Maxis iPhone 3G S has been launched for couple of weeks already and they had been hit with apparent stock shortages. Those interested to get their iPhone 3G S had to place a pre-booking fee of RM200 at any iPhone 3G S roadshows at various malls nationwide. Strangely you can’t pre-book your iPhone 3G S at any dealers and even official Maxis outlets.  According to sources, those who pre-book shall get their iPhone 3G S within 2 weeks or latest by end of this month.

Currently the most desirable package in our opinion would be the RM99/month 3GB iData Plan which lets you buy the iPhone 3G S 16GB from as low as RM1690.

Since iValue Plans had been perceived to be less value to those who enjoyed commitment based Value Plus plans, Maxis had made some revision. Now the iValue Plans come with FREE SMS and MMS with its packages. iValue 1 Plan of RM100/month comes with 100 Free SMS and 10 Free MMS per month while the iValue 4 Plan of RM375/month comes with 400 Free SMS and 40 Free MMS. Maxis now also highlights that iValue Plan allows Free local calls and SMS between its supplementary family lines too.

For more details on iValue Plans for the new iPhone 3G S, check out here.

	iPhone, Maxis, Mobile Devices, Players on the Field
	iPhone 3GS Malaysia, iValue Free SMS, Maxis iPhone 3GS, Maxis iValue Plans

The official price for the iPhone 3GS are out. Maxis retails the iPhone 3GS 16GB at RM2490 and 32GB version at RM2990 . At the same time, the previous iPhone 3G 8GB is now retailed at only  RM1990. It is interesting to note that we don’t see the iPhone 3G 16GB on the list anymore. The pricing difference is just RM500 for every double up of storage space between 8GB vs. 16GB vs. 32GB.

To get it for cheaper, there’s always iValue and iData plans that gives more savings on the iPhone price.

For example on the iValue 1 plan at RM100/month over 24 months contract, the iPhone 3G 8GB goes for RM1190 while the iPhone 3GS 16GB and 32GB is offered at RM1590 and RM1990 respectively.

If you’re already happy with your existing post paid Value Plans, you could add on with iData Plans. For the 3GB iData plan at RM99/month for 24 months contract, the iPhone 3G 8GB also goes for RM1190 and the iPhone 3GS 16GB and 32GB is being sold at RM1690 and RM2190 respectively.

On the iValue Plans, you’ll get a bundle of talk time and monthly data for a fixed price per month. Mind you that the monthly fee is not commitment fee based like the typical postpaid Value Plans.

If you’re currently making a lot of calls and the rates of existing postpaid value plans is still prefered, we would recommend adding on the iData plan instead.

It looks like Maxis is pricing the iPhone 3GS at a better price compared to the iPhone 3G that was launched just several months before. With even the 32GB version being  retailed under RM3000, there isn’t much reasons for anyone to buy from grey importers at lowyat. Even if the iPhone 3GS is beyond your budget reach, the previous generation iPhone 3G is now more affordable as low as RM1190 on the iValue plan.

We can see the frustrations that the early iPhone 3G users might feel right now as the amount spent on the 8GB version few months before could get them the new iPhone 3GS with 16GB right now. To date, Maxis hasn’t announce any upgrade plans for existing iPhone 3G users to step up to the new 3GS.

With the new pricing, we could expect more people using the iPhone 3GS in the next few months.

	iPhone, Maxis, Mobile Devices, Players on the Field
	Cheaper iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS Malaysia, iPhone 3GS Pricing, Maxis iPhone 3GS, Maxis Retail iPhone 3GS

It is a rumour no more! Maxis has released the promo page for registration of Interest for the iPhone 3GS. There are 2 options available, 16GB and 32GB and both are available in either black or white colours.

Register your interested here.

If you can’t wait, sources tell us that you can get an iPhone 3GS From Lowyat from RM3000 range and above.

Update: iPhone 3GS by Maxis Retail price has been released

	iPhone, Maxis, Mobile Devices, Players on the Field
	iPhone 3GS Malaysia, Maxis iPhone 3GS, Official iPhone 3GS Malaysia, Pre-book iPhone 3GS

Maxis has add more variety for the iData plans which can be added on to your existing Value Plus plans.

When firstly introduced, it came only with a single RM99 plan for 3GB of data. If 3GB is too much, they also offer 2 smaller monthly data plans of  RM30 for 250MB and RM50 for 500MB.

Of course, the price of the iPhone 3G would be less subsidised for the smaller “byte” packages.

iPhone 3G S coming to Malaysia?

Another hot news is that new iPhone 3G S is coming to Malaysia by Maxis as highlighted here and here. The rumoured date of launch is 19th July 2009. Some questions come to mind if this does launch in the weeks to come:

• Will Maxis maintain the same price for the new iPhone 3G S?
• Is there an upgrade plan for those who purchased iPhone 3G from Maxis?
• What happens to existing stock of iPhone 3G?

Nothing is confirmed but we’re keeping our fingers crossed for a better deal to come.

Related Links
Previous post on iPhone 3G iData plans by Maxis
iPhone 3G S for Malaysia
Apple iPhone 3G S in Malaysia late July

	iPhone, Maxis, Players on the Field, Rumour Mill
	Malaysia iPhone 3G S, Maxis iPhone 3G, Maxis iPhone 3GS, Maxis iPhone Data Plan