YTL WiMAX to offer Android devices, launch might delay till next year

A lot people have been coming up to me asking questions like “What do you think of YTL WiMAX?”. I simply don’t know the answers since YTL has yet to launch its WiMAX service.

WiMAX Android devices are coming

However I might be able to share some stuff that the WiMAX operator is working on. As the tittle suggest, YTL is working on a number of WiMAX devices that will work on Android, think of iPad and Mobile Internet Devices(MIDs). YTL has outsourced this to a very well known company in the world and those devices are currently being worked out as you read this.

As to respect the management’s decision to keep the name of this company confidential, I won’t reveal the name here. Also surprisingly a large number of them working in YTL also does not know this and details are only kept within their mobile device team.

It is good news that YTL is moving forward with Android and this is exactly what I hoped that P1 would do. Instead P1 choose to launch some WiMAX laptops when something like iPad is selling like “hot cakes”. Another disappointment that I recently found out is that P1 no longer have a device team. I will probably talk about this another time.

YTL WiMAX is not approved as 4G yet

Not sure why everyone is shouting about 4G but for those of you who think YTL is 4G as in 4th Generation- Take note that 4G is not a standard yet and their YTL’s WiMAX license(IEEE 802.16e standard) is exactly the same as P1 WiMAX. At this point of time, mobile WiMAX is known as Pre-4G technology and talking about 4G, we are looking at data speeds up to 100Mbps while on the move. Even the fastest mobile WiMAX network in the world can only give you half of this speed. As for in Malaysia, we can’t even get a stable 1Mbps on P1 WiMAX, so let’s not talk about 4G here.

And the most interesting part- if you still remember Izzi, they also call themself “4G Wireless Broadband Network“. Izzi is using iBurst technology.

To clear the confusion, YTL WiMAX and P1 WiMAX are “branded” as 4G but they don’t qualify as 4G from a technical point of view, at the point of writing this article.

Coverage to meet internal target before launch

YTL has been slow in terms of coverage. It appears that a large part of Peninsular Malaysia is yet to be covered with YTL WiMAX especially in KL. There is an internal target of 60-70% coverage and I believe that YTL won’t be able to meet their nationwide launch deadline this December 2010. However they might still make it for their soft-launch sometime in September 2010.

Recently, I was given the opportunity to try out YTL WiMAX for approximately 1 hour but regret not to try it out. Maybe more speedtest and coverage details as I get my hands on a YTL WiMAX device this September.

More to come, stay tuned.

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bohtakcheck

do you think wimax will survive? or would they be like Izzit be a tier-2, tier-3 technology, like those niche “wifi” service provider? i am happy with my iPhone … that's the true mobile internet, facebok, twitter, online stock, email, everything is ok on a iPhone/Droid (expensive?? wait till 4s then get a 3GS). so it is good enough…do i need to site in McD's KFC, starbuck to blog/surf with Wimax?! no…
Shltan

Wimax isn't Wifi don't you realise you can have better mobility on it?

some claim it is a challenging tech to LTE and some claim its an intermediate solution between HSPA+ and LTE. But this we have to wait and see how it evolve to be a true mobile solution….since it was form as a mobile solution for internet….but not on voice….and many network operator support telecom company through out the world seem to be offering an easier path to go from HSPA to HSPA + and then LTE….and WiMAX seem like a totally different network infrastructure.

The potential below was taken out from Wikipedia;

The bandwidth and range of WiMAX make it suitable for the following potential applications:

* Providing portable mobile broadband connectivity across cities and countries through a variety of devices.
* Providing a wireless alternative to cable and DSL for “last mile” broadband access.
* Providing data, telecommunications (VoIP) and IPTV services (triple play).
* Providing a source of Internet connectivity as part of a business continuity plan.
* Providing a network to facilitate machine to machine communications, such as for Smart Metering.
Gavinmendez90

So YTL haven’t Soft Launched yet then?
Wimax4U

Android Wimax mobile device? Cool, so I can now getting ready to throw away my stupid Apple iPHONE 3!