Celcom aims to be a technology leader and they have invested over RM1 billion in the past year on its network. To cater for growing connectivity demands, Celcom has introduced its new Lightning Fast LTE network which will be rolled out in the months to come.
Utilising 4×4 MIMO and 256 QAM, Celcom claims to be the first telco in Malaysia to deliver ultra-fast download speeds of up to 480Mbps.
Dubbed as their “Lightning Fast LTE Advanced” network, this is an evolution towards LTE Advanced Pro and eventually 5G. Beginning in August this year, the Lightning Fast LTE service will start in the Klang Valley and they aim to achieve 10% population coverage by the end of 2017.
In terms of devices, only the latest flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S8 and the Huawei P10 Plus will be able to take full advantage of its 4×4 MIMO capabilities. They have also showed a Gigabit Netgear MiFi which could be offered in the future. Existing 4G users won’t be left out as well as Celcom is targeting to expand its existing nationwide LTE coverage to 85% population, while LTE Advance covers 40% population by end of this year.
As Celcom continues to upgrade its network, its deputy CEO Mr. Azwan Khan assures that there will be no disruptions like its previous nationwide modernisation exercise. That process involved swapping of equipment which had caused weaker connections and disruptions at various places.
Mr. Azwan Khan has also mentioned that Celcom will be the first in Malaysia to conduct a 5G trial run. This will be showcased next month and the blue telco will be working closely with their partners, Ericsson and Huawei to deploy its next generation network.
Check out the video below of their speedtest breaking the 400Mbps download barrier:
How is your Celcom 4G experience so far after the modernisation exercise? Let us know in the comments below.
