Earlier this week Yes announced that it had signed an agreement with Japanese WiMAX operator UQ Communications to “further enhance both entities’ leadership positions in the 4G space and to advance the development and adoption of next-generation WiMAX technologies.

The signing coincides with the completion of the world’s first WiMAX2 field test conducted by UQ on July 8 in Tokyo. The test demonstrated a mobile WiMAX2 network delivering a downlink speed of over 130mbps in a moving vehicle.

In a statement announcing the signing Yes CEO, Wing K. Lee said that “WiMAX is the most matured and widely adopted in the world.” In the same statement, Yes claims WiMAX2 “performs better than current LTE technologies while maintaining full compatibility with existing WiMAX devices.”

We’re not fans of press releases announcing “successful” tests proclaiming crazy speeds like 130mbps over a wireless network because there is a major difference between theoretical and practical network speeds. Most of the time, these tests are conducted in a closed network where there’s virtually no network load. Realistically, you’re not going get these kinds of speeds anytime soon. So you have to take these announcements of 100+mbps download speeds with a grain of salt.

The interesting thing to note here is Yes’ decision to stick with WiMAX while almost all of the other operators in the country (including the once WiMAX posterboy, P1) are looking at building next-generation networks based on LTE.

Read the rest of this entry »

	Players on the Field, Yes
	UQ, WiMAX, WiMAX2, Yes, Yes, YLT Communications

Update: Yes announced that its network is stabilised and “fully restored”. Based on our usage experience, it’s so far so good. Are you a Yes user? How’s your connectivity this morning?

If you’re a Yes customer and facing connectivity issues, you’re not alone. From our experience and complaints of others, Yes seems to be having some network problems since yesterday evening as far as we can tell. While we were able to connect to the Yes 4G network, we were not able to access any sites other than the yes.my portal.

Though the issue seems to be intermittent, we have to say that it is extremely frustrating to not be able to access sites when you want to get things done quickly.

On our last check, we’re still experiencing intermittent connectivity on Yes.

Yes has made an announcement that rectification works is on the way. According to them the issue was caused by one of their “key network service providers”. There’s no timeline given but we hope they can stabilise the network as soon as possible. The Yes network has been solid so far and while network issues are part and parcel of the internet game we hope that Yes makes sure that these disruptions are very few and far, far in between.

[ SOURCE ]

	Yes
	Yes, yes 4g, Yes connection problems, Yes Network issue

In a bid to expand its top up channels, Yes has introduced physical reload cards and epay channels. Now you’re able to top up on ground from its appointed dealers and even via epay’s extensive network at kiosks and petrol station.

For the reload cards, you have the top up denominations of RM10, RM30, RM50 and RM100 which can be activated online here. More info on the reload cards here and epay here.

Now if only yes offers auto debit monthly or when credit gets low for uninterrupted use. It would be great if they implement this for valuepacks.

	Yes
	epay, Yes, yes 4g, yes credit, yes reload card, yes top up

Yesterday, Yes had launched its Yes Life app for iOS devices. In just a day, it became the Top Free app in App Store Malaysia. Not surprising since it is open too all iPhone and iPad users regardless of which network you’re on. How’s the quality when running on your 3G and home network? Drop us your feedback below.

To download head here.

[ SOURCE ]

	iPhone OS, Mobile Apps, Mobile OS, Players on the Field, Yes
	App Store, iOS, Yes, yes 4g, Yes Life, Yes Life app, yes malaysia, YTL Communications

Yes has released their yes life app for ios devices namely iPod touches, iPhones and iPads. This expands its telephony voice and SMS service beyond the desktop. Earlier on, @jonrulezz had spotted the app in the wild but it was taken down shortly after.

Immediately we can see some benefits to this. Now you can take your yes 018 number with you together with your existing iPhone. Its rate of 9 sen/minute nationwide is among the cheapest of all telcos in Malaysia and this can help reduce your monthly bills on calls. For those that travel overseas, this allows you to stay connected and make calls at local rates. All you need is Internet connection be it WiFi or 3G.

As an introductory offer, they are giving a Free 14 days trial of Yes Life with RM5 credit. If you have been purchasing Yes Valuepacks with heaps of bundled minutes and SMS remaining, this makes it easier for you to utilise them.

Our next question will be, when are they releasing it for other OS such as Android and Blackberry?

For more information, head to yes life’s microsite here. To download, head to the iTunes download link here.

	iPhone OS, Mobile OS, Players on the Field, Yes
	App Store, iOS, Yes, yes 4g, Yes Life, Yes Life app, yes malaysia, YTL Communications

Click for larger image

A hawk-eyed Twitter tipster alerted us on something very peculiar today.

He found Yes Life available for download from Apple’s App Store and shared with us the screen capture you see above. Immediately, we tried to look for the app ourselves but could not find it and assumed that the tipster could see it because his iPhone was jailbroken.

Apparently the app was already brought down by the time we tried looking for it but the tipster assured us that the Yes Life app was available in the official App Store. Right after that we were mentioned in this tweet from @YesCare — the official customer care Twitter account for Yes — stating that there will be a “formal announcement very soon”.

Yes have begun to send out invitations to the media and bloggers to an event happening on Thursday, May 12. The opening line of the invite stated that the operator will be “reinventing the mobile phone”.

For the uninitiated, Yes Life is a communications applications developed by Yes that allow subscribers to make phone calls and send text messages using their PC with a 018 mobile number. In addition to that, Yes Life also features a cloud-based address book allowing the user to easily switch PCs yet still have access to his complete contact list. Currently, Yes Life is only available for Windows.

Read the rest of this entry »

	iPhone, iPhone OS, Mobile Apps, Mobile Devices, Mobile OS, Yes
	App Store, iOS, Yes, yes 4g, Yes Life, Yes Life app, yes malaysia, YTL Communications

Our daily routine at SoyaCincau.com is scanning local telco sites for the latest news and updates on what happening in the industry. A quick look at the Yes.my website today reveals two new products from the 4G operator. These new products are called Yes Starter Packs.

Each Starter Pack comes with a pre-registered Yes ID and 018 number which makes it signing up for a Yes account a pretty straight forward affair. All you need to do is purchase the Starter Pack, activate your account using the preset Yes ID and you’re good to go.

There are two types of starter packs. The Go Starter Pack cost RM100 and includes a Yes Go as well as RM50 worth of credit that you can use to surf the internet or make calls and send SMS with. Essentially what this is is a prepaid mobile broadband pack that you can also use to make voice calls and send SMS with. Considering that it’s not just a mobile broadband service, this Go Starter Pack is pretty good value for money for light and medium web users who want to give Yes a go (pun intended). Heavy downloaders can look elsewhere.

The other Starter Pack is the the Yes ID Starter Pack. For RM50 you get a preset Yes ID and 018 mobile number with RM9 worth of credit included. This is probably good for people who are want to use Yes more for making calls and sending SMS rather than surfing the web. The good thing about this Yes ID Starter Pack is that if you do choose to use Yes to surf the web, all you need to do is just get a Yes device and use back the same Yes ID. There’s no need to register for another account.

Hit up the source link for more info on the Yes Starter Packs.

[source]

	Players on the Field, Yes
	Yes, yes 4g, yes go, Yes ID, Yes Life, Yes Starter Packs

A couple of weeks back, P1 together with ZTE organised a demonstration to showcase the capabilities of LTE in Malaysia. This strikes us as rather odd because since its inception P1 has been a strong proponent of WiMAX.

Its CEO, Michael Lai, has often been quoted as saying that P1 “will live and die with WiMAX” and that LTE stands for “late to evolve” rather than long-term evolution aggressively campaigning that WiMAX is the superior technology.

Why the sudden change then? Why condemn a technology and then flip 180 to adopt it? Could it be that P1 is having difficulties in getting its WiMAX network to work the way that they want it? Or are they looking for an edge to get a one up over its closest rival, Yes 4G? Or is it simply a case of the CEO making a bold statement without the benefit of foresight?

Whatever the reason may be, the message is clear, P1′s open demonstration of LTE marks a significant shift in the operator’s strategy, whatever that strategy may be.

Speaking of strategies, while the Government’s move to offer WiMAX in Malaysia has generally been seen as a bold step forward, most of the operators in which it has entrusted with the WiMAX spectrum have faltered. Out of the original four operators that were offered a WiMAX spectrum by the government, only two remain — P1 and Yes.

Between these two operators, which one is leading the 4G race? We attempt to answer this question by looking at the numbers.

Read the rest of this entry »

	P1, P1, Players on the Field, Yes
	Comparison, P1, P1 4G, P14G, WiMAX, Yes, yes 4g

During the launch of Yes, only two devices were offered – a USB dongle called the Yes Go and portable 4G MiFi called the Yes Huddle. At the November 2010 event, Yes also unveiled a 4G home gateway and an all-4G mobile phone, called the Yes Zoom and Buzz respectively.

Today, Yes finally released the other two devices , the Yes Buzz phone and Yes Zoom Home Gateway.

The Yes Buzz mobile phone from Samsung is sold at RM488 outright or FREE when you purchase RM1199 worth of credit, this is similar to the Yes Huddle offering. The phone runs fully on 2.3GHz WiMAX and there’s no SIM card required. There’s a slide-out full QWERTY keyboard for easy texting and it also works as a 4G modem when tethered to your computer via USB.

As far as mobile phones go, the Buzz is no-frills. You get a 2.2-inch TFT screen and a single 2MP camera at the back with 4x digital zoom, and that’s pretty much it. There’s 64MB on board storage and the Buzz accepts MicroSD memory expansion though the official spec sheet doesn’t say up to what size MicroSD can the Buzz take.

The Yes Zoom is a 4G home gateway that acts as a WiFi router and also a VOIP terminal that you can plug your home phone into. The new Yes ValuePacks, make Yes considerably more affordable for home users who typically use more data than mobile users.

Yes claims the Zoom has a powerful omnidirectional antenna that negates the need for you to place the modem close to a window — a problem usually plagues other WiMAX modems. In addition, the Zoom has a WiFi range up to 50 feet and supports 802.11b/g/n.

The Zoom retails for RM399 outright or you can get it for free if you purchase RM1199 worth of credit.

For more info, head to Yes Buzz or Yes Zoom product pages.

	Players on the Field, Yes
	Yes, yes 4g, yes buzz, Yes Buzz Offer, Yes Buzz Price, yes malaysia, yes zoom, Yes Zoom Offer, Yes Zoom Price

Update: We’ve gotten additional information on the valuepack and added some of our thoughts on the new offering. All this after the jump.

Yes has finally revealed its valuepacks which existence we discovered earlier this week. There are two packs on offer, RM68 and RM150 which comes with preloaded data quota, free calls and SMS that comes with a validity of 30 days.

More details of the bulk plans after the break.

Read the rest of this entry »

	Players on the Field, Yes
	ValuePack 150, ValuePack 68, Yes, yes 4g, Yes bulk data, Yes campuspack, Yes data usage, Yes online portal, Yes self care, yes statement of account, Yes Valuepack