A few months ago i applied for the High Speed Broadband (HSBB) connection package introduced by Maxis. The promotion had just been launched, called ‘Maxis Home Fibre Internet’. Basically, it is using TMNET Unifi backbone, but with different pricing from TMNET’s own offering. At that time, the offer was for RM118 per month for 10Mbps. This offer is no longer available, the normal pricing for 10Mbps is RM138 per month.
Comparatively, TMNET Unifi is currently running a VIP promo of 10Mbps for RM199 per month but with extra offers.
How to apply:
First you need to check if your area has Unifi yet. If you see the banners advertising it near your home, then its probably safe to say its available. Also if you are still on streamyx, TMNET’s telemarketeers will be harassing you to upgrade every month if you are within the Unifi area.
Get the form at any maxis centre or you can download it here. Or you can dial 1800 82 1123 (or just 123 from a Maxis) to register via phone.
Installation:
After about 2 weeks Maxis will call you and set an appointment to install. If you want it to be on a weekend, you may have to wait months. I was available on weekdays so the appointment was 1 week later. It is advisable to have a tech savvy guy at home when the technicians come to install.
Two parties should be present when they do the installation – a Maxis technician, and TMNET technicians. The whole installation should take about 3 or 4 hours (more if a lot of drilling is required).
Decide where you want the broadband cable to terminate, either near you PC or at a centralized location in the house. I terminated it near my TV as in future Maxis will be introducing IPTV services. At the termination point you need to provide 3 power sockets (S/S/O).
Performance:
Upon installation i did a speed test, i clocked a little over 10Mbps (lunch time). A week later i got an average of 8.5Mbps (night time). Now im getting an average of of 10.5Mbps. But overall i haven’t encountered any performance problems as yet. However twice, in the first 3 days of usage the connection went down inexplicably, the first time i had to call their customer hotline and they restored it after about an hour. The second time i didn’t make a complaint (as i was going out), connection was restored when i got home 2 hours later.
I’m running 3 devices on the wireless connection, my PC (using a USB wifi adaptor), my iPad and Samsung Android. There’s no significant performance improvement on my Samsung Galaxy S, significant improvement using Safari and Youtube on my iPad.