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Just another average weblog
DiGi Slashed iPhone Plan Pricing
Jul 8th
Few days back, the DiGi iPhone site was seen to have slashed the iPhone monthly plan pricing making it look like an irresistible deal at the moment.
The price slash however did not apply to the price of the device but only to the monthly voice + data package, or rather known as the iDiGi plan. The iDiGi is now as low as RM60 per month, even cheaper compared to their current DG Smart Plan.
As you can see from the above image, the former iDiGi 88, iDiGi 138 and iDiGi 238 are now priced at RM60, RM90 and RM160 respectively. From the looks of it, this is definitely a plan which will attract potential iPhone customers for sure, even I myself was shocked to see how cheap it is at the moment! Could this be a sign of DiGi trying to clear off as many 3GS stocks as possible to make way for the iPhone 4? Maybe. 
BUT WAIT, this is actually something that would blind a customer’s eyes. If you do the maths and compare with the previous charges, you only save about RM200 now. The price slash on the monthly fees is what seems to be a marketing gimmick to me. Pretty nice marketing strategy eh DiGi? 
UniFi IPTV to Charge for Selected Channels
Jul 5th
Just when most people think that the UniFi service from TM is expensive, a good argument to it is the triple play bundle which includes Video, Internet and Phone which in short is the reason behind the VIP names of their packages. The IPTV which broadcasts interesting channels such as LUXE.TV HD, Fashion TV HD, STAR Chinese Movies, Channel News Asia and many more including our local free stations. However, TM has announced that some channels will be chargeable after this year’s Independence Day.
This definitely will put TM and UniFi especially in a bad position since now quite a lot of stations will be charged and what remains free is of course our local free stations. If this is really going to be done after the 31st of August, I don’t think the IPTV will be a success and it might soon just be a service for display purposes. Furthermore, say the RM149 for 5mbps is going to be more like a double play service rather than a triple play. One question that comes to mind is of course how much are the charges going to be? The pricing will definitely be a matter of life or death to the IPTV service since most users are already Astro subscribers, even if it is just a couple of bucks, people will still think twice since they are mostly subscribed to the paid satellite TV service.
What do you think of this? Will this kill off the IPTV service?
Malaysia Holds Most Expensive Broadband Title in APAC
Jul 4th
That’s right! Most of you who actually said that broadband access in Malaysia is very expensive while other countries are getting more affordable and faster at the same time. A study showed that telecommunication operators in Malaysia paid the most for their ethernet broadband lines in the Asia-Pacific region. With that being said, I guess Malaysia still is “boleh” in the telecommunications industry. This doesn’t exactly pinpoints TM alone, it applies to all the Internet service providers in the country.
In my opinion, I think ISPs in Malaysia should at least improve the stability and reliability of our connections and also providing us more bandwidth considering the monthly fees we are paying. Even if they choose to not amend the monthly fees, at least give us a better and faster connection! Malaysians have been waiting for the day when ISPs could provide a stable yet fast connection. However, it seems so near yet so far.
Malaysia telecom operators paid the most for their Ethernet broadband lines in the Asia-Pacific region while their peers in Hong Kong enjoyed the lowest access bills, according to a recent study by the Asia-Pacific Carriers’ Coalition (APCC).
Released on Jun. 14, the survey revealed that Malaysia topped four out of five categories–differentiated by network speeds–covering Ethernet broadband monthly rental and installation costs. It was second highest in the fifth category, revealed the study.
For instance, the monthly rental and installation cost for 2Mbps circuit would cost an operator in Malaysia US$4,564 but only US$374 in Hong Kong.
Surpassing Thailand, which was ranked second in the study, Malaysia had the costliest local Internet access lines in the Asia-Pacific region.
Only countries with the top two most costly bills, as well as the country with the lowest access bill, were ranked.
The study showed that Singapore, which was the costliest for telecom providers when the survey was last conducted in 2006, dropped down the list this year. However, the Republic was still “two to three times” more expensive than the cheapest country, Hong Kong.
The report also stated that demand for Ethernet broadband access has not only “continued to rise” but the demand for higher bitrates is also increasing. This upward trend is reflected by the availability of information, compared to previous years, on carriers requesting for 10Gbps access circuits.
The study, which Telecommunications Research Project Corporate (TRPC) was commissioned to conduct, gathered information from seven international carriers and looked at three forms of access platforms: Ethernet, leased lines and DSL (digital subscriber line).
For Ethernet broadband cost, the survey covered 13 countries–in which the seven carriers offered Ethernet services–and assessed the monthly rental and installation costs of various Ethernet access speeds: 2Mbps, 10Mbps, 50Mbps, 10Mbps, 1Gbps and 10Gbps.
Leased lines were “the most widely used leased circuits across Asia-Pacific”, according to the APCC study.
Of the 14 regional countries surveyed for leased lines access, nine countries saw their costs reduced in real terms since 2006. The five countries that bucked the trend were Malaysia, India, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand.
“We are disappointed to note that local access charges have risen in real terms in five countries since 2006,” said APCC President Simon Smith. “Our members continue to experience challenges in obtaining competitive local access price charges, which are often disproportionate to charges for an end-to-end international service.”
Smith called for “fair” local access charges as these were a “critical requirement” for the creation of a competitive communications environment.
He also encouraged regulators in the markets reviewed to “take the necessary and appropriate regulatory action” to lower access pricing.
Source: ZDNet Asia
What are your thoughts on the broadband situation here in Malaysia?
Fixing BlackBerry Bold 9700 Wobbling Trackpad
Jul 3rd
How many of you BlackBerry Bold 9700 users or rather any other models that has the trackpad have experienced it wobbling? The situation goes like if you glide your finger on the trackpad, it moves. If you search about this problem on the Internet, you will find that many encountered this problem and went through several replacement units before they find a perfect trackpad that does not wobble. Apparently, even if some units don’t have this issue, the trackpad can become wobbly after prolong usage as well. While some might not be bothered about this problem, some users have experienced really bad wobbling and someone by the name of alin_tiniuc at crackberry was kind enough to share a DIY fix to this issue.
The Solution
1 – Tools needed* I skipped over this the first time because I figured that people that will be taking apart their phone pretty much already know and have what they need.
- T5 Screw driver. They should have them at Home Depot or Lowes if you need it right away. I got mine with stuff I ordered online.
- Next, a tool to separate the Chrome bezel from the housing. Don’t have an exact name for it but if someone posts it then I will update. You can see what the tool looks like in the video below.
- Some sort of fine blade to GENTLY remove the warranty sticker and replace when done. I usually just leave it on the edge of the blade until I’m ready to apply it back.
2 – Now I ran into an issue when doing this for a friend. His wobble wasn’t so bad but just to the left a little bit. Now when I added the tape and put the phone back together, his Menu button and Back button would cause the trackpad to be pressed down. This was because I raised it too high. If your wobble is not that bad then I just recommend putting 3-4 pieces and not the 5. Another person posted on here about that so I just want people to be aware of that.
If you don’t feel comfortable taking apart your 9700 then please don’t follow what I have to say. But if you do, then I hope this guide will help you fix the silly trackpad. If you don’t know how to take the phone apart then just click on the link below. Now I highly recommend having some kind of FINE SHARP BLADE, like a razor or exacto knife. And please don’t blame me if you screw this up. I am not responsible for whatever happens.
VIDEO: How To Dismantle A BlackBerry Bold 9700 | CrackBerry.com
For some reason the guy in this video seems a little too “rough” when taking apart the bottom part. A secret I learned is if you pry the bottom on the ends first and pop those up then it comes out really easy.
Once done with that be very careful when taking of the chrome trim because its very delicate. Once the chrome is off then there are 4 screws that need to be undone. Once those are out, you must unclip the screen at the very top which is point out with my screw driver. That part is connected to the back piece and you could break the ribbon if you pull to hard without realizing it and your screen would stop working.
Now lift the middle circuit board out and flip it around and unplug the trackpad sensor in the middle. Just like you did for the screen.
Ok now to the bread and butter of the thread. Why the heck does that trackpad have to wobble? Well from what I could figure out it has to do with the plastic piece underneath the trackpad itself. I believe that on some units the piece is too low and thus causes the trackpad to wobble around in the keyboard frame.
So I what I did was lay a piece of Scotch tape on a table and trace a circle with a razor. They don’t need to be the exact size of the plastic piece but as close as you can get it. I applied about 5 pieces on top of each other.
And please, please whatever you do. Just take your time doing everything. There is no need to rush.
Now this might not be the “coolest” way of fixing it and we probably shouldn’t even have to go to these extremes to fix something that shouldn’t be an issue in the first place. But hey my trackpad is now PERFECT, and what a wonderful feeling it is.
Credits: alin_tiniuc at crackberry
Apple iPhone 4 for Malaysians in August
Jul 2nd
The long awaited improved version of the Apple iPhone is expected to be introduced to Malaysians as early as August 2010 by Maxis. This news was unveiled in one of the interviews with Van Overbeke conducted by The Star InTech. I wonder what the prices are going to be like though but I’m expecting it to be roughly the same as the current 3GS model.
This is straight from the horse’s mouth, the animal here being our local Star paper’s tech pull-out InTech. The report has the Maxis boss telling the paper’s reporter this: ‘Van Overbeke said the iPhone 4 could be available here by August, but declined to provide prices.’ This is only a ‘could’ scenario. It doesn’t confirm that Apple phone is actually going to sell here in that coming month.
The same reporter also wrote: ‘As for the iPad, he said it is possible that Maxis will be distributing the 3G version of the tablet computer.’
That word ‘possible’ can also be roped into the same familial ‘could’. But at least Van Overbeke is quoted to say, “But it’s really up to Apple at this point.” A lot of readers, in Star, and in here, genuinely hope Apple decides to let Maxis bring in the iPhone 4 and the iPad. Here’s keeping our fingers crossed.
Source: Mobile World
