iPhone 4 by the end of this year.  The iPhone 4 which has been bugged by the signal reception problem is still a very much sought after smart phone in Malaysia where technology savvy lifestyle is on the boom.

For those interested to get the iPhone 4, get down to DiGi and Maxis websites respectively and sign in to state your interest.  I believe DiGi and Maxis are both using this survey to estimate the demand for the iPhone 4 to cut down losses due to over stock. Be reminded tough, stating your interest for the iPhone 4 is not your assurance to them that you are going to purchase the iPhone 4. It is just an indication that you may be interested.

Fastest Malaysian Mobile Broadband Is Maxis

A research by Mobile World concludes that Maxis is Malaysia's fastest mobile broadband provider beating its other two rivals, Celcom and Digi.  As a matter of fact, Digi came in second best, and Celcom proved they provided the slowest speeds available.  As indicated by the stats provided, Maxis championed practically every area where it was tested, and cam up ahead of the other two telcos when it came to site loading.  The report also noted that DiGi outclassed Maxis in the KLCC area and this came to a surprise, even to myself as KLCC also houses Maxis's headquaters.

UniFi - Malaysian High Speed Broadband Project

UniFi was launched by Malaysian PM last night in an event which was not really high-tech. According to TM, UniFi will enable its users to do multiple things over the internet with speeds starting from 10mbps which is double what Streamyx and other 3G networks are offering.

The standard package differs in two major things only, which is the upload and download speed, and the maximum download cap. According to TM, once a user exceeds the maximum download cap, speeds will be throttled to about 10% of their initial subscribed speed. This move isn't shocking since most mobile operators whom also offer mobile broadband have implemented such cap for their services.

UniFi is available for both business and home users with the cheapest package coming at RM149 per month with a download speed of 10mbps, and the fastest coming at 20mbps at RM899 per month. All home packages come with free calls to TM home lines, a cordless phone, free premise gateway, dynamic ip, free email and a list of internet media. (photo below)

Business consumers on the other hand will be provided with a cheaper call plan, fixed IP and 10GB free hosting services to name a few. (photo below)

With such expensive prices on the offering, it may be a wonder how many are willing to commit to UniFi. This largely comes as many will feel that UniFi is more expensive than WiMax provider P1. More info on UniFi can be obtained here.

Slow internet in Malaysia again

Malaysia's largest internet service provider, TM reported that some of their undersea internet cables named Asia-Pacific Cable Network 2 (APCN2) are damaged once again. Altough no reason of the damage could be made available, it is greatly suspected that the damage was caused by Typhoon Marakot.

According to TM, internet users would experience slow connection to sites located in Taiwan and the USA due to this damage. However, they also assured that their technicians are working around the clock to rectify the problem as son as possible.

Malaysian Government Cancels Internet Filter Plans

The Star reported that the government has decided to do away with the filter over the internet. According to the report, the government would enforce current laws including the seditious law enactment over those whom misuse the internet.

Last week, Datuk Seri Rais Yatim whom is in charge of the Information, Communications, Culture and Arts Ministry confirmed that the government is putting out a tender to filter the internet. The plan, which is said to be similar to China's failed "Green Dam" project roared Malaysia's online community with huge protest coming from almost every corner. Formar Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir also made a statement over his displeasure of such move, shall it be implemented.

Nevertheless, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak was quick to quash any allegations on the plans, and today, Datuk Seri Rais Yatim himself confirmed that the plans have been shelved for good.

Malaysia Only Filter Porn

Update @9pm: Malaysian PM has said that the governmont does not plan do filter the internet.

Datuk Seri Rais Yatim, the minister incharge of the Malaysian Ministry of Information, Communication and Culture clarifies today that the planned internet filteration in the cuntry wuld only involve pornography.

In a report produced by The Star, Datuk Seri Rais was said to agree that a tender is being called out to companies whom are willing to do such filter for the country which is similar to China's Green damn project. Apart from that, Datuk Seri Rais also made it a point that pornography is dangerous to young naive children, hence the need for some regulation on internet content.

In recent days, the majority of the Malaysian online community has expressed rage over the governments possible filter of the internet, citing it is against the Malaysian Super Corridor (MSC) agreement. Speculations have also mounted to the extend that the government is trying to curb the opposition parties from using the internet to gain support. However, with this recent statement, it is expected that Malaysians will be receptive on the internet filter idea, as pornography is also considered as one of the many causes of the decline in Malaysian eastern moral values.

REDtone Wants Nation Wide Wimax License

Broadband service provider, REDtone believes that they should be given the license to introduce their WiMAX service nationwide. According to a report by the Star Online, REDtone believes they have achieved the 25% broadband penetration in Sabah and Sarawak which was set by the government.

The report also quotes REDtone as saying they currently have 1,000 broadband subscribers within Sabah and Sarawak despite the odds and difficulty faced to set up such service.

REDtones ambition to expand comes as the government is pushing hard for a 50% broadband penetration in Malaysia. Nonetheless, their presence in Sabah and Sarawak in fact remain limited and very much unknown to this date. In addition to that, their subscribtion rate is also considered a little higher than rival broadband providers.

Malaysia May Filter The Internet

The recent street protest on ISA is changing Malaysia. Reuters reported that the Malaysian Information, Communication and Culture Minister, Datuk Rais Yatim is looking at the possibility of filtering the internet access for Malaysians. He wa quoted as saying that the huge penetration of the Internet in Malaysia comes with the good and the bad, and the government would need to take steps to overcome the bad.

Malaysia, under the premiership of Dr Mahathir and Abdullah Badawi has stressed that the internet would not be filtered, hence encouraging companies such as Microsoft Corp and Sisco Systems to invest.

Nevertheless, recent months have seen websites and blogs deemed dangerous and offensive to Malaysians being blocked and closed by the government, altough not many have questioned their moves due to the fact that these website are porn and quick scheme related. However, shall Malaysia finally decide to regulate internet content in the country, there is a huge posibility to notice an oproar among the tech savvy users whom prefer to enjoy the freedom of surfing any website the like.

AVG Comes in BM Version

AVG Technologies has released a BM version of their famoust Antivirus software. According to The Star Malaysia, the BM version is available in the form of Internet Security 8.5 and Anti-Virus 8.5 and is suitable for home and small office use.

According to AVG, the products mentioned above provide protection for trojans, spyware, viruses and rootkits.