Register/MNP Hotlink Prepaid SIM with a Hotlink dealer in Sabah. The prepaid plan MUST BE Hotlink Prepaid Plan 1.0. After that you need to wait for about 48 hours for the plan to appear in the Hotlink app.
Weekly plan
RM5/week (7 days)
10GB 4G/5G high-speed data (nationwide)/1000GB 5G high-speed data (only for use in Sabah)
Hotspot follows data quota
Unlimited calls to all local networks
Monthly plan
RM20/month (30 days)
60GB 4G/5G high-speed data (nationwide)/1000GB 5G high-speed data (only for use in Sabah)
Hotspot follows data quota
Unlimited calls to all local networks
Notes
4G/5G speeds are uncapped (best effort basis)
Speeds will be reduced if the quota is depleted.
Sometimes speeds may be capped up to 150Mbps only.
These plan doesn’t support auto-renew.
QCI for these plans is set to 9 which is lowest possible in network priority.
As stated above, Maxis began geolocking the 5G 1000GB quota for new subscriptions beginning 4 April 2024, which means those who subscribed on or after that date that resides outside Sabah will have their 5G usage deducted from the nationwide quota instead. It is presumed to be based on which cell tower the device is connected (Tracking Area Code).
U Home 5G is a data-only postpaid plan without any contract. Suitable for those who doesn’t have fibre broadband at their location or don’t like to be tied with 24-month contract that is imposed on pretty much all fibre plans out there.
However I still personally recommend you guys to subscribe to fibre broadband when possible. (helps free network capacity to those more needy, i.e. no fibre service at their area)
Plan
Price
Contract
SIM only
RM68/month
none
SIM + 5G router
RM68/month
24 months
Pricing above is not including taxes
RM68/month pricing is time-limited which reverts to RM78/month after promo ends (no date yet). Those subscribed before promo ends keeps RM68/month pricing indefinitely.
Upfront payment (RM68) is required upon plan signup to offset first month bill.
Non-Malaysians must pay RM500 on top of upfront payment.
All plans has 1000GB 4G/5G FUP with 512Kbps thereafter. You can buy another 1000GB FUP for additional RM30 which follows billing cycle.
All plan has uncapped 4G/5G speeds (best effort basis)
Both are locked to U Mobile SIMs only & covered by 2-year warranty. Existing SIM-only users can pick up either of these modems at U Mobile store without re-registering.
Supported devices
You can use the SIM with any 4G/5G capable device such as cell phone/modem.
To access 5G, you need a device that supports LTE B28 (as anchor band) and 5G n78.
You can purchase your own 4G/5G modem on Shopee/Lazada/Facebook Marketplace/etc if you don’t like to be tied to any contract. Make sure to do your due diligence before doing so.
More info
This plan is data-only plan! Although U Mobile does assign a phone number for this plan, you can’t make calls/SMS. VoLTE isn’t provisioned for this plan.
U Mobile blocks 2G/3G data access on this plan (if you somehow ended up on areas without 4G LTE signal)
This plan is NOT geolocked to your registered address, which means you can use this plan anywhere in Malaysia as long as you have 4G LTE/5G NR signal.
Roaming is disabled on this plan
Existing WBB48/WBB68/WBB88/WBB128 subscribers can change to this plan
Upfront payment is RM480 which is reimbursed back to customer as RM20 bill credit for 24 months. Foreigners (non-Malaysian) need to add RM500 on top of upfront payment.
Contract
SIM only: none
SIM + modem: 2 years/24 months
If you decided to terminate plan within contract period, you need to pay minimum RM500 or RM149 x remaining contract months, whichever is higher.
Speed/quota/FUP
Speed is uncapped with best effort basis. FUP is 1TB with 512Kbps cap thereafter.
There is additional data that you can buy if needed:
Plus Daily Plan: RM10 for 50GB for 24 hours
Plus Monthly Plan RM40: 20GB, validity follows billing cycle period
Plus Monthly Plan RM70: 40GB, validity follows billing cycle period
Calls/SMS
Not supported on this plan as it is a data-only plan!
No contract if you take just the plan. If you take a phone bundle with this plan, the contract would be 2 years.
Credit limit is set to RM320 per line, which can be changed.
Speed/quota
Uncapped (best effort basis) with unlimited data on 4G LTE & 5G NR networks.
FUP
This plan is rumoured to have almost similar FUP limit as the old webe/unifi postpaid unlimited plan.
999GB FUP, 512Kbps(?) thereafter
Tiered speed cap based on how much data is used
Unifi did also mention in their FAQ about usage in non-5G NR capable devices which is capped at 5GB/month. However I would personally assume you can SAFELY IGNORE THIS as it is considered as an archaic term. The rule exists all the way from 2016 webe era, which at that time 5GB cap is for 3G usage.
Hotspot
10GB/month, included with the plan. You can add extra 10GB hotspot for RM30/month (plus tax).
Calls/SMS
Unlimited calls to all local networks, except:
Calls to 1300 / 1700 / 1600 / 1MOCC numbers
080 – Prefix number for border calls to Brunei
Calls to Special Numbers:
Number
Service description
Charges (excluding tax)
1051
Time announcement
15 sen/min
15454
TNB
15 sen/min
15300
Pengurusan Air Selangor
15 sen/min
103
TM Directory Assistance service
15 sen/min
15500
PIAM Careline
15 sen/min
1-300
–
15 sen/min
1-700
–
15 sen/min
International Calls (IDD) and texts (SMS) from Malaysia
Voice calls and texts (SMS) roaming outside Malaysia
SMS is charged at 10 sen/SMS to all local networks.
Note that unifi doesn’t support these calling features:
Voicemail
Call Forwarding
Multi-party call
Enabling Private Number Display on your outgoing calls
Supports 4×4 MIMO on 4G LTE B1/B3/B4/B7/B38/B40/B41/B66. Note that LTE 4×4 MIMO only works when the phone is connected to single band (i.e. not in CA/4G+ mode) in 4G LTE & when connected to 5G NR.
Supports up to 256QAM DL/64QAM UL in 4G LTE & 5G NR
VoLTE/VoWiFi capable (dependent on your carrier)
4G LTE speeds are up to 400Mbps DL/150Mbps UL
Status
Announced on 29 March 2022 & available on 23 April 2022.
Body
Dimensions: 163.6 x 75.8 x 8.8 mm (6.44 x 2.98 x 0.35 in)
Weight: 195 g (6.88 oz)
Build: Glass front (Gorilla Glass 3), plastic back, plastic frame
SIM: Hybrid Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by). SIM2 slot is shared with microSD slot, so you need to choose either one or use a SIM extender adapter.
Has IP53 rating, 5 means dust can enter but not damage the phone & 3 means protected against water sprays up to angle of 60 degrees.
Charging: up to 33W wired, 100% in 59 min (advertised by Xiaomi)
Misc
Model number: 22031116BG
Device codename: opal
SAR: 1.09 W/kg (head) 1.00 W/kg (body)
SAR EU: 0.60 W/kg (head) 1.00 W/kg (body)
Loudspeaker -26.8 LUFS (Good, GSMArena test)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11S 5G shares common hardware with POCO M4 Pro 5G (Global/India), Redmi Note 11T 5G (India), Redmi Note 11 5G (China). Differences between them are mainly in supported network frequency bands, camera arrays & storage + RAM combos available.
Tips
Dial *#*#SAmode#*#* (*#*#726633#*#*) to enable 5G Standalone toggle regardless of support by your carrier/telco. The toggle can then be found in Settings app > SIM cards & mobile networks > Advanced settings > SA mode.
If you want to use this phone in USA, be wary that only T-Mobile is supported. AT&T and Verizon(?) enforces device whitelisting which this phone isn’t included in their whitelisting.
Furthermore, this phone lacks LTE/NR band 71, which T-Mobile widely uses. 5GUC (might be) supported on n41, not tested.
Both Celcom (Celcom Berhad) & Digi (Digi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd) is now a subsidary of CelcomDigi Bhd (formerly known as Digi.COM Berhad).
Both of Celcom & Digi brand/network still exists & largely separated for the time being. They need to discontinue both brands in 2 years and establish a new brand (CelcomDigi).
CelcomDigi also required to divest Yoodo (Celcom’s sub-brand) to someone else within 18 months from merger closing date or being shutdown 3 months after that.
PLMN used: 502 16 (Digi)/502 19 (Celcom)/502 13 (CelcomDigi, 2G only so far)
Spectrum allocation (after merger)
CelcomDigi is required to return 70MHz worth of spectrum to MCMC:
2x5MHz of 1800MHz (DL 1745-1750, UL 1840-1845MHz)
2x10MHz of 2100MHz (DL 1950-1960, UL 2140-2150MHz)
2x20MHz of 2600MHz (DL 2530-2540, UL 2650-2660MHz & DL 2560- 2570 & UL 2680-2690MHz)
They are required to return 1 band within 2 years and return 2 band within 3 years.
CelcomDigi will have total of 150MHz worth of spectrum holdings as per below:
Some CelcomDigi integrated towers still have LTE band 7 as they’re simply a reused Celcom/Digi sites without equipment change. Eventually, at some point, CelcomDigi will discontinue LTE band 7 usage across their entire network.
Spectrum allocation above can be used for 2G GSM & 4G LTE networks. CelcomDigi can’t use these bands for 5G NR (unless something changes that allows them to do so) as 5G is only allowed through Digital Nasional Berhad’s network.
It seems like CelcomDigi priortises keeping Digi sites on and shutdowns Celcom sites, except the areas where only Celcom has sites to cover that particular area or Celcom sites covers the area better than Digi’s.
It also seems like in SIB1 signaling at integrated areas sets Celcom’s PLMN (502-19) as 1st PLMN, Digi’s 502-16 as second. Thus, 3rd party apps like CellMapper, NetMonster, Network Cell Info on certain Android phones may “see” Celcom’s PLMN instead if you’re using Digi SIM card.
LTE eNB patterns are as follows (in areas where both Celcom/Digi network consolidated/merged into one):
State/federal territory
eNB pattern
Johor
66xxxx
Kedah
Retains Digi eNBs, 84xxx/88xxx for reused Celcom sites
Kelantan
88xxxx, parts of state retains Digi eNBs
Kuala Lumpur/Selangor
Retains Digi eNBs, 83xxx/86xxx/87xxx for reused Celcom sites
Labuan
(no info yet)
Malacca
33xxxx
Negeri Sembilan
33xxxx
Pahang
88xxxx, parts of state retains Digi eNBs.
Penang
Retains Digi eNBs, 85xxx on reused Celcom sites
Perak
Retains Digi eNBs, towers in majority of Gerik – Jeli route uses Celcom’s eNBs.
RM40/month, no tax required. There are two options, renewable or one-time.
Pass will auto renew (if you choose so) as long as you have sufficient credit. If not, subscription will be suspended until you reloaded sufficient amount of credit, which then the plan will renew automatically.
Speed/quota/FUP
Unlimited with 1000GB FUP @ max 6Mbps. It is unknown what will happen upon reaching the FUP limit.
Speedtest usage isn’t metered (won’t eat the FUP limit) & uncapped. To be safe, use Digi server in the app/website.
5G access isn’t supported.
Hotspot
None if you choose one-time option
10GB if you choose auto-renewable option
Hotspot is capped at 6Mbps
You can add 20GB hotspot for RM15, which follows plan validity.
Calls
Unlimited to all local networks.
SMS
Pay per use at 10 sen/SMS to local networks.
Notes
Hotspot restrictions can be bypassed with TTL fix/modded modem.
Digi doesn’t seem to mind about usage of this plan in 4G modem/CPEs. (This may change in the future)
Upon reaching 80GB usage, speed will be capped to 3Mbps (megabit per second)
After next 60GB is used (totaling 140GB), speeds will be capped to JUST 64Kbps (kilobit per second) until next bill cycle.
Hotspot data follows above usage.
Calls
Unlimited to all local networks EXCEPT video calls, calls to toll-free numbers or numbers with special charges (i.e., 1-300/1-800/600, 121, TM100, 1MOCC, IDD calls to Singapore & IDD/border calls to Brunei).
SMS
200SMS to (presumably) all local networks. SMS charges after exceeding the quota is unknown.
In this article, I’ll show you how to map telco coverage & cell towers using CellMapper (CM) app. Note that this guide is more intended towards Malaysians as it has some Malaysia-specific terms.
What is CellMapper?
CellMapper exists primarily because most telcos around the world didn’t provide any public data of their tower locations!
From CellMapper’s website, CellMapper is a useful app for locating 2G/3G/4G base stations. The application measures the signal strength and other network data collected by end users and uses the data collected to locate network base stations and their coverage.
Data inside CellMapper map is crowdsourced, so your location may or may not have sufficient data for the particular telco.
CellMapper is supported by ads in their website and apps. Premium membership is available as I explain below.
When you open the app for the first time (or wiped data for the app) on your phone, allow all the requested permission. If you’re on Android 11 and newer, location permission must be set to “Allow all the time” & (Android 12++) enable precise location.
Steps below should be similar across many Android skins.
Then exit the app by opening the side menu (≡) then press exit. Open the app again and it should prompt you to disable battery optimizations for CellMapper. This varies by OEM and Android software/skin used.
The websites above publishes detailed instructions on how to disable battery optimisations. Use it for CellMapper app.
Battery optimisation needs to be disabled so that CellMapper can collect data properly without the Android system throttling the app.
Enable “Force full GNSS measurement” (optional)
“Force full GNSS measurement” can be found in Developer Options which is hidden by default. You can search on how to enable Developer options menu as it varies between OEM & software used.
This option helps in increasing GPS accuracy which in turn helps for better data collection in CellMapper app.
Note that some apps might won’t play nice with developer options enabled.
Reduce amount of bad/useless data from being uploaded to CellMapper servers
For phones with Mediatek & Exynos chipsets you need to disable 2G & 3G recording in CellMapper’s settings as the phone spits out wrong signal reading to 3rd party apps. Samsung’s ServiceMode menu shows correct info.
I also strongly encourage you to disable 3G mapping in CellMapper settings (doesn’t matter what SoC your phone has) as 3G services in Malaysia isn’t guaranteed after 31 December 2021. As of writing this article there are still some places throughout the country that still have 3G services which will eventually being turned off.
To do so, open side menu (≡) then tap on Settings. Under Advanced Settings, untick Record 2G data and/or Record 3G data.
How do I create an account (optional)?
Creating an account can be done either through the app or the website (cellmapper.net). Benefits of having an account:
Ability to modify towers (move/delete) upon reaching 50000 points
Star next to your username (in tower BTS/NB/eNB/gNB details)
Dedicated server for premium users (faster data processing)
Search tower by Cell ID (hidden for non-premium users)
Ad-free app & website
Supporting CellMapper devs
If you don’t want to get premium subscription, it is highly encouraged to whitelist CellMapper from any ad blocking software that you have.
How do I map?
Before you start mapping, please ensure that:
Have a cell signal (d’oh!), there should be any data in CellMapper cells menu.
Disabled aeroplane mode
(Recommended) Have an active SIM. You can map with dead SIM or sometimes no SIM at all, but the phone will randomly latch to any telco signal that it can.
Working & stable GPS, indicated by green Location/GPS icon in CellMapper cells menu.
Disable any kind of battery saver feature
(Highly recommended) Enable Keep Screen On and set brightness to DIM in CellMapper settings.
Make sure Record icon is green in CM cells menu
Places that are discouraged/not recommended to map (please exit CM app or turn off record in CM dashboard), but you can:
At any classified facilities/places (you actually can get into trouble!)
Inside any airborne vehicle (helicopter, aeroplane, seaplane, etc.)
In building (home, shopping malls, etc.)
Near any installation of femtocells/signal boosters
The place is already well mapped like below, unless there is changes (decommissioned tower, added bands, new towers)
After that you can map almost anywhere you want as long as there is a cell signal.
If single SIM is inserted & activeIf two SIMs is inserted and active
At CM cells menu (dashboard), there are 4 icons above:
GPS/Location = Red: no lock; Green = there is GPS/location lock. Tapping on the icon shows GPS/location info on the bottom screen.
Upload = Red: disabled, upload manually in upload menu; Green = recorded data is uploaded automatically at certain time intervals if there is internet connection, enable it in CM settings
Account = Red: not logged into CM account or no internet access if you logged in before; Green: Logged into CM account
Record = Red: not enabled; Green: enabled. Can be toggled on and off as you wish.
At the bottom of the 4 icons, there should be info about currently serving (topmost with BTS/NB/eNB/gNB number, not in italics) cells and neighbouring cells (“UNKNOWN” or BTS/NB/eNB/gNB numbers in italics). You can search on the web for more info about each parameters, but you can refer to table below to understand how RSRP/RSRQ/SINR works.
Note that you can map without internet connection as long as GPS/location & Record icon is green. You can upload the points later via Upload menu.
General etiquette for mapping:
Try to map new places, especially those less frequently visited as they’re often still not covered.
From time to time make a round again to collect new cell towers that could appear in your area.
Use SIM cards from different telcos to better cover your area.
5G NR mapping
You should see something like this when you are mapping DNB’s 5G. MNC may change based on telco used like stated above.
You need to insert ONLY ONE SIM on your phone to map 5G NR data for the time being. However, if both SIMs are from the same telco (same PLMN), you can map 5G NR with dual SIM inserted.
Any kind of 5G saver mode needs to be disabled (such as 5G battery saver in Xiaomi’s MIUI, Smart 5G in realme UI/Oppo’s ColorOS) so that 5G NR can be mapped properly.
If NR NSA data shows up with frequency band/number (certain devices running Android 12 and above), enable “Record cells with frequency data” in CM settings.
Note that Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) currently runs its network in NSA (non-standalone) mode, so CellMapper is only able to record signal trails which also means no cell towers will be shown in CellMapper map under the NR layer until DNB launches SA mode.
You can try to enable “Use Android 7.0+ Cell ID API” in CM settings if MCC & MNC doesn’t show up in NR NSA cells info.
Note that DNB sets Yes PLMN (502 152) as primary PLMN, so you may see Yes PLMN instead even with non-Yes SIM in the CM app. This is because some Android phones have problems with reporting MOCN towers properly to apps like CellMapper.
Upload recorded/mapped data
After you are done with mapping, make sure to upload the points via sidebar menu (≡)> Upload then tap on the Upload button. After all points have been uploaded, open the sidebar menu and tap Exit.
If there is any error while uploading (site maintenance, etc), you may try again later.
Closing notes
“Why should I use the CellMapper app?” To put it simply, data contributed can benefit everyone that uses CellMapper map 🙂
Some of the use cases:
To know what telco performs best at particular area in terms of signal
Adjust external antennas (LPDA, parabolic, outdoor CPEs, etc.) to point to correct direction or to another nearby tower if the nearest one are congested
Utilise CellMapper data so that you can report network issues properly to telcos & regulators (MCMC, KKD/KKM, CFM etc.)
Utilise CellMapper data for your research project (make sure you credit CellMapper in your papers)
Prepare your trip properly, for example: download offline map data & and videos for use at patchy coverage areas.
What CellMapper doesn’t do:
To know what telco performs best at particular area in terms of performance/speed/congestion.
Use CellMapper data for commercial purpose. CellMapper makes it clear on the website with “COMMERCIAL USE STRICTLY PROHIBITED” sentence.
Use its data to avoid yourself or others from ionizing radiation/virus spreading cell towers/whatever bullshit it is. Scary, right? /s
All plans requires one-month advance payment upon registration. Foreigners need to add RM200 deposit on top of advance payment.
No device upfront payment required for phone bundle plans (Infinite+). I personally don’t recommend you guys taking any plan/phone contracts with any telco unless you are sure that you can finish paying it as required and/or okay with chances in service quality.
Contract
(Infinite) None for SIM-only option.
36-month contract applies if you take any bundled phone plans (Infinite+).
Speed/quota/FUP
Unlimited & uncapped speed (best effort basis) on 4G LTE & 5G NR network. Hotspot data is capped as per above.
Yes claims that they don’t implement (quota based) FUP for these plans. This doesn’t mean they won’t depriortise the line during peak hours.
Calls
Unlimited to all local networks EXCEPT those mentioned below:
Destination
Prefix
Rates (RM)
Charging block (seconds)
Toll free
1300
0.09/min
30
TM Customer Careline
100
2.00/call
–
TM Directory Enquiry
103
2.00/call
–
Electricity Fault Reporting (TNB/SESB)
15454
0.15/min
30
Pengurusan Air Selangor
15300
0.15/min
30
Syarikat Air Melaka
15800
0.15/min
30
Time announcement
1051
0.10/min
30
SMS
Unlimited to Yes numbers, 9 sen/SMS to other local networks. Special charges may apply to certain numbers.
Encik Kunci 