Tag Archives: 5G

Android, Mobile, News

The Korean Triple Threat is Back – The Samsung Galaxy S20 Line-Up Unpacks Today!

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In the modern smartphone age today, there are a few launches that is always anticipated within the year. One of them is from Samsung early on in the year. This will be the Samsung Galaxy S line, for this year it will be the number 20, matching the year 2020.

  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung

Just like last year, and as the title suggests, there are three of them to complete the line-up. Unlike last year, the naming scheme is a little different. You start with a plain old Samsung Galaxy S20, then there is the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus, and then the biggest Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. All of them packs 5G support. Of course, if you do not want to dive into 5G just yet or want to fork out that much more money, there is the regular LTE version of the devices.

Samsung Galaxy S20

Samsung’s Galaxy S20 is Samsung’s smallest 2020 Galaxy S device thus far. Barring the Samsung Galaxy S20 Lite, which might be quite inevitable, the smallest Galaxy S20 device will pack either a Samsung staple Exynos System on a Chip (SoC) for the global market or the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC for the United States market. Malaysia will no doubt get the Exynos version.

  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung

The Android 10 device will come with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage for the LTE version. If you opt for the 5G version you get up to 12GB with the same internal storage option. Of course, you can expand that with a MicroSD card. Remember when Samsung did not allow the Galaxy Note5 to be MicroSD expandable? Disaster that one.

There is a square camera array arrangement going on at the back with three lenses. There is the main 12-Megapixel shooter, which is quite expected. It does not have the dual aperture that was known since the Samsung Galaxy S9 though. Paired to the main shooter is a 64-Megapixel telephoto shooter that enables the Samsung Galaxy S20 to have an optical zoom factor of 3x. Of course they will not forget the all-important 12-Megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor for that beautiful wide angle shots. Up front is a 10-Megapixel selfie shooter which should produce some stellar results.

Source: Samsung

As expected the Samsung Galaxy S20 has the beautiful Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O panel. It measures at 6.2-inch and pushes out the usual and expected 1440p Quad HD+ (1,440 x 3,200 pixels at 30Hz). Of course, Samsung being Samsung the display is an HDR10+. Oh, before we forget, it is a 120Hz (defaults to 1080p) display too so you should be getting an ultra smooth experience with the device. Thanks to 240Hz screen response rate, you should get a snappier experience too.

The OneUI 2.0 flagship will ship with a large 4,000 mAh battery under the familiar design language (very much like Note10 series) with some interesting colourways. The large battery can also be used to revers charge any wireless charging devices you may have in your accessory cabinet. There is no 3.5mm jack to be found anywhere, which is still quite sad.

Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus (S20+)

The bigger, bulkier Samsung Galaxy S20+ is technically a blown up version of the regular S20. Instead of the S20’s measly 6.2-inch though, you get a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O display with the same resolution and refresh rate. Bigger is better, right?

  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung

Of course bigger devices also means bigger battery and more cameras. Instead of the three cameras, it has four within the same camera array set up. There is an additional DepthVision Camera that helps with depth detection and therefore better Bokeh results.

Storage and RAM wise, if you opt for the LTE version, you are not getting anything more than what you would be getting on the regular Galaxy S20. Yes, 8GB RAM plus 128GB storage with MicroSD expandability. If you opt for the 5G version you get 12GB of RAM with up to 512GB in storage. Nice? Nice.

Source: Samsung

Of course, it comes with a bigger battery too at 4,500mAh. Obviously you get to chose from the same colour options too. Except, you do not get Cloud Pink. Hey, at least you can choose Cosmic Black.

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

This is even bigger than the Plus. Its Dynamic AMOLED 2X display measures in at 6.9-inch and pushes Quad HD+ resolution (1440p) at up to 120Hz, just like its little brothers. Big, bigger, biggest.

  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung
  • Source: Samsung

The Ultra is a different beast entirely though. You get the option of choosing between an LTE or even a 5G version too. Storage options starts from 12GB of RAM and 128GB of storage up to a mind-boggling 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. Yes? Yes.

You get a huge 5,000mAh battery too. You would want that battery, 5G can really drain the battery. The cameras too might really drain your battery life.

First of all, up front, in the O-punch hole, you get a 40-Megapixel front-facing camera. That camera is one of the most powerful selfie camera fitted in a Samsung Galaxy device. It is easily the most powerful fitted to a Samsung Galaxy S device.

Source: Samsung

Then there is the rear cameras. Its an array of four cameras too. It is not the usual 12-Megapixel plus 64-Megapixel plus 12-Megapixel arrangement that you get on the lesser models though. This top-of-the-line flagship gets an impressive 108-Megapixel main camera. You might not be surprised that the 108-Megapixel you find on the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Pro is also the same Samsung developed sensor.

The 108-Megapixel camera is paired to a 48-Megapixel telephoto camera that gives the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra the ability to zoom up to 30x optically and 100x digitally. Stalker smartphone alert? Defnitely.

Source: Samsung

There is also a 12-Megapixel ultra-wide angle lens too on the other side. There is also the DepthVision sensor you find on the S20+. If you stayed up and watch the livestream, you might notice a low-light sensor fitted in too. They did not talk about the sensor, but that should help with good looking low-light photos.

The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra takes camera to a whole new level not just with the physical cameras too. The new camera array comes with a slew of new software that might really change the game too.

Raising The Camera Game

8K resolution will be standard on all the Galaxy S20 variants. But it does not stop at just long form videos. 8K Video Snap is a new thing, made for more social media use, you can use it to capture moments very quickly by just launching the camera. Keep in mind that if you shoot on 8K using the Samsung Galaxy S20 and the Galaxy S20+ you are using the Telephoto lens. Bummer.

Source: Samsung

While the regular, traditional smartphone cameras take photos using one sensor at a time. The Samsung Galaxy S20 devices takes a single picture file with all the cameras they have. They call this Single Take.

If you work with the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, you get to zoom 30 times, or zoom it out to to ultra-wide photo, or just the regular wide angle photo all within a single shot. No more fiddling around and missing moments. Just make sure you get the right things in the frame and you are set.

The camera software also packs some new flashy Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) that improves on image stabilizing. It also helps with some rolling shutters when you move plenty. Oh yes, this can be your new production camera. They did use the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra to shoot the whole Unpacked 2020, you know.

More Stuff With The Galaxy S20 Series

All The Samsung Galaxy S20 devices in the series will be IP68 certified, as expected with all the modern Samsung Galaxy S devices. All of them will come with Fast Charging too via USB Type-C. If you are hoping the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra comes with 3.5mm jack, it does not too, sadly. All of the Samsung Galaxy S20 devices comes certified with Google’s Live Caption feature as part of Google’s Accessibility program.

Source: Samsung

Of course, it only makes sense if you get Fast Wireless Charging 2.0 at 10W. That wireless receiver can become transmitters for all the devices too. While all the devices come with dual SIM support, they work with eSIM too, which is always great since one of the SIM slots needs to be sacrificed if you opt for a MicroSD expansion.

There are a few colours available for the Samsung Galaxy S20 line-up. They differ slightly as you go through the range though. The Samsung Galaxy S20 comes in Cosmic Grey, or Cloud Blue, or Cloud Pink. The Samsung Galaxy S20+ comes in Cosmic Grey, or Cloud Blue, or Cosmic Black. The S20 Ultra comes in Cosmic Grey or Cosmic Black options only.

Prices start from US$ 999 (MYR 4,129*) for the Samsung Galaxy S20, US$ 1,199 (MYR 4,956*) for the Samsung Galaxy S20+, and US$ 1,399 (MYR 5,782*) for the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. Keep in mind these are the 5G variants though. Unpacked did not mention anything about the LTE versions but we are definitely getting them in Malaysia. More information on their website.

*Approximate conversion based on US$ 1 = MYR 4.13 on 12/02/2020

UPDATE: The Samsung Galaxy S20 series will start from MYR 3,599 (S20), MYR3,999 (S20+), and MYR 4,999 (S20 Ultra). For Malaysia, the Samsung Galaxy S20 and Galaxy S20+ will only be available in LTE variants while the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra will come in both LTE and 5G variants. Pre-orders starts from the 12th of February 2020 at 5.00 p.m. onward to the 26th February 11.59 p.m., terms and conditions apply. The devices should be out in stores on the 4th of March 2020 onward.

News

HUAWEI Releases the Mate30 Pro 5G in Malaysia

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Malaysia has been discussing and researching 5G for a while now. In fact, the initial rollout of 5G commercially will begin in Q3 2020. With that in mind, HUAWEI was also present at the recent 5G Malaysia International Conference in Langkawi. The company was showing off their Mate 30 Pro 5G in Malaysia’s 5G test bed. HUAWEI has announced today, that the smartphone will be available officially in Malaysia starting on 7 February 2020.

The Mate30 Pro 5G initially leaked earlier this year when screen caps of its certification in SIRIM surfaced. Now, it looks like Malaysia will join China for its commercial rollout. The new Mate30 Pro 5G is the first 5G capable smartphone top be made commercially available in Malaysia. The smartphone will be available via HUAWEI stores and telco partners such as Maxis, U mobile and Celcom.

Powered by the HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G, the Mate30 Pro is a step above its Mate30 Pro brother. The new 5G capable chipset supports 2G, 3G, and 4G in addition to the upcoming 5G. The new entry supports standalone and non-standalone 5G networks. HUAWEI touts low latency connectivity with the 5G capable smartphone, however, keep in mind that this is only applicable with a 5G network.

Aside from this, the smartphone shares the same design, software and camera setup found on the Mate30 Pro. This means that one of the most praised smartphone cameras is available on the smartphone; DxO mark gave the camera setup a 123. This paired with the 40 SuperCharge feature on the smartphone makes it a compelling offering from HUAWEI.

Pricing and Availability

The HUAWEI Mate30 Pro 5G will be available starting from February 7, 2020. The smartphone will initially be available from HUAWEI stores and also from Maxis, Celcom and U Mobile. It is also slated to be available through DiGi.

It will be retailing for MYR4,199 off contract. Purchases of the HUAWEI Mate30 Pro 5G will be entitled to freebies from HUAWEI worth MYR537 including an extended year of warranty and an in-car wireless charger.

Business, Editorial

Rolling Out Commercial 5G Isn’t Going to be Easy – 3 Things To Learn from South Korea

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Malaysia is set to be one of the world’s pioneer markets when it comes to the rollout of 5G. As reported previously, Malaysia is on track to rollout commercial 5G by Q3 2020; that’s a mere 6 months away at this point. Having shown off 5G’s potential in many use cases at the 5G Malaysia conference, Malaysia now faces its largest hurdle yet – the actual roll out.

While Malaysia is one of the first in the region to explore and rollout 5G, we still stand behind the first world countries in Asia; namely Japan and South Korea who are already on the verge of developing 6G connectivity. Having said that, the technologies behind 5G are still in their infancy. That said, being an early adopter, Malaysia can learn from the hurdles faced by these countries.

At the 5G Malaysia conference, we had a chance to sit down with Mr Choi Woo Hyuk from the South Korean ICT Policy Bureau. South Korea has already deployed commercial 5G back in April 2019. These were a few things he highlighted as hurdles that the South Korean government faced when investing and rolling out 5G.

1. 5G is about Collaboration

The first hurdle that came up with 5G in South Korea was the alignment of everyone’s interests to roll out 5G. There are many parties involved in 5G’s roll out including vendors such as Samsung, Telcos such as SK Telecom and LGPlus, Consumers and the Government. That said, each party has their own interests to guard. The ongoing negotiations between the parties necessitates mediation and compromise.

In Malaysia, the government has already brought together all the players to form a Consortium. This Consortium and the 5G task force has been a first step towards dealing with the issue. However, the government faces a huge hurdle thanks to a legacy of monopoly with players such as TM. Even now, we see TM lobbying heavily to be the main provider for 5G when it hasn’t even completed the roll out of fiber connectivity across the nation. In fact, we have sources who confirm that the High Speed Broad Band (HSBB) roll out is severely delayed due to TM.

The government will face a similar challenge when it comes to mediating the interests of all the players in the local telecoms and connectivity industry with not only Maxis, DiGi (Telenor), Celcom, TM, TIME and even companies like edotco involved. The government will need to take into consideration the interests of all the parties involved including the interests of its electorate to ensure smooth rollout of 5G and the report from the 5G task force which was handed over at the 5G Malaysia Conference.

2. 5G is a Balancing Act between Privacy, Data Security and Industry

This will be the case the world over as the public grows increasingly cognizant of how they are being tracked. However, with 5G, the amount of data that can and will be collected is increasing by at least tenfold. In South Korea, the government has passed Personal Data protection laws in addition to Financial Protection and Online Privacy acts. That said, policymakers are beginning to realise the nuances that 5G presents when it comes to data and privacy.

Malaysia is on-track with our policies thanks to the implementation of the Personal Data Protection Act 2010, more commonly known as PDPA. However, with security and connected cities being some of the use cases being investigated by our 5G Consortium, the question then arises is “How much data should be collected?” and when it comes to security, “how much data is too little?”.

That said, the advent of 5G may necessitate new data protection policies to govern the quantum leap in the amount of data that can be collected by industry. It may also pose a threat to national security given the interconnectedness of smart cities and the security applications of 5G.

3. 5G Coverage and Consumer Applications May Take Time

5G is all about industrial applications and the collection and processing of the immense amount of data that can be transferred through more efficient and stable wireless connectivity. As evidenced by the limited rollout of 5G in Langkawi, the roll out of the new connectivity technology will be a hurdle that can only be solved with consistent investment.

South Korea initially rolled out their 5G network with 30,000 base stations and has recently completed about 100,000 base stations. This initial rollout not only posed challenges to Telcos, but also caused a very disrupted, inconsistent experience for consumers. With the limited amount of devices at the time, mainly the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, consumers in South Korea faced issues when it came to battery life as the phones would jump between 5G and 4G networks due to limited coverage.

While players such as Maxis, DiGi and Celcom are touting 5G readiness in Malaysia, it would not be surprising if we see the same issues crop up when 5G hits commercial availability. The increased hype and anticipation could be the biggest hurdle as the implication of 5G are more focused in industry rather than consumer technologies.

With these lessons in mind, it seems like the road to 5G is still quite bumpy and it will take a herculean effort from all the players to ensure that we have an open, unadulterated 5G in Malaysia. However, the success of Malaysia’s 5G rollout will depend on the government, its policies and mediation.

Mobile, News

Another Step Toward a 5G Malaysia – Maxis Hits Nearly 3Gbps In Latest Test

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5G is a relatively new technology globally. So far, only three known regions have successfully implemented the technology; two of them are in Asia. Then again, the two Asian countries also have two of the biggest telecommunications organisations in the world; HUAWEI and Samsung. These two have been on a race to implementing 5G through the world too.

In Malaysia, we have our own race to our very own first implementation of 5G. That race is not in between manufacturers, that race is in between the telcos. The major telcos like Maxis, Celcom, and Digi have been pushing the 5G technology with multiple tests that have taken place since last year. In February 2019, Maxis made the move to secure HUAWEI’s technology and expertise in 5G testing and installation.

That partnership came to a fruition at two testing sites in Subang Jaya, approved by MCMC (Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission) for two months. Their latest test involves the C-band spectrum of the 5G spectrum. That is the 3.5GHz (3,500MHz) spectrum of the 5G band.

The C-band spectrum is considered the global spectrum of 5G at this time. Of course, there are more bands of 5G depending on where you are and what the telcos can afford. Still, the optimum bands for 5G ranges from 3.3GHz to 4.2GHz.

The latest test, or approved tests allows Maxis to stretch to 200MHz of the 3.5GHz C-band spectrum. Previously MCMC only allows telcos to push 100MHz of the 3.5GHz. In that previous tests, they see speeds between 1.1Gbps to 1.76Gbps (yes, that is a G for Giga).

That is already 10x faster than our office’s fixed internet line at 100Mbps. The latest test with 200MHz of the 3.5GHz C-band sees speeds of up to 2.96Gbps. While that is not quite 3Gbps, it is still nearly double of the fastest speeds from the previous tests.

Does that mean we can expect that kind of speeds in the real world when 5G starts rolling out in Malaysia? We would say, only maybe. You have to remember that the tests are conducted in very controlled environments with minimal traffic and interference within the bandwidth.

4G LTE+ is technically capable of very high speeds already, speeds adequate for plenty of IoT implementation. Even the Formula 1 racing industry says that the current 4G bands are fast enough to support their operations. The only real benefit, as plenty of experts put it, 5G is supposed to be plenty more stable than 4G.

In the real world, you have to consider plenty of things when it comes to network speeds. Distances from the network towers have to be considered sometimes. In between the towers and you, there would be buildings and trees and other objects that might interfere with the transmission which affects speed. You also have to consider the amount of people using the same bandwidth from the same towers. Or, the amount of people that are using the total bandwidth at the same time. Of course, there are ways that 5G can counter and solve all these problems. It is meant to be the next generation of network after all, that only means that it is more powerful and better overall.

To answer the question posed earlier then, we have to say “maybe not at launch”. Of course, as testing goes, we are going to see higher speeds in the near future. While we may not get the full beans on launch, we can expect speeds and stability of 5G to continue to improve as manufacturers keep pushing the boundaries of 5G. Now, we can only hope that 5G starts rolling out soon, so that we can experience and test them ourselves; that is still the biggest benchmark of them all.

Android, Mobile, News

HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro 5G Coming to Malaysia?

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If you kept up with the tech scene as of 2019, there would be one topic that is a little more outstanding that others. No, not foldable devices. Nope, not even flexible glass, or roll-able TVs like LGs. The hottest topic all year long was the dawn of 5G connectivity.

At this point, if you ask us about when you can expect 5G, we can only say this year 2020. You can bet on that though. The three major network providers in Malaysia have started testing out 5G networks as of late 2019 last year. Celcom, Maxis, and Digi have been looking into 5G implementations and have been talking about upgrading their towers for 5G connectivity roll-out. They also claim that some towers are already ready for a 5G switch. Celcom, for example have successfully tested out their 5G network in their own office tower in 2019.

Of course, there is a big problem when our network providers turns on the switch to 5G. That problem is not on their ends. Sadly, we are limited to our devices; we do not have plenty of choices when it comes to 5G ready devices. Even the Samsung Galaxy Fold that comes to Malaysia will not have 5G connectivity. The only 5G ready smartphone that was launched last year was from Vivo.

This year looks to be different though. Other than the expected 5G roll-out, you can expect more smartphones to come with 5G connectivity. One of those smartphones that is confirmed to come as a 5G ready device is the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro 5G (codename: LIO-N29). How do we know? It just passed through SIRIM’s inspections as of January 2020.

Source: HUAWEI

Yes, the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro is not that new of a smartphone. It launched late last year 2019 in Malaysia. It packs HiSilicon’s most powerful Kirin 990 with 8GB of RAM. The Malaysian model comes with 256GB of storage too for good measure. The Huawei Mate 30 Pro continues with their super powerful quad-camera set-up as well as a large 4,500mAh battery. The device is void of any physical buttons. Instead, the beautiful Horizon display takes on the traditional volume rocker function. Of course, to power on the device, there is still a haptic button on the right side. For 2020, it will have 5G to get it up to speeds with Malaysia’s introduction of 5G.

Source: SIRIM

From the screenshot, HUAWEI’s Mate 30 Pro 5G comes with three 5G bands. The devices comes with a 700MHz, 3,500MHz, and 3,700MHz bands. Nope, not gibberish; the global band for 5G has been reported to be somewhere between 3,300MHz to 4,200MHz. There are also reports of 700MHz spectrums being used in Malaysia for certain telcos. Which also means that the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro will be perfectly ready for Malaysia’s 5G push.

We do not know when the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro 5G version will be going into the market. We do know though that SIRIM has approved the specifications within the screenshot. That also means that we can expect the HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro 5G to go on sale very soon. Price? We are guessing about MYR 4,499. Do not take our word for it though, we could be wrong.