Malaysia police force said online scam cases have increased higher each year

You would think that most Malaysians would know how to dodge a potential online scam, but according to the Malaysian police force, that's the opposite. Just recently, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Acryl Sani Abdullah Sani told the media that online scams were increasing instead.

In the statistics that were collected from police reports, there were 20,701 scams in 2021 with a loss of RM560.8 million. Compared to 2019, there were only 13,703 scam cases with a loss of RM539 million. The online scams include online trading, African scams, Macau scams, Business Email Compromised (BEC) scams, fake loans and SMS scams.

And in 2022 this year, from January until July, there are already 12,092 scam reports with a loss of RM414.8 million. On the bright side, most scammers have been arrested. From 2019 until July 2022, a total of 33,147 cyber-crime suspects were caught and 22,196 were brought to court.

The police said that scammers have been improving and exploiting technology these days, and the victims are usually those who are unaware of how scamming works. It is also predicted that youths and students would be the next target for scammers. The local banks are also cooperating with the police to facilitate and investigate the cases.

If you would like to report an online scam activity, you can contact the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) Infoline via Whatsapp at 013-2111222. You can also call the CCID Scam Response Centre between 8 AM and 10 PM at 03-26101559 or 03-26101599, as well as check "Semak Mule" portal here or via smartphone applications. Stay safe and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia price released for ASUS ZenFone Zoom, ZenFone 2 Deluxe Special Edition, ZenWatch 2 and more

The world's thinnest cameraphone with 3x optical zoom features a 13MP PixelMaster rear camera with 10-element lens from Hoya, dual-prim periscope, OIS (optical image stabilization), 0.03 laser autofocus and dual-LED real tone flash, the ASUS ZenFone Zoom ZX551ML, was recentlylaunched here in Malaysia for RM2099. Along with it, ASUS Malaysia also revealed the ASUS ZenFone 2 Deluxe Special Edition ZE551ML, ZenWatch 2, ZenBook Pro UX501 and Zen AiO Pro Z240ICGK. While many of the details like price and tech specs weren't available at the launch, these details have been released recently which you can see below:


Malaysia pricing for Sony SmartBand Talk SWR-30 revealed at RM579

We've been watching out for the Sony SmartBand Talk SWR-30 for a while after it was announced back in September 2014, and now it has appeared on the Sony Malaysia site with official retail pricing.  A step up from the SmartBand, the SmartBand Talk features an energy efficient 1.4-inch e-ink display with a 288 x 128 pixel resolution. Other tech specs include an ARM Cortex-M4 processor, two sizes, IP68 certification (waterproof up to 1.5m) and the ability to take and answer calls directly through the smartband. It also displays notifications from your smartphone and tracks your fitness and other health statistics. According to Sony, the SmartBand Talk should last 2-3 days on a single charge and connects via both NFC and Bluetooth. Previously announced at 159 euros (RM653) the official Malaysia pricing has now been set at RM579 making it one of the more attractive smartbands with displays in the Malaysia market today. Check out the videos below for a refresher of the Sony SmartBand Talk:


Malaysia ranks first for phone numbers leaked and sold to scammers

Over 73 per cent of cell phone numbers in our country, or approximately 21 million people were leaked or sold to scammers last year. According to the Gogolook 2022 Annual Fraud Report, Malaysia was granted the unwanted title of being 1st place in cell phone numbers breached by the global security company.

In a joint press release by Gogolook, it was also revealed that the top private information leaks were login passwords and names. These were followed by address, country, date of birth and email leaks.

The report further asserted that the leaked data may lead to stolen online banking or social network accounts. When scammers get access to names, phone numbers, and even payment and shopping records, they can easily initiate phone and message attacks.

If names and addresses are leaked, people may soon receive “unsolicited packages with payment requests on arrival”.  Moreover, leaked private information usually leads to fraud or scam cases.

Besides that, Whoscall, which is powered by Gogolook also identified that over 405.4 million scam calls and messages took place last year. Results also showed that scammers prioritise text messages for high penetration rates due to its low costs feature which contributed to 76% of messages being used as the ’first contact’ in fraud cases.

The Gogolook 2022 Annual Fraud Report looked into private information leakage and upstream operations in the scam industry chain across countries Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Korea, and Malaysia. It was published in collaboration with Constella Intelligence, an international digital risk protection service provider in an effort to enhance public anti-fraud literacy.

For more information on the report and the Whoscall app, visit its official Facebook page here. As always, make sure to stay tuned to TechNave for more trending tech news.


Malaysia recorded 84 million cyber attacks per day in Q4 2022

Global cybersecurity solutions provider Fortinet has revealed that Malaysia experienced an average of 84 million cyber attacks every day during the fourth quarter of 2022 (Q4 2022). These attacks include viruses, botnets and exploits that were detected by its FortiGuard Labs, making our country one of the most vulnerable locations in the region.

According to Bernama, FortiGuard Labs in Q4 2022 detected:

Fortinet Southeast Asia and Hong Kong vice-president Peerapong Jongvibool said that by comparison, cyber threats on the global scale in Q4 2022 recorded around 200 billion attacks per day. He further elaborated that Fortinet was able to detect the threats and neutralise them with its artificial intelligence (AI) technology and machine learning capabilities.

So, what do you guys think of the statistic of cyber attacks in Malaysia? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more tech news such as this.


ASUS ZenFone 5 ZE620KL unboxing and hands-on video

Despite only costing RM1299, the ASUS ZenFone 5 ZE620KL offers upper midrange tech specs like AI or Artificial Intelligence driven features, a 6.2-inch full HD+ fullview display and more.

We managed to do an unboxing and hands-on video with it to see how it handles. Check it out for yourself below.


Malaysia records its highest-ever bandwidth demand at 1.9 Terabytes per second

The Malaysia Internet Exchange (MyIX) has announced that our country recorded its highest-ever bandwidth demand in December 2022 at a peak of 1.9 terabytes per second (Tbps). That is more than triple the 588 gigabytes per second (Gbps) recorded in May 2020.

As reported by Bernama, MyIX chairman Chiew Kok Hin asserted that this surge in bandwidth demand showed that the Internet and digital economy are deeply entrenched in Malaysian lifestyle and work cultures, especially hybrid formats. An initiative under the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), MyIX today has a total of 132 autonomous systems with 210 ports.

Chiew further elaborated that MyIX is looking forward to more investor-friendly policies by the government to further strengthen Malaysia’s position as a regional tech hub. He also projected that the demand would keep on rising, as the Malaysia Digital strategy continued to drive adoption and opportunities in the digital economy to support the national recovery plan.

Speaking of which, the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation has also recently revealed that the digital economy is contributing 22.6 per cent to Malaysia’s Gross Domestic Product. Moreover, it is set to rise even more, up to 25.5 per cent by 2025.

So, what do you guys think of the increased bandwidth demand in our country? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more trending tech news locally and on the global scene.


Malaysia's 3G network shut down has been extended to the end of March 2022

As 3G continues to shut down to make way for 5G, there is a new announcement by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) about the progress. In line with the National Digital Network Plan (JENDELA), the initial sunsetting for 3G in December 2021 has been extended to the end of March 2022.

According to the MCMC Chairman, Fadhlullah Suhaimi Abdul Malek, he said 79% of 2.1 million 3G users have already migrated to 4G as of December 2021. That's a total of around 1.66 million users and at the same time, 80% of 3G carriers (203,374) have closed. It also seems that the reason for extending the closure is because there is still 21% of 3G users (440,852) who have not made the transition yet.

The 440,852 users have already been informed about the extension and they will be waiting until 3G completely shuts down. Meanwhile, there is also 20% of 3G users (50,486) who couldn't make the transition due to the flood. This report came from the MCMC Chairman during the fourth quarter JENDELA report of 2021.

Meanwhile, the report also noted complaints about network coverage. Johor Bahru has the highest number of complaints, followed by Petaling, Seremban, Kuala Lumpur, and Klang. To this date, JENDELA has upgraded 2661 communication towers as well as 86 new site towers for the five districts. The 5G expansion is also being planned for other states namely Negri Sembilan, Penang, Perak, Johor, Selangor, Sabah, and Sarawak.

Stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's 5G testbed expanding to Kedah, KL, Perak, Selangor and Terengganu

YB Gobind Singh, Minister of Communications and Multimedia, Malaysia recently announced that the 5G Testbed area will be expanded to 5 other Malaysian states outside from the original Cyberjaya and Putrajaya. These 5 states will include Kedah, KL, Perak, Selangor and Terengganu but there's no exact Malaysia dates when this might happen or when we'll see commercial 5G networks roll-out.

In related news, the National 5G Task Force has come up with up to 66 possible use cases of 5G with an estimated total industry investment of RM50 million. They've also assured that 5G networks are safe for health and will move onto being the 5G Implementation Task Force later in 2019. Stay tuned to TechNave.com for all your tech news.


Malaysia's Flying car WON'T be flying tomorrow according to CAAM

Based on a statement by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia, it seems that Malaysia’s first flying car won't be tested on 21 November 2019. This is due to the fact, that the EH216 Flying Car was not given the clearance to conduct tests at UniKL MIAT.

However, CAAM has mentioned that they are open to having the flying vehicle tested in Malaysia as long as it has all the necessary paperwork and it is conducted in an approved area to ensure safety. With all that said, some netizen has noted that the flying vehicle was only able to ascend and descend in place and was not able to fly around.

Many have also mentioned that the vehicle seemed unstable, which sparked the question of whether the minister should be in the cockpit fearing that they might need to re-elect a new minister if the worse were to happen. Jokes aside, what do you think of the EH216 Flying Car so far? Let us know on our Facebook page, and for more updates like this stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia’s MADANI Belanjawan 2023 tech highlights : RM200 eWallet credit for 2 million youths, SME digitalization and more

Malaysia’s current government has announced the Belanjawan 2023 based on the concept of “Karamah Insaniah” and MADANI core values. This time around, nothing too specific was mentioned about tech except that RM400 million in e-Tunai Belia Rahmah credit would be disbursed, they’d focus on SME digitalization and 5G as a growth enabler.

Formerly called ePemula, the eTunai Belia Rahmah will cater to 2 million youths. Eligible youths will be aged between 18 to 20 years old and receive RM200 through specific eWallet providers. Details about which eWallet provider and how to redeem the RM200 will be revealed later when it gets disbursed.

RM100 Million will be allocated to the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Grant Scheme to support business automation and digitalisation. To be specific, grants of up to RM5000 will be given to SMEs for POS, accounting and inventory management systems.

The previous Budget 2023 was tabled but didn’t get approved due to Parliament being dissolved. We’re particularly interested in “5G as a growth enabler” because before 5G got implemented in Malaysia, there were all sorts of potential use cases like 5G-enabled fishing and farming but we’ve not seen any progress in that aspect at all.

In related news, RM2 billion in funding will be provided for sustainable technology startups and to help SMEs implement low-carbon practices. Have you switched to 5G yet? How do you think 5G can be used to enable growth? Share your thoughts in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave.com


Malaysia's Minister of Finance said all government services on route to become purely e-payment by 2022

Today, our Minister of Finance, Datuk Tengku Zafrul Aziz told the media that MyDIGITAL will oversee the cashless payment to be made for all government services. The government is targetting by the year 2022 and it will be part of the Industrial Revolution 4.0 path.

At the Malaysian Institute of Accountants Conference 2021 today, he said that 60% of government services were paid online in 2020. Since the government is already pushing towards a digital lifestyle, the cashless payment will have higher transactional security, better coordination, enhanced communications on anti-corruption initiatives, and greater ease of sharing information.

So far, Tengku Zafrul said that electronic identification cards and biometric proof of identity are prioritised to ensure inclusiveness, accessibility, transparency and accountability. By modernising public service delivery and curbing corruption, it will also reduce direct contact points between the citizens and public officials.

Application and payments for Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat and Geran Khas Prihatin were done online already. On top of that, he also appreciates the MIA's advocacy of tax governance and its Digital Technology blueprint. But what do you think of this? To read the full news, you can visit The Edge Markets' news coverage right here. Stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's Neelofa and Taiwanese singer Hebe Tien are the new face of the OPPO F7

Local Super Star Neelofa and Taiwanese Singer Hebe Tien will be joining OPPO as the product Ambassador for the upcoming flagship phone, the OPPO F7. Being part of OPPO Malaysia's Celebrity Team, OPPO hopes that both these celebrities would be brightness and positivity to the brand.

To say a few words about the celebrities mentioned, Neelofa will be joining OPPO Malaysia once again to bring positivity and good vibes. Taiwanese singer, Hebe Tien, on the other hand, will be joining OPPO Malaysia for the first time which would contribute significantly to the brand image and also help reach out to a wider audience.

Check out TechNave.com for the technical specs of the OPPO F7 as well as other OPPO Smartphones.


Malaysia's first 5G live cluster field trial deployed by Celcom + OPPO Reno 5G hits download speeds of 1.2Gbps

This morning, Celcom showed off the capabilities of the 5G network in their 5G live cluster field trial which was deployed not too long ago. During the demonstration, their network managed to hit speeds of up to 6Gbps with latency around hovering around the 10 milliseconds.

Celcom also demonstrated different use cases that could benefit from the new 5G network such as security surveillance over 5G, and 5G home entertainment such as 4k game and movie streaming. The new network also supports 5G-to-5G VoLTE calls, as well as 5G-to-4G VoLTE high fidelity calls.

On another note, OPPO showed off their OPPO Reno 5G and how it is more than capable of achieving up to 1.2Gbps speed during the field trial. Unfortunately, we have no information on the Malaysia release date of the OPPO Reno 5G as well as the local pricing of it. What do you think of the speeds achieved through the 5G network? Let us know on our Facebook page and for more updates like this, stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia's first Intel Powered Store now in Pavilion Bukit Jalil with a 3-day promotion worth up to RM30K

Today, a brand new Intel Powered Store just opened at Pavilion Bukit Jalil and it has an ongoing grand opening promotion until 3 July 2022. If you and your friends and family are planning to drop by Pavilion Bukit Jalil this weekend, you can check out what freebies you can win.

With merchandise worth up to RM30,000, customers can purchase various Intel-powered laptops from the likes of Acer, ASUS, Lenovo and others. For starters, you can get a free t-shirt by just sharing any promotion posting you see on Facebook (like ours) and adding the hashtag #IntelPoweredStore, #IntelPromotion and #SNSNetwork. Don't forget to like Intel and SNS Network Facebook page too.

If you happen to purchase laptops equipped with Intel Celeron, Pentium or Core i3, you will be rewarded with a Shield Care EW card (RM6999), a Shield Care 1-Year Extended warranty (RM186) and a Deepcool U Pal Laptop cooler (RM59). On the other hand, you can get a free HDD 1TB (RM189) and a Logitech G304 Lightspeed wireless mouse by purchasing any laptop with Core i5, i7 and i9.

Last but not least, if you purchase any eligible product from the store, you can participate in the spin and redeem game. After you spin on your lucky prize, you can redeem it immediately from the counter upon payment made. Besides Pavilion Bukit Jalil, the promotion is also happening in Plaza Low Yat during the same campaign period.

Have a great weekend and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's first Samsung Onyx Cinema LED screen arrives at Golden Screen Cinemas

Samsung Malaysia Electronics launched the arrival of Malaysia's first Samsung Onyx Cinema LED screen at Golden Screen Cinemas Mid Valley Megamall today. Featuring a 33.8 feet wide and 16.4 feet high Onyx LED screen with Samsung Audio Lab and JBL by HARMAN Professional Solutions speakers, the screen delivers up to 4K resolution video with the world's first Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI)-compliant High Dynamic Range which can achieve peak brightness levels of 146fl. In short, the screen delivers the most pristine whites and the deepest of blacks with a nearly infinite contrast ratio.

Located in Hall 11 of Golden Screen Cinemas Mid Valley Megamall, the hall offers plush eco-leather seats with the first movie to be shown being Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom. Tickets will only be an additional RM1.50 on top of the usual ticket price.

In our initial experience we have to say that the Onyx Cinema LED screen looks great even with the lights on. While there's no Dolby, the sound is powerful enough to feel through your feet. Honestly, I can't help but wonder how it might perform with a 4K or 2K gaming tournament.

Check out the Samsung site for more details on the Samsung Onyx Cinema LED screen or see www.gsc.com.my and GSC's Facebook page for more movies.


ASUS ZenFone 5 ZE620KL with 6.2-inch full view display + notch spotted live? [Update] tech specs too

The ASUS ZenFone 5 ZE620KL was apparently spotted in the wild showing off a full view display and a notch in the top middle for the front camera. Coming courtesy of @bgssilva the live shot is further supported by leaked press renders from @rquandt of the upcoming ZenFone 5 series. It is still unclear if only the Zenfone 5 ZE620KL is the only ZenFone with the iPhone X like notched display as the previously leaked ZenFone 5 Lite did not have any notch but the schematics below do show a USB Type C port and 3.5mm audio jack.

However, this notched full view display could be coming for the ZenFone 5 Pro (which has traditionally been released as the higher-end version of the ZenFone series) while the rest of the ZenFone 5 Max series will utilize the usual full view display as seen on the ZenFone 5 Lite.

As usual with such leaks, do take them with a hint of salt but @rquandt has a fairly good track record when it comes to accurate leaks. No Malaysia release dates or price details but stay tuned to TechNave.com and we'll keep you updated as the upcoming ZenFone 5 reveal is expected to come at MWC 2018.

[Update] A recent AnTuTu benchmark for the ASUS Z01R also appeared recently which could be for either the ASUS ZenFone 5 or ASUS ZenFone 5 Pro with the following tech specs:

This rather strange pixel resolution could be due to the aforementioned notch and 6.2-inch display. What is clear is that it is likely a FHD+ variation while the Snapdragon 845 processor points towards it being the ZenFone 5 Pro more than the usually midrange ZenFone 5 base model.


Malaysia's first-ever Apple Store may open soon based on the tech giant's recent job listings

Apple has reportedly begun hiring employees for its first-ever Apple Store in Malaysia. This is according to reliable tipster Mark Gurman who said that the tech giant was spotted publishing job listing on its websites for locations in our country.

Writing in his Bloomberg column, Gurman revealed that among the job openings are store managers, technical specialists and support staff, salespeople for businesses, and operations experts. Furthermore, the listings indicate that the positions will be for Apple’s own retail stores and not third-party resellers that have long operated in our country.

Apple already has official stores in Southeast Asia, including in our neighbouring countries Thailand and Singapore. It is unclear where the first Malaysian Apple Store will be, but it will likely be located in Kuala Lumpur.

So, what do you guys think of this development? Are you excited for Malaysia to have its own Apple Store(s)? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more trending tech news.


Malaysia's first flying "car" could take off in October

So remember that earlier this year, Entrepreneur Development Minister Datuk Seri Redzuan Md Yusof said that Malaysia will be showcasing a "flying car" this year? Well, here's a new update - the man himself is expecting to see the first demonstration in October 2019, as he said that the drone prototype should be completed by then.

Although there is no official name for it yet for the sake of surprise, he commented that he has seen the prototype and closely monitoring the progress. The airframe for it is almost done and they are just slapping on the body kit to complete the look for the two-seater vehicle. And to add on to that, he also mentioned that the government is in the midst of drafting regulations for the vehicle.

"We must be ready in terms of regulations, because when they ask for permission to fly, do we allow that? We have to be prepared for that. If we are not ready (by September), we have to come up with some sort of allowance on certain period and space for them to fly," he said.

On top of that, the government is also discussing with various private parties on facilitating the infrastructure for the vehicle. It's worth noting that they aren't planning to spend the public's money on that, so that's why they are prioritising the rules and regulations first.

So what do you folks think? Do we really need a "flying car"? Stay tuned for more local tech news as we keep a close eye on this at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's first foldable 5G smartphone HUAWEI Mate Xs is arriving on 20th March 2020!

The long wait is coming to an end as the Huawei Mate Xs 5G foldable smartphone will be coming into Malaysia on 20 March 2020! In case you missed it, the aforementioned smartphone was officially unveiled yesterday in Barcelona which is priced at 2499 euros (~RM11332).The Huawei Mate Xs 5G will be the 1st 5G foldable phone coming into Malaysia. While there are still a few more weeks left, our local celebrities such as Datuk Rosyam Nor, Datuk Aznil Nawawi, Jeff Chin, and others have got the opportunity to experience it. So let’s see what’s their first impression of the foldable smartphone.

In terms of the tech specs, It comes with an 8-inch Foldable FullView Display which is packed with the HiSilicon Kirin 990 5G SoC chipset, 8GB RAM, 512GB of internal storage as well as a 4500mAh battery that supports 55W of fast charging. Do check more details of the aforementioned smartphone here.Either way, there is no official information regarding the Malaysia pricing of the Huawei Mate Xs. Would you be interested in getting Huawei’s new foldable smartphone? Let us know on our Facebook page and for more updates like this, stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia’s first official foldable smartphone is coming soon as the Samsung Galaxy Fold is expected to go on pre-order this month

Samsung Malaysia has announced that they will be taking in pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy Fold smartphone, which is expected to start around October of 2019. Not only that, chances are there will be a launch event for the aforementioned smartphone in the same month as well.

To give a little context in regards to the Samsung Galaxy Fold, which was relaunched due to hardware issues, is the first device by Samsung to come with a 4.6-inch display when folded. When it is unfolded, the device will have another 7.4-inch Infinity Flex Display inside which can be used while in tablet mode.

Furthermore, it comes with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset, 12GB of RAM + 512GB of internal storage as well as eUFS 3.0 support. In addition to that, it is also equipped with a 16MP Super Wide Angle + 12MP Wide Angle + 12MP Telephoto at the back, 10MP + 8MP depth sensor while in tablet mode, and a single 10MP front-facing selfie camera at the front.

No exact Malaysia release dates or pricing details yet, but our sources say that it will likely come on pre-order very soon (probably in limited amounts and in Cosmos Black and Space Silver). Since it was recently revealed in Singapore for S$3088 (~RM9346) and South Korea for 2.398 million won (~RM8386) we expect the Malaysia price to be below RM10K.

Despite the nearly RM10K price in Singapore, it was sold out on the first day of launch and there’s definitely a lot of rich Malaysians out there. Would you get the Samsung Galaxy Fold if it comes out this October 2019? Let us know and stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia's first volunteering app, MySukarela is now available for volunteers, hosts & donors

If you have always wanted to volunteer and help out in any way you can, you can do so now with a new MySukarela app. Launched by the Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MCRS), this first of a kind platform is for volunteers, hosts and donors to participate in various NGO activities efficiently.

With support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), MRCS’ partner in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and The Asia Foundation, the MySukarela app provides Malaysians with a more seamless way to continue to do good during and beyond the pandemic. Through the app, interested volunteers may offer their assistance to organisations in need of voluntary services based on their preferred location and time.

MRCS is also collaborating with Yayasan Malaysian Humanitarian Coordination & Action Hub (Yayasan MATCH), to encourage NGO’s to come onboard on the MySukarela platform and provide volunteers with more variations of humanitarian work. To further encourage and supplement the need for volunteers, MRCS also signed an MOU with AirAsia Academy to enable volunteers to access training and competency development before their deployment in any humanitarian mission.

The launching event yesterday (5th of December) and was officiated by Datuk Dr Hishamshah Bin Mohd Ibrahim, Deputy Director-General of Health (Research and Technical Support) Ministry of Health, Datuk Wira Dr Hj Bahari bin Datuk Abu Mansor, National Deputy Chairperson, of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society and Tuan Haji Hakim bin Hj. Hamzah, MRCS Secretary-General.

Available on both iOS and Android phones, Malaysians can register the MySukarela app for free as volunteers by matching them with the needs of NGOs, corporations and any events around the nation. Stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's frontline police officers will be using a new body camera soon this year

Today, the police forces from the Unit Rondaan Bermotosikal (URB, aka the Motorcycle Patrol Unit) and the Unit Kereta Peronda (MPV, Patrol Car Unit) just became the first front line officers to use a brand new body camera. The device will be attached to their shoulders when they go out to perform their duties.

According to Utusan Malaysia, the Director of the Logistics and Technology Department (JLog), CP Dato 'Seri Sahabudin Abd. Manan told the media that the device usage application has already been approved by the technical committee for the procurement of body cameras. That said, the quantity of body cameras obtained depends on the tender process that will be handled by the Home Ministry (KDN).

Additionally, the use of body cameras is implemented to deal with corruption and corrupt activities among the uniformed forces, especially frontline personnel such as at the immigration section. Since last May, the PDRM has been seeking the KDN to quickly approve the tender so that the devices can be used by the frontliners in their respective fields.

Currently, the tech specs of the body camera are unknown so we don't know how much is the megapixel nor the memory storage for keeping the recordings. But what do you think of this device? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia's largest intercollegiate eSports tournament launches today by Taiwan Excellence

The Taiwan Excellence Intercollege Battleground is open to 10 universities in Malaysia which are KDU, INTI, HELP, Taylor's, TARC, MMU, UMS, UCSI, First City and Southern. eSports teams from these universities will be fighting it out for a chance to win a share of the total prize pool of RM130000 as well as earn the title of Champion of Champions.

The 3 main eSport titles which are Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and League of Legends will be played throughout the event. There will be 10 qualifying rounds that will take place in 10 different universities and winners of the qualifying rounds will proceed to the grand finals for a shot to be crowned the Champion of Taiwan Excellence Intercollege Battleground.

With major sponsors such as Acer Predator, Asus ROG, and MSI as well as other partners. Taiwan Excellence aims to connect the rapidly growing gaming communities in colleges and universities as well as provide the best in gaming and tournament experience. For more information and updates, stay tuned to TechNave.com.

Short video coverage of the Taiwan Excellence Intercollege Battleground


Malaysia's millennials and senior citizens are watching more YouTube than TV

Google Malaysia and TNS Research recently got together to reveal the answer to the question, "Who watches YouTube in Malaysia?". Surprisingly enough, research reveals that it isn't just all our kids watching chocolate surprise egg videos. Instead, the answer turns out to be the millenials of Malaysia and many of our senior citizens (about half to be exact). In fact this number is set to grow as high speed mobile Internet and mobile devices become more accessible (cheaper).

For those not in the know Millennials are those born from 1980 and 2000 or afterwards. Content creators are putting up more relevant videos so there is now more to watch. Big brands are also getting on YouTube more often than not but while we'd certainly recommend anyone not on YouTube yet to do so, panellists revealed that developing content for YouTube with a TV mindset could be a big mistake. Instead telling a great story that resonates with viewers is the way to go.


Malaysia's most watched video genres on Youtube

Based on a recent survey conducted by Google, about 4 in 5 users go on Youtube to find any kind of videos be it on their mobile phones, tablet or even on their own computers. That being said, there are certain genres that are watched more than others such as Music, Comedy, Lifestyle, and How-to videos. Not only that, depending on the stages of life viewers are more likely to gravitate towards certain contents as well!

For example, Young professionals prefer to watch music videos, comedy and lifestyle videos which reflects upon their usual need for entertainment as well as ways to improve their current lifestyle. However, as they slowly progress towards the later stages of life, Youtube slowly becomes a tool for self-learning and education for young couples and parents alike, frequently searching for tips and tricks such as cooking guides, DIY videos, documentaries and tutorials. But one things for sure, everyone loves a good comedy sketch, which is why the comedy genre of videos is always at the top of the list. For more news like these, stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia's students could soon be using Android tablets instead of heavy textbooks

On top of the acceleration of moving to tech, the recent Malaysia Budget 2020 revealed an increased RM64.1 billion for education and with the Ministry of Education adopting Google Classroom for free, we were wondering, where might this extra money get spent? Well, a recent submission by a Mr Anonymous might have revealed that our students may not only be trading their heavy bags of textbooks for ebooks soon but also an Android tablet for school.

The submission showed that Malaysian school kids would not only be getting access to Google Classroom but also their own Gmail based email, Google Keep based notes and Google Drive storage. This would be done through an already publicly available Android app called Digital Learning - Murid (with a Digital Learning - Guru app for teachers coming soon) or through an online portal.

Screenshots of the app indicate that it is likely a frontend of sorts offering links to the aforementioned Google Classroom. Fun games and apps can be seen in Aplikasi (with what appears to be a curated YouTube) and textbooks in the form of ebooks which are available from Buku Teks Digital. Your kids or students can also borrow ebooks from the library in Pusat Sumber, send and receive emails and take notes.

While we expect that students could also just log-in for classes and the stuff mentioned above using the computers in their respective computer labs, doing so would not be helpful for students at home. Also, cycling hundreds of students through the 10 to 20 computers in these labs at a time doesn’t sound very effective.

We also think that schools would want to curb any sort of communications with friends or social media, something that a WiFi only tablet would be more suitable for than say an Android phone. While an iOS version of the app is also coming, currently the app is only available on Android, so it makes sense that an Android tablet could be the first to be used by our school going kids in the near future.

Considering the list of ebook textbooks available, both primary (from Standard 1 to Standard 6) and secondary school (from tingkatan 1 to tingkatan 5) students will be getting access. A quick look at the books available for tingkatan 1 reveals that there’s a whole bunch of interesting stuff including colourful books on learning Japanese alongside the usual Mathematics (which was in English, not Malay).

Since these are all readily available, we expect that as soon as the Ministry of Education gets the go ahead, they’ll implement it. Perhaps they are waiting for some bill to be passed. Regardless, everything looks almost ready to go ahead with, so we wouldn’t be surprised if students were already being assigned IDs.

All of this digitalization of Malaysia’s elementary and secondary education is really exciting! Anyone who has gone to Malaysia’s public school will remember the heavy bags full of textbooks they had to lug to and fro, so it would be great for our students to be able to bring just a single tablet for all their education needs. However, it also raises a number of concerns, namely what would happen if people stole these tablets? Or they “somehow” went missing?

It would be great if there could be some way of encrypting these tablets or making the hardware useless even if the tablets were scrapped for spare parts, but that seems a bit too high-end for a school tablet (or maybe it could be a federal offense to trade in such tablets?). The chances for misuse or abuse are also high, but if it means that our students could get a faster entryway into IT we think the risk is worth taking.

Just, the implementation should be well thought out, especially if the extra billions of ringgit are being spent on these devices. We think it wouldn’t be a bad thing if more well-off parents could contribute towards an Android tablet for their own students, so that everyone gets a device of their own to use.

Being mobile hardware folk, we’re also concerned with the level of quality for these Android tablets or devices for students. Sure, you can get a cheap Android tablet for below RM100 these days, but not only are the displays for those tablets crappy enough that they may damage our students eyes but speaking from experience, they don’t last that long (most students aren’t known for being very careful).

So far, the only reasonable Android tablets we’d even consider for our students could be those from Samsung, Huawei, Honor, Acer, Xiaomi or Lenovo (ASUS have stopped bringing in tablets and Dell is a bit too enterprise). Or at least one of the more well-known brands to ensure better build quality. On the other hand, this could be a great CSR opportunity, especially if said devices showcase the level of quality for these brands as well (if they don’t, it could reflect very badly instead).

Reading through the comments for the app, we found that there may also be device compatibility issues and our source said that another device running Android 8 wasn’t able to find it at all. A little fine tuning with the app should solve this issue though. However, do bear in mind that these aren't officially confirmed just yet, so do take it with a pinch of salt.

What do you think? Doesn’t this sound super exciting for our Malaysian kids and students? How would you suggest Malaysia’s Ministry of Education implement it? Let us know on our Facebook page and stay tuned to TechNave.com and thanks again Mr Anonymous!


ASUS ZenFone 5 confirmed coming to Malaysia with ZenFone Max Pro M1 on 31 May 2018

After the recent ASUS ZenFone Max Pro M1  preview, it was also revealed that it would be coming to Malaysia on 31 May 2018 along with the ASUS ZenFone 5 (ZE620KL). Both will be launched in Malaysia on the same date with both being made available at the same time.

No exact Malaysia pricing yet but we expect the ZenFone Max Pro M1 to be below RM800 while the ZenFone 5 will probably go for below RM1.5K despite both using the same midrange Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor. Thanks to the 5000 mAh battery on the ZenFone Max Pro M1, this would mean you'd get a capable gaming smartphone for well below RM1000.

The ZenFone 5 on the other hand is expected to offer better camera features which include a 12MP (Sony IMX363 sensor, 4K video recording, slow motion, super-resolution, time-lapse) + 8MP (120-degree wide angle) dual rear camera. This should result in clearer pictures in the dark due to the better stabilization.

In related news, the Snapdragon 845 powered ASUS ZenFone 5z could be coming to Malaysia sometime in June while the rumoured Republic of Gamers or ROG gaming smartphone is expected to get launched at Computex. No worries, we'll be there to confirm it, so stay tuned to TechNave.com but our sources go on to say that this ROG gaming smartphone could well be coming to Malaysia as well.


Malaysia’s telcos score in Opensignal’s Global Mobile Awards for 4G Availability… but we expected that already

Opensignal have recently announced the results for their Global Mobile Network Experience Awards 2022 and Netherlands is the best place for video, South Korea is the best for gaming and has fastest average download speeds (~143 Mbps) while Denmark wins it for uploading (~20.9 Mbps). Malaysia’s telcos on the other hand managed to score with improvements in 4G Availability - Global Rising Stars but after Malaysia shut down 3G mobile connectivity last year, this isn’t entirely unexpected.

U Mobile scored the highest percentage increase for Malaysia’s telcos at 6.7%, followed by Unifi at 5.8% and Digi and Maxis at 4.6%. To put this into context, none of them are in the top 10, but to be able to achieve this in current pandemic times is still an impressive achievement. Surprisingly, Maxis was the only Malaysia telco that managed to place in Opensignal’s Upload Speed Experience awards at 30.3%.

According to Opensignal, 5G remains rather slow on the uptake even for the main winners of the 2022 awards but Malaysia’s DNB recently announced that the average 5G speed in Malaysia could be 624 Mbps. While YES and Unifi have announced 5G coverage for KL, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya, speeds have not been stable due to the NSA (Non-Standalone) nature of the network.

We have noticed 4G performance improving though, sometimes getting 100Mbps speeds and higher but only in certain areas. We think that while it wouldn’t hurt to pick up a 5G smartphone or device if you have the money for it, 4G only smartphone users would still get pretty fast speeds at this moment in time.

You can check out Opensignal’s full report at their site but what do you think about it? Malaysia seems to be starting on the right path but it’s 2022 already and we were sort of expecting more 5G connectivity by now. Let us know what you think on our Facebook page and stay tuned to TechNave.com


Malaysia secures RM2 billion investment from TF AMD, deal creates over 2,000 high value jobs

Senior Minister of International Trade and Industry (MITI), Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali yesterday announced that Malaysia has secured nearly RM2 billion investment from semiconductor company TF AMD Microelectronics (Penang) Sdn Bhd. This is following the handover of Malaysian Investment Authority’s (MIDA) approval letter to the company.

The investment, which is part of the company’s expansion plan, is poised to create over 2000 high value jobs for Malaysians. These entail employees predominantly from the science and technical background as well as develop local vendors within the next five years in the areas of Industry 4.0, automation and engineering services.

As reported by Bernama, MIDA CEO Arham Abdul Rahman handed over the approval letter to TF AMD executive vice-president, CFO and treasurer Datuk Devincer Kumar in Washington DC yesterday. The handover ceremony was witnessed by the MITI Minister as well as Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Azmin said that TF AMD has been investing in Malaysia for over 50 years, with its remarkable growth journey expanding to different parts of the semiconductor value chain. To date, the company has invested over RM900 million in Malaysia, with the latest investment makes the total number closer to RM3 billion.

The MITI Minister lauded the agreement, stressing that it is in line with Malaysia's direction towards fostering innovation and high-impact value add for local businesses. Furthermore, it compliments Malaysia’s National Investment Aspirations, whereby the government istargeting more high-tech, capital intensive and knowledge-driven projects into the country.

What do you guys think of this investment by TF AMD? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for the latest tech news in Malaysia and beyond!


Malaysia senior citizens can enjoy a RM62 rebate on OPPO devices

Here's a promotional sale in conjunction with our nation's upcoming 62nd Merdeka birthday, OPPO Malaysia wants to offer all senior citizens aged 62 years old and above to have a RM62 rebate at any OPPO Concept Store! How does it work? Well, read on below.

Starting today onwards until 1 September 2019, the RM62 rebate is eligible at 130 OPPO Concept Store outlets and each customer is only allowed to purchase just one smartphone. Just so you know, this will be a first come first serve basis as there is only a total of 6200 units viable during this promotion period and make sure you bring your IC as well for verification.

We weren't told what OPPO phones are selected for the promotion, but I guess you will have to take a trip to any of the outlets to ask. To see the full participating outlet list, you can visit here and you should also read the Terms and Conditions (just in case).

There will be more deals and promotions this month so stay tuned for more OPPO news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia sits at no.3 in South East Asia region according to the Worldwide Broadband Speed League

Yup, you read that right. Malaysia is seated at the number 3 spot in the South East Asia (SEA) region which is not bad. But in terms of globally in the Worldwide Broadband Speed League, we are ranked 63 out of 189 countries with an average download speed of 6.69Mbps. Hey, at least we are faster than our neighbours Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam (lol).

Although that's the case, the comparison with Thailand who is at second place in SEA (rank 29 globally) has a much better average download speed of 16.85Mbps, then, of course, Singapore is the world's champion achieving a 55.13Mbps putting every country to shame. With that speed, it could download a 7.5GB HD movie in just 18 minutes.

This global broadband speed comparison was done by the Cable.co.uk from the United Kingdom (sitting at 31st) and was regulated by SamKnows. And here's the funny thing, according to SamKnows, UK's average download speed was 36.2Mbps last year which we find it ironic. Anyway, all the analysed data collected was also done by a research group called M-Lab, which is a partnership between New America's Open Technology Institute, Google Open Source Research and Princeton University's PlanetLab. So I guess you could say this is quite a "legit" test with more than 63 million speed test done for 12 months.

To see the full list of the worldwide league table, you can head over here to check it out.


Malaysia to Get Both Samsung Galaxy S4 Models

While many know that the Samsung Galaxy S4 is coming, few know that it is coming in two flavours. Like what some of our readers at the Mobile Mega Mall Facebook page have noted, the I9500 is powered by the 8-core Exynos processor but doesn't have any LTE capabilities while the I9505 model will be powered by the 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 processor and have LTE capabilities.Thankfully, Malaysia is one of the few countries that will be getting both models (which may lead to an I9500 vs I9505 comparison later on ;) ). The full list is below but not completely accurate (as in some countries might be missing).North America


Malaysia to install 10,000 EV charging points by 2025

Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad has revealed that our country is aiming to install 10,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging points by 2025. This initiative will be made under the Low Carbon Mobility Blueprint.

Currently, Malaysia only has 900 public EV charging points which cater to over 10,000 registered EVs nationwide. According to Bernama, Nik Nazmi said that the key challenge was to make EV practical and irresistible to all levels of society but market forces alone might not be sufficient.

Hence, the minister asserted that there should be appropriate incentives for both consumers and producers to be introduced so as to speed up the transition to or adoption of EVs. Nik Nazmi further elaborated that it would be a disservice to our country if we neglect our potential in EV while neighbouring countries such as Indonesia are racing to excel in the industry. Moreover, Malaysia is already a competitive auto industry player, therefore a transition to EV would only be natural.

So, what do you guys think of the statement by the Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Minister? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below and stay tuned to TechNave for more trending tech news.


Malaysia to shift into RMCO phase from 10 June to 31 August 2020

For those who are itching to go out more and maybe get a haircut, it looks like we're finally going to be able to do so. Our Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has announced the Recovery Movement Control Order (RMCO) phase, which will see several more restrictions lifted beginning on 10 June 2020 to 31 August 2020.

In his live address today, he confirmed the restrictions that are going to be lifted soon. First, interstate movement and domestic travels are now allowed, unless the location you live in or want to travel to has been placed under the Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO). Businesses that have been given the green light to reopen during RMCO include hair salons, open markets, food courts, and more. Educational institutions and certain industries like the film industry will be allowed to reopen in stages, but with more stringent SOPs to follow.

During the live address today, our Prime Minister confirmed that this phase is part of our country's exit strategy for the MCO. The next phase that will begin once RMCO ends on 31 August 2020 is expected to be the normalisation phase. As the term suggests, it's when we can hope for everything to go back to as close to normal as possible.

The details and various SOPs will probably take some time to be released, but it's good to know that life in Malaysia is gradually heading back to normalcy. With that said, what are your thoughts on the announcement today? Let us know on our Facebook page and stay tuned to TechNave.com for more further updates.


Malaysia under movement restrictions from 18 to 31 March 2020 due to COVID-19, essential services to remain open

Based on an official statement by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, Malaysia will go under movement controls or restrictions from 18 March until 31 March 2020 due to COVID-19. This is largely due to the rise in numbers of cases in the past few weeks globally and the recent mass gatherings locally.

First of all, no mass gatherings are allowed including those for religious, sports, social or cultural events. This means all places of worship and business will be closed except supermarkets, public markets and convenience stores. For Muslims in particular, Friday prayers will be postponed during this period.

Secondly, no one is coming in or going out of the country. Tourists coming in will be blocked while Malaysians are not allowed to leave, so better make your cancellations while you can. Locals who just came back from their trip abroad must self quarantine for 14 days and get themselves medically checked out.

The next restriction will definitely raise a cheer amongst school kids and a sigh of relief from some parents as all kindergartens, schools (both government and private) and educational institutions will be closed. No news whether this means extended school holidays or if online classes will be implemented, but the facilities are already available.

While all government and private offices are to be closed, ALL essential services will still be running. This includes water, electricity, energy, telecommunications, finances, banking, health, pharmacies, fire department, jails, ports, airports, security, defense, cleanliness, retail and food supply. So, don't go out and panic buy or worse, fight over toilet paper (everyone knows water spray or a cebok is better anyway, lol).

If you want to find out more information, you can call 03 88882010. With all that said, what are your thoughts on Malaysia going under movement restrictions? We believe we're ready to handle it as mature and thinking Malaysians, but do let us know on our Facebook page and for more updates like this, stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia will be getting the Samsung Galaxy A71 and A51 very soon

The Samsung Galaxy A71 and the A51 has been spotted on SIRIM, confirming the fact that both these smartphones will officially be available in Malaysia very soon. While not much is confirmed in terms of the tech specs and official Malaysia release date, it seems that both the A51 and A71 will come equipped with a 6GB RAM + 128GB ROM and it might come with up to four colours to choose from.

Furthermore, the A51 is expected to come with Samsung’s very own Exynos 9611 chipset, 6.5-inch display and a 48MP main camera. The A71, on the other hand, has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 730 chipset instead, a larger 6.7-inch display, as well as a 64MP main camera.

With all that said, would you be willing to get any of the two smartphones mentioned above? Let us know on our Facebook page and for more updates like this, stay tuned to TechNave.com.


Malaysia will be part of the limited regional launch for Apex Legends Mobile this year

It's been a while since we last heard of Apex Legends Mobile. Back in August 2021, the pre-registration was available on the Google Play Store. Although no official launching date is announced yet, Malaysians may actually now have a chance to participate in the limited regional launch.

According to EA, there will be an Apex Legend Mobile limited regional launch starting next week until June 2022. The limited launch will take place in 10 selected countries namely Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Peru, Argentina and Colombia. As a limited launch, players from the countries above can download the mobile game from the Google Play and Apple App Store for testing.

If you are planning to download the game app on your Android phone, do note that only Samsung, Xiaomi, Huawei, OPPO, vivo, Motorola and Lenovo phones are eligible. Moreover, most of the original Apex Legends characters are in the game app which includes Bloodhound, Gibraltar, Lifeline, Wraith, Bangalore, Octane, Mirage, Pathfinder and Caustic.

EA will add in more character as time goes by. Are you excited and interested to play Apex Legends Mobile? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


21 Studio Ghibli movies will be on Netflix from 1 February 2020 onwards

Netflix has officially announced that there will be twenty-one Studio Ghibli movies coming to the streaming platform on 1 February, 1 March and 1 April 2020. These movies include several award-winning titles such as Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, My Neighbour Totoro and more.

Furthermore, all the movies will include subtitles from up to 28 languages and dubbed up to 20 languages to cater to fans from regions such as Asia Pacific, Europe, Middle East, Africa, as well as Latin America. Unfortunately, you will not be able to view any of the Studio Ghibli movies on Netflix, if you happen to reside in countries such as US, Canada, and Japan due to licensing issues.

With all that said, would you be interested in watching any of the Studio Ghibli movies on Netflix? Let us know on our Facebook page and for more updates like this stay tuned to TechNave.com.


ASUS ZenFone 5 early AnTuTu scores and other benchmarks

Testing out the ASUS ZenFone 5 engineering sample, we found that the Intel powered smartphone offers better than average performance. On AnTuTu alone we managed to get a score of 23120, placing the ZenFone 5 in the upper range of midrange devices. For a reference point, the HTC One (M7) scores around 24000 and above on the same AnTuTu benchmark. We also ran 3DMark's Ice Storm Unlimited for a similarly better than average 7186 score. Check out the benchmarks for yourself below:


Malaysia will be the first country to launch the HONOR 50 series globally

This morning, HONOR Malaysia just officially confirmed that the HONOR 50 series is coming to Malaysia on 18 October 2021. This actually makes Malaysia the first overseas country outside of China to have the launching, proving that we are still an important market to the company.

Obviously, the official price tag wasn't announced but we can confirm that the HONOR 50 series will be equipped with Google Mobile Services so no worries about not having the apps you want. Moreover, it's also the first HONOR device to feature a Qualcomm chipset which is the Snapdragon 778. In total, there are three HONOR 50 devices - HONOR 50 SE 5G, HONOR 50 5G and HONOR 50 Pro 5G.

In terms of tech specs, the HONOR 50 series feature up to a 6.72-inch display, a 120Hz refresh rate, up to 4300mAh battery pack with 100W fast charging technology, a 108MP quad rear camera setup, 32MP front camera, and many more. The starting price could be ~RM1544 should HONOR Malaysia import in the SE variant. We shall wait and see.

The live stream event will begin at 8 PM on the aforementioned date. Are you excited about HONOR Malaysia's return? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia will be the first country to launch the realme narzo 30 on 18 May 2021

Today, realme Malaysia just announced that they will launch another new narzo smartphone soon and get this - Malaysia will be the first country to launch the narzo 30 globally! With this, realme Malaysia will livestream the launch on 18 May 2021 at 12 PM.

While not much information is given (as usual), we do know that the narzo 30 will feature a MediaTek Helio G95 gaming chipset. Previously, leaked documents also suggest the phone would come with 6GB of RAM and that's pretty much it. As the vanilla variant, it could have some similar features with the narzo 30 Pro, such as a 6.5-inch display and a 5000mAh battery pack.

Powered by Helio G95 Gaming Processor, this powerful gaming-oriented processor on #narzo30 is capable of handling any...

Well, we are not that far off from the launching day. Until then, do stay tuned for the official narzo 30 livestream event at TechNave.com.


"Malaysia will continue to support Huawei" - Dr Mahathir

Regarding the trade war between the USA and China, our Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad has made several comments about the West and Huawei at the 25th International Conference on The Future of Asia (Nikkei Conference). It was a rather long session but overall, Dr Mahathir stated that Malaysia will still use technology from Huawei "as much as possible."

This took place in Tokyo where our PM was on a three-day working visit, after making the statement on using their technology, he added that while there may be a chance of spying from China, he wasn't that concerned because we (Malaysia) are an open book and there's nothing much to spy in the first place. Aside from that, he also urged the USA to make peace with China, as "When two elephants fight, we see that it is the grass that gets trampled". Here are the rest of the interesting transcripts you can read below:

“Initially they copied products from the West, then they produced better products and their research enables them to produce even better products...in the telephone field, for example, Korea, Japan and China spent much more money on research and development than probably Europe and the US,"

"By investing more, the East has improved the products and the world must accept that new reality,"

"But if you want to have a situation where you are always ahead and when you are not ahead I will ban you and send warships to your country, that is not a competition, that is threatening people and that is not the approach to use,"

“As much as (before) we expected everything from the West, now it is coming from the East,”

“Many US companies are operating in China, Malaysia and other countries. They basically, produce the components and parts that go into the products of the US and because of that, the US products become competitive in the world,"

“But if all these parts producing companies are located in the US, the cost will be prohibitive and it will not be able to compete with the products of Eastern companies,”

“We pushed out all the products of the west, including motorcars. Japan was able to compete with the West because of their work ethics and lower wages. But if the US wants to do everything in the US, the cost will be prohibitive and their products will not be competitive,"

“However, there are certain areas that the US will excel in. We know that they build fantastic airplanes, for example, their engineering capabilities and skills are very high,”

If you would like to hear out his 48-minute speech, you can watch the video produced by Nikkei Asian on YouTube. Stay tuned for more tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysia will have the first 5G Cybersecurity Testing Laboratory in Southeast Asia

With 5G connectivity underway for Malaysia by the end of 2021 (according to our PM), the Malaysian Government has also announced that they will be launching the first 5G Cyber Security Testing Laboratory. Malaysia will be the first in the Southeast Asia country to do so and it will be a joint effort with CyberSecurity Malaysia (CSM), Huawei Malaysia and Celcom.

From a virtual speech at a forum hosted by Huawei during the MWC 2021, the Communication and Multimedia Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah also said the testing laboratory will consist of 5G radio access networks, Edge networks as well as a cloud application. Plus, it will also conduct testing cases including the safety of the Internet of Things (IoT), telecommunications security and the readiness in responding to 5G related cyber-attacks.

On top of that, Prime Minister Muhyiddin is also said to be chairing a new National Digital Economy Council and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). With that, matters involving the 5G internet, connectivity, data, capacity development, e-commerce and cybersecurity will be monitored and handled by the government.

But what do you think, folks? Will 5G be able to arrive by the end of 2021? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysian Armed Forces confirm cyber attack on official portal

When it comes to hackers, many of them dare to attack any organisation. The only question is whether there's enough challenge or value in the attempt. And it seemed that some hacker believed there to be value in hacking into the Malaysian Armed Forces' (ATM) networks.

According to Astro Awani, Tan Sri Datuk Seri Affendi Buang (ATM Commander) announced that an attack was launched at the ATM's official portal. This was confirmed by the Defense Cyber and Electromagnetic Division (BSEP) and Cyber Defense Operations Center (CDOC). Fortunately, the attack was blocked by the two organisations by using data traffic segregation to make it hard for the attacker to find the actual location of the targeted data.

In a statement earlier today, the Commander assured the public that the public attack failed to affect the actual portal. All it managed to do was access certain segments that have been isolated from the armed forces' network.　It was also mentioned that there has been an ongoing series of cyber attacks on networks belonging to Malaysia's Ministry of Defense and the ATM.

We always think that cyber-attacks will only stuff of movies or the targets would be major countries, but this should serve as a reminder for everyone. Having said that, does your company have any cybersecurity measures? Let us know what kind of software or tools you personally use to safeguard your data, and stay tuned to TechNave for more news like this.


Malaysian Bank Reveals Samsung Galaxy S4 mini and Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 Prices

In a posting for their credit card promotions, Hong Leong Bank Malaysia had the Samsung Galaxy S4 mini and Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 listed at discounted prices. What was more interesting was that it also listed the retail price for both, with the Samsung Galaxy S4 mini going for RM1499 while the Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 went for a retail price of RM1099. You can check out the Hong Leong Bank Malaysia promotion here for yourself but it seems unlikely that this reveal may cause a change in prices.


Malaysian Canon professionals getting more with enhanced CPS Program

The Canon Professional Services (CPS) program provides after-sales support to help Canon users to maintain their cameras and other related equipment. While the membership is free for Malaysians who use Canon professional cameras and equipment it provides exclusive benefits that include discounts on servicing, priority repair services and back-up equipment loans during repairs. Recently, the CPS program has gotten an upgrade with new enhanced privileges that include regional membership so that if you're in Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, India or Indonesia, your CPS membership is still valid. CPS membership is currently divided into Gold and Silver levels with different levels of discounts and benefits for each tier. Gold members are those Canon users who are professional photographers but for more information regarding CPS do check out the Canon site.


Malaysian Carousell users earned an average of RM1396 during MCO

When the going gets tough, the tough get going. For Malaysians, that means finding ways to save money through various means. E-commerce sites have played a key role in this area, with Carousell being one of the platforms that saw an increase in transactions during the movement control order (MCO).

According to a new report by the company, Malaysians have been more active when it comes to selling or buying second-hand items on Carousell. Between February to June 2020, Malaysians earned an average of about RM1396 by selling items on the platform. As you can imagine, selling items became necessary for many people, who were either hoping to save up for emergencies or to put food on the table if they lost their source of income.

Mind you, that average amount earned is pretty skewed. The value of over 690000 transactions varied greatly, especially since some of them are allegedly high-value products like cars. Electronics were among those most searched for, as people looked for items that would help them work from home more efficiently. Malaysians were also more active in selling their creations on the platform, with face masks seeing a major increase in demand due to COVID-19.

Some of the stories on Carousell are quite inspiring, so do check them out. But with that said, have you bought or sold anything on Carousell before? What do you think about the platform and what would you like to see improved? Do share your thoughts with us on our Facebook page and stay tuned to TechNave.com for more articles like this.


Malaysian Digital Association appointed new President & Vice President

Today, the Malaysian Digital Association (MDA) has just announced Mr Nicholas Sagau, the Chief Product Officer of REV Media Group and Eileen Ooi Managing Director of PHD Malaysia as the President and Vice-President respectively. This happened at the 11th Annual General Meeting.

At the meeting, Sagau said that he was honoured to be given the opportunity and will cooperate with the MDA to address the pressing challenges of local digital publishers, media agencies and digital agencies through the ongoing pandemic as it significantly impacts businesses. He hopes that together, they can achieve and represent these three digital sectors' agenda to the government. On the other hand, Ms Ooi who represents Omnicom Media Group (M) Sdn Bhd looks forward to collaborating with the new council members to open up even more opportunities, working together and improve the industry.

Ms Eileen Ooi (left) and Mr Nicholas Sagau (right)

The meeting also appointed Aravind Menon, Head of Supply & Product Development of GroupM Malaysia as Secretary and Sophia To, Head Of Strategy & Business Development, SEA of ADV Malaysia Sdn Bhd as Treasurer. The elected council members are 16TWO Communication Labs Sdn. Bhd., Astro Radio Sdn. Bhd., Carat Media Services (M) Sdn. Bhd., Google Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., IPG Mediabrands Sdn. Bhd., Mudah.my Sdn. Bhd., Nuffnang Sdn. Bhd., Rev Social Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. and Star Media Group Berhad.

Malaysian Digital Association (MDA) was established in 2009 and previously under the leadership of Mr Serm Teck Choon, a number of successful projects and activities were organized such as the famous quarterly held “Digital Wednesday” where it offered a networking opportunity for local publishers, media agencies and advertisers with speakers from relevant fields shared insight and knowledge to the industry, the “d Awards” which celebrate and appreciate the best innovative works in developing digital products, designing and execution of digital marketing campaigns.


Malaysian Finance Minister rejected telcos' proposal on DNB equity, intends to stand by 30 June deadline

It's been almost two months since the Malaysian government had offered the telcos (Celcom, Digi, Maxis and U Mobile) an equity stake in Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB). However, it has become clear that the discussions among themselves have not been going well.

According to the MalayMail.com, our Finance Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz has reportedly rejected Digi and U Mobile's proposal on a major control stake. It was reported by Reuters that the telcos are looking to take a 51% controlling stake but failed to go through the approval by the Malaysian government.

The Finance Minister will be meeting Celcom and Maxi next week to discuss the potential agreement. Do keep in mind that if the telcos haven't taken part in DNB's single 5G wholesale network, they will be shut out of it. The government is intending to stick to the 30 June 2022 deadline as well.

To refresh your memory, Tengku Zafrul Aziz said that the government will retain a 30% equity stake in Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), whereas the remaining 70% is being offered to the rest of the local telecommunication companies. Other private equity, both domestic and foreign, are also welcomed to take a piece of the pie.

At the moment, only YTL Communications and Telekom Malaysia have signed up for DNB's 5G network. However, the latter has yet to introduce any 5G package plans whereas YES is already distributing 5G SIM cards that are available in selected areas (Putrajaya, Cyberjaya and Kuala Lumpur).

It will soon be June 2022 and we aren't sure what will happen. Until then, we can only keep watch on their next moves so be sure to stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


ASUS ZenFone 5 preview hands-on

The ASUS ZenFone range of smartphones will be getting a regional launch very soon, but we managed to get our hands on what appears to be an engineering sample of the ASUS ZenFone 5 for a quick hands-on preview. Going for a slim but rounded back look, the ZenFone 5 feels both light and solidly built at the same time. Thanks to the curved backside, the ZenFone 5 fits nicely into the palm of your hand while the smartphone is thin enough to look both sleek and stylish. Thankfully, there isn't any protruding camera lens this time around while the back is matte, and doesn't attract fingerprints or smudges all that much.

The front reveals a shiny metallic spiral bottom cover along with capacitive keys for back, home and recent apps. Overall, the design looks very good for a 5-inch display smartphone supposedly below RM1K. While we don't have specific Malaysia release dates or pricing just yet, we expect the ASUS ZenFone 5 to come to Malaysia soon, or at least within April 2014. Pricing is expected around RM599 which is very good for the tech specs involved. We'll have more articles about the ASUS ZenFone 5 in a bit so stay tuned for more updates. In the meantime, check out the photos below:


Malaysian Honor fans and TechNave battle it out for the Honor 8 Pro

Recently TechNave.com and Honor Malaysia collaborated with Malaysian Honor fans to see how good the Honor 8 Pro actually is in terms of gaming with an Asphalt 8: Airborne tournament. Featuring the titular Honor 8 Pro with its 5.7-inch 2K display and 6GB of RAM, these Honor 8 Pro fans battled it out with the TechNave.com Team for KFC vouchers, Honor Band SS and the grand prize of a brand new Honor 8 Pro smartphone (congratulations Emily!).

Attended by Malaysian Honorarians young and old, participants raced it out on Asphalt 8: Airborne against themselves and the TechNave Team showing off their prowess and the Honor 8 Pro's smooth gaming capabilities. Breakfast and lunch was also served at the Take Eat Easy restaurant in Pearl Shopping Mall for a great fan gathering with TechNave and Honor fans.

If you're interested in the Honor 8 Pro, do check out our full review of the smartphone especially since it is currently RM200 off for Honor Christmas sales. Stay tuned to the next Honor smartphones that could be coming for Malaysia like the Honor 7x and V10 as well.


Malaysian IT spending forecast to reach MYR 71.7 billion in 2017 - Gartner Inc.

So here’s some news, according to Gartner, Inc., they are predicting that Malaysia IT spending will reach to 71.7 billion ringgit this year. Although that’s an increase 8% from 2016, the growth rate has actually went down from the previous quarter’s forecast of 2.7%, where the Worldwide IT is projected to spend $3.5 trillion for 2017, which was a 1.4% increase from 2016 due to the rising USD.

"The strong U.S. dollar has cut $67 billion out of our 2017 IT spending forecast," said John-David Lovelock, research vice president at Gartner. "We expect these currency headwinds to be a drag on earnings of U.S.-based multinational IT vendors through 2017."

"We are seeing a shift in who is buying servers and who they are buying them from," Mr. Lovelock. continued. "Enterprises are moving away from buying servers from the traditional vendors and instead renting server power in the cloud from companies such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft. This has created a reduction in spending on servers which is impacting the overall data center system segment."

The data center system segment is expected to grow 0.3 percent in 2017. While this is up from negative growth in 2016, the segment is experiencing a slowdown in the server market (Source: Gartner in April, 2017)

Mobile phone sales have been the driving force as well as other smaller improvements in sales of printers, PCs and tablets. With the combination of these worldwide spending on devices, it’s projected to grow 1.7% this year reaching $645 billion. This is also thanks to the emerging Asia/Pacific and China, together with iPhone replacements and the 10th anniversary of the iPhone.

Meanwhile, the tablet market has been declining quickly, same goes to the PCs and laptops according to the forecast. Through 2017, business Windows 10 upgrades should provide underlying growth, although increased component costs will see PC prices increase.

In addition, the anticipated change in the U.S.A. policy may result a lot of potential directions for both foreign and domestic regions. The business-friendly policies of the new U.S. administration are expected to have a slightly positive impact on the U.S. implementation service market, as the U.S. government is expected to significantly increase its infrastructure spending during the next few years.

The Gartner Worldwide IT Spending Forecast is the leading indicator of major technology trends across the hardware, software, IT services and telecom markets. For more than a decade, global IT and business executives have been using these highly anticipated quarterly reports to recognize market opportunities and challenges, and base their critical business decisions on proven methodologies rather than guesswork.

Stay tuned for more news at TechNave.com.


Malaysian Medical Association says that check-in with QR code is no longer helpful

While the COVID-19 cases dramatically increased in the past few weeks, the Malaysian Medical Association suggests that the QR code scanning feature that we use to check into places is no longer helpful. The president, Dr Koh Kar Chai, also said that it might be time to consider taking down the feature from the MySejahtera app.

"The use of Mysejahtera allowed contact tracing to be done during the height of the pandemic, a feat that would have been impossible without the MySejahtera app. However, it may have outlived its usefulness as a contact tracing app," said Dr Koh in an official statement. He also added that the app should be put to better use as it has been adopted by a large number of the population across the nation, such as "a personal health record as it is already linked to individual IDs and is non-transferable."

Furthermore, Dr Koh raised concerns regarding data security as well after knowing about the app's ownership on social media. He hoped that "the government will continue being proactive in securing the trust of the people in the app with the hope that it can ultimately be used in the management of health records in the move towards an effective healthcare system for the country."

Do you think that scanning QR codes to check-in at places is still necessary? Leave a comment to let us know your thoughts, and stay tuned to TechNave.com for the latest local tech report.


Malaysian Military deployed to ensure the public compliances of the Movement Control Order at public roads and supermarkets!

Malaysia Military joined the police officers and local authorities to ensure public compliance of the Movement Control Order (MCO) to flatten the infection curve of COVID-19 on 22 March 2020. They will be patrolling and control the entry points at the borders and also at the grocery markets.Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob mentioned the 50,000 Armed Forces includes the military, police, RELA, Malaysian Civil Defense Force and local authorities are deployed to monitor the situation only. This action was taken in compliance with the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 which was not claiming a state of emergency. The military personnel will only help the police in advising the public to adhere to the MCO and also setting up roadblocks, patrols in shopping malls, hospitals, and markets but not in making an arrest.

He also mentioned that there have been reports on congested supermarkets. In order to ensure people adhere to the advice of keeping one meter away from each other,  the police and army will be stationed at supermarkets and be assisted by the local authorities. Aside from that, the circulated news of armored vehicles used at roadblocks was a piece of false news to scare people.With that said, we hope that everyone will adhere to the law and practice social distancing during the MCO and if you do feel like shopping at home, do check out our previous article on the lists of online grocery shopping stores. So stay tuned for more local news updates at TechNave.com!


Malaysian Minister will personally ride the flying vehicle as a demonstration this Thursday

Previously, Malaysia's first "flying car" was supposed to take off in October but nothing seemed to happen. Well, hold on to your seatbelts because according to Entrepreneur Development Minister Redzuan Yusof at the recent Dewan Rakyat meeting, he will personally "be riding the flying vehicle" this coming Thursday (21 November). He also invited the opposition MPs to come and take a look for themselves.

Is this a formal invitation? It's quite late for one if it is. Anyway, Redzuan also stated that he might also be coming in a two-man vehicle which could mean the flying vehicle is only a two-seater (or simply just a car with two seats lol). Anyway, he further stated that he personally invite Mohd Shahar Abdullah (BN-Paya Besar) to come and sit with him (if he wants to) and take pictures. To add on, if there is still time and no other session after 2 PM on that day, Redzuan said the flying test will continue in Subang.

SEMENTARA itu berdasarkan maklumat perisikan, beginilah contoh kereta terbang pertama negara yang dikenali sebagai Vektor, yang akan diterbangkan buat pertama kali oleh Menteri Pembangunan Usahawan, Mohd Redzuan Yusof di Subang pada hari Khamis ini pic.twitter.com/iiNjDmk4Yy

In case you have been missing out this "flying car" story, this is a full initiative by a private Malaysia company. Developed by Aerodyne Group, the flying car is powered by a lithium-ion battery and four motors together. It's said that it can lift 150 - 200kg and hover above the ground at 50m, travelling at the speed of 60km/h from 30 to 90 minutes. It also has a name which is Vector and aside from transporting people, it can also be used for cargo transfer and surveillance as well.

So what do you think of this? Could this be a bluff or it's for real? We can only wait until Thursday should they invite some media to witness the flying car. Until then, stay tuned for more cool tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysian Samsung Galaxy S7 edge and Galaxy S7 users can now upgrade to Android 7.0 Nougat

After some teasing, it appears that Samsung Galaxy S7 edge and Galaxy S7 users here in Malaysia can update their phones to Android 7.0 Nougat. The update requires a 1.318GB download so try to make sure you're on WiFi for the update. Also make sure you have enough space to work with, which is usually double that of the download itself and if you haven't got the automatic update, just check manually (that's what we did).


Malaysian Samsung and Huawei smartphones have faster download speeds than Apple! Who's first?

Opensignal recently revealed another report about the global smartphone mobile network experience and it revealed that for Malaysia, Samsung and Huawei smartphone users tend to get higher download speeds than Apple smartphone users. While Samsung smartphone users got the top spot of an average 16Mbps, Huawei smartphone users were just almost there at 15Mbps. Apple smartphone users were quite close still at 13Mbps.

Globally (across 40 countries) Samsung smartphone users in general experienced faster download speeds of 26.6 Mbps than Apple (25.1 Mbps) and Huawei (24.4 Mbps). Considering that Apple only offers premium priced models while Samsung and Huawei offer models ranging from cheap to premium, these results are very impressive for Samsung and Huawei.

Surprisingly enough, in the US, Samsung smartphone users download speeds beat out Apple smartphone users. Huawei didn’t do as well in the US but this is to be expected due to Huawei’s limited market in the US.

The report also found that the more expensive the smartphone, the better and faster the LTE network speeds, so there are at least some advantages to getting a more premium smartphone. However, for the midrange, Apple smartphone users got slightly faster speeds than midrange Huawei smartphone users while for the lower tier, Huawei smartphone users experienced the fastest speeds. Check out Opensignal for the full report and stay tuned to TechNave.com


Malaysian Team, BeBonobo awarded up to RM60,000 funding by Young Social Entrepreneurs 2016

Six teams are awarded with seed funding of up to RM60,000 each to develop their social business ideas as part of the YSE 2016 programme

During the 2016 Young Social Entrepreneurs (YSE) programme event,, which was organized by the Singapore International Foundation (SIF), BeBonobo, a trio of Malaysia-based youths Kay Kay Ong (27, Malaysian), Jasur Hasanov (26, Azerbaijani) and Madyan Aziz Hasan Malfi (24, Yemeni) have won a spot as one of the six winning teams, receiving seed funding of up to RM60000 and granted to join the YSE alumni of 480 young changemakers representing 23 nationalities.

The YSE 2016 was an eight-month, cross-cultural learning journey that took 15 teams through mentorship, a study visit to Kuala Lumpur (KL) and the Pitching for Change finale event in Singapore on 21 October where 35 young social entrepreneurs presented their business ideas with social impact to a panel of judges. A total of 114 participants joined the workshop in March, but only 15 teams were chosen.

Kay Kay Ong said, “We are excited and honoured to be one of the winning teams at YSE 2016. Beyond the business skills and knowledge from this programme, we have learnt that we are not alone in our journey to build a better world. Through the YSE programme, we work together with like-minded individuals to carve a path towards social change.

Ong Kay Kay from BeBonobo presents the team’s idea during the Pitching for Change finale

I will never forget the network of global changemakers I have met here and I am confident that BeBonobo is able to create positive change by promoting a sharing economy and reduce the amount of waste in society.”

Ong Kay Kay shares more about BeBonobo with visitors of YSE 2016

The Malaysia trio, which host a free online network www.BeBonobo.com is an online platform that connects individuals and businesses in Klang Valley to list unwanted items and search for wanted items for the purpose of discarding, exchanging or obtaining usable but unwanted goods.

Through this purpose, their goal is to contribute a greener and sustainable environment through responsible consumption, while generating revenue. Furthermore, it also allows an option of listing more valuable items as ‘tree’ whereby interested parties would need to pay a small amount of RM6 for an item, with monies going towards the planting of trees.

BeBonobo with Christoffer Erichsen (middle), Co-Founder and CEO of Scope Group and Human Inc. during a Kuala Lumpur study visit

“Millenials of today are catalysts for global change. Many are innovative and driven by a strong sense of social purpose. When they come together, they can be dynamic agents for positive social impact. I believe that the YSE platform celebrates diversity, strengthens international connections, bridges cultural differences and further enables the robust exchange of ideas for a better world,” said Ms Karen Ngui, Lead Judge and SIF Governor.

If you or anyone else is interested to become a social entrepreneur, the YSE 2017 edition have already open their application at www.sif.org.sg/yseapply. It's open to all between the ages of 18 to 30 who have a viable business proposition to address a social issue, and the closing resgistration date is on 11 December 2016.


Malaysian WhatsApp users are getting early access into WhatsApp Communities

WhatsApp has been bringing in a slew of features over the past few months. This includes new privacy features, 2GB file sharing, emoji reaction to messages and more. Finally, WhatsApp Communities has arrived and Malaysia is one of the first countries to get early access.

To refresh your memory, WhatsApp Communities functions similarly to a WhatsApp Group but is more organized allowing members to share information. There are also new tools for admins that allows them to control which Groups can be included in a Community, and the option to start smaller discussion Groups on certain topics.

Aside from that, the admins in the community group can also send announcements to all members through an announcement Group, as well as add members or via an invite link, and of course, remove members. The WhatsApp team also assured that whether it's Groups or Communities, they are protected with end-to-end encryption.

If you are wondering how Communities can serve Malaysians, it can be used for schools, organizations, neighbourhoods, SMEs and many more. All in all, it's meant to make WhatsApp Group chats less cluttered and confusing, and help everyone to stay updated.

The early access is rolling out as we speak but what do you think of this new feature? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.


Malaysian actress Amyra Rosli making an appearance at OPPO Reno 10x Zoom Roadshow on 18 June 2019

Hey gurlll, are you free next Tuesday night? Well, not that I'm asking you out but there's an OPPO Reno 10x Zoom Roadshow happening on that day (18 June 2019) at Sunway Pyramid (Orange Concourse zone) starting from 6.15PM onwards. Celcom and Maxis will also be announcing mobile plans on the day itself as well.

(Updated) On top of that, walk-in customers who are planning to get the latest OPPO Reno series will be receiving freebie bundle on the spot worth up to RM798. As a refresher, those who purchase the Reno 10x Zoom will bring home a Gimbal stabilizer worth RM599, a Chromecast 3 worth RM199 and an extended one-month screen protection warranty, while those who purchase the standard Reno will receive a Battery Casing worth RM119, and a Chromecast 3 worth RM199. Celcom and Maxis are also giving away some freebie, which is the said Gimbal Stabilizer (Reno 10x Zoom) and a Reno bag (Reno).

Under the theme and celebration of art and creativity, OPPO Malaysia has also invited actress Amyra Rosli and other celebrities to the roadshow. Local artists also include Pamela Tan and Eddie Putera to showcase their art there.

The OPPO Reno 10x Zoom features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset, 8GB + 256GB memory capacity, a 6.6-inch Panoramic AMOLED display, a triple camera setup (48MP + 13MP + 8MP) with 10x Hybrid Zoom and the world's first 60x Digital Zoom, a 4065 mAh battery and many more starting from RM3399. If you happen to be nearby, do check it out!


ASUS ZenFone 5 review - Versatile all-rounder 5-inch display Cameraphone for the masses

The ASUS ZenFone range of smartphones are really making a big impact with their mix of well balanced design, great tech specs and features at very affordable pricing. The ASUS ZenFone 5 (A501CG) is the entry-level to midrange version of the smartphone and in our view is probably one of the most versatile smartphones in the Malaysian market. To find out why we think this is the ZenFone that can do everything check out our full review of the ASUS ZenFone 5 (A501CG) below.

Like all of the other ASUS ZenFone smartphones, the ASUS ZenFone 5 shares the same rounded backside and stylish metallic circles design on the bottom front panel as the other ZenFones. However, unlike the ASUS ZenFone 4, the ZenFone 5 is a bit thinner at around 10.33mm with the slimmer edge offering a sleeker look. The back still fits comfortably in the palm of your hand and the back cover has different textures based on it's colour.

The ASUS ZenFone 5 fits well in the palm of your hand

The white back cover feels like ceramic while the black feels rubberised and so forth. The 5-inch display isn't too long or too wide with a nice balance between viewing space and hand feel. You can still use it easily one-handed and the smartphone fits nicely in your pocket. The balance on it is just right, not too heavy at 145g nor too light with no flex at all on the screen or back. The 5-inch display offers a resolution of 1280 x 720 which handles gaming, movie watching and simple browsing with ease.

The design of the ZenFone 5 is balanced just right

Packing in 2GB of RAM, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and an 8MP PixelMaster rear camera with F2.0 aperture, the ASUS ZenFone 5 packs many higher-end features that you usually don't find in smartphones of the same class. Other notable features includes the ASUS ZenUI with all it's accompanying apps, GloveTouch for gloved input, 1080p video recording at 30 frames per second and the extensive PixelMaster range of camera features. The 2110 mAh battery is unfortunately non-removable but popping off the cover reveals support for dual-SIM cards and up to 64GB microSD. In addition, users will also get 5GB of lifetime ASUS WebStorage to add on to the 8GB of internal storage. Check out the full tech specs list below:

The back cover opens up to reveal dual-SIM and the microSD slot

Thanks to the larger Sony BSI 8MP rear camera sensor, the PixelMaster camera adds on a feature you won't find in the lower-end ZenFone 4 which is Low Light mode but all the other features like Time Rewind and image stabilizer are all there. Like the other ZenFone smartphones, the ZenFone 5 packs in a 5-element lens to go with a high-end camera sensor for the best-in-class picture taking clarity.

While the processor is listed as a dual-core, the hyper-threading feature allows it to act like a quad-core processor and it is reported as such

Performance-wise, the ASUS ZenFone 5 returned an AnTuTu score of 19978 which places it on par with former flagship smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. In terms of 3D benchmarks, the ZenFone 5 got a very good score of 6537 in 3DMark Ice Storm and 3636 in the Ice Storm Extreme test. The Epic Citadel test also got very good results with an average frames per second score of 59.9. This capable versatility lets it handle practically everything with ease and this even included demanding games like Asphalt 8 Airborne which even included the special effects (breaking glass screen, dust, etc.), something which you don't often see on an entry-level to midrange smartphone. We did note that the ZenFone 5 does get hot when running 3D apps or games but it won't get scorchingly so unless you binge on it.

The ASUS ZenFone 5 offers great for it's class performance with an AnTuTu score of 19978

3DMark performance shows how versatile the ASUS ZenFone 5 can be

Epic Citadel also shows just how well the ASUS ZenFone 5 can handle 3D apps and games

The ASUS ZenFone 5 offers smooth performance even with all the special effects on Asphalt 8 Airborne

As we guessed, the better 8MP camera provides faster shots with better lighting, allowing all of the PixelMaster features to work as originally planned. This included clearly lit shots in each frame of the Time Rewind feature, even in low-light conditions. The Low Light feature is particularly powerful, providing much clearer shots with not much noise compared to your standard low-light shots. Bear in mind, that some light is still required and it does not work very well in pitch black darkness.

Time Rewind shows that the 8MP camera sensor handles light better for all frames, capturing all instances well

The ASUS ZenFone 5 8MP camera works well even in the Sun...

... and you can also have the Moon as well

That being said, practically every other PixelMaster feature works well and each shot is quite detailed without much noise. Burst mode in particular is more responsive and optimizes every frame for better light and clarity. We really liked the automatic mode that is surprisingly intelligent. While it doesn't force you to use modes like HDR or Low Light, the icon does blink when it thinks that you'll need it. Most of the time it is quite accurate, but sometimes when you're looking to get a specific effect, at least it doesn't force you to use what it thinks is better.

Normal camera shot on the left, Low Light shot on the right shows how awesome the ASUS ZenFone 5 Low Light feature is

We also managed to test out the smart cover function on the ZenFone 5. Like some other covers, the one on the ZenFone is round, letting it stand out from the other square or rectangle cut-out covers. You can actually do quite a lot with the smart cover, even turning on the flashlight or asking the magic 8 ball a random question. Granted, this smart cover that we got was not the original and therefore didn't look as nice as an original version would, but the smart cover features still work nonetheless. Battery life remains the biggest issue with the ZenFone 5, especially for heavy users. While the smartphone can handle anything you ask it to do, if you're a heavy user you can expect it to run out of charge within 5 to 8 hours. On minimal usage you can expect about 1 day and a half on a single charge. Connectivity and wireless performance are very good and you can expect a strong signal in most places.

Check out the smart cover features for the ASUS ZenFone 5

Initially priced at RM599, the price for the ASUS ZenFone 5 (A510CG) has dropped somewhat to RM519 which places it very nicely in the entry-level to midrange smartphone market. Closest competitors would include the Huawei Honor 3C, the Nokia X2, Sony Xperia M, Samsung Core 2 and Lenovo A889 none of which offer the same number of features and stand-out design as the ZenFone 5. Bear in mind though, that some third-party sellers are offering this ZenFone 5 version for lower pricing around RM475 but these could be AP sets imported from overseas. While there isn't any difference in terms of features or tech specs, the original ASUS Malaysia ZenFones get better support, including the latest Android 4.4 upgrades so make sure of what you're buying before you get it.

In a nutshell, the ASUS ZenFone 5 is the best sized and most versatile smartphone in the current ASUS ZenFone range. Not too small and not too big, it is great for watching movies, playing games, browsing the Internet and everything else. The better camera sensor is particularly capable and brings out the whole range of PixelMaster features just as well as the higher-end ZenFone smartphones. It's only major issue remains the battery and that it doesn't support 4G LTE. However, most users here in Malaysia get by well enough with just 3G as 4G LTE coverage just hasn't reached very far. If you're looking for a capable, versatile and affordable smartphone then we heartily recommend the ASUS ZenFone 5 (A501CG).

*TechNave.com would like to thank ASUS Malaysia for providing us with the ASUS ZenFone 5 for this review. It allowed us to do a more in-depth review and highlight more features.


Malaysian gamers conducted a virtual wedding kenduri all in GTA 5

It may be a relatively old game by now, but one of the greatest things about Grand Theft Auto 5 (GTA5) is the amount of freedom you get with the game. A lot of things are possible with custom mods, including wedding celebrations it seems. That's right, a Malaysian streamer showed that wedding celebrations can be held in a game too!

Due to the conditional movement control (CMCO) in Malaysia, wedding celebrations can't be held as we are not allowed to gather in large groups. To overcome this restriction, some people decided to conduct a traditional Malay wedding kenduri online via GTA5. Attendees were all 'dressed' for the occasion, with the in-game models of characters all sporting traditional clothing.

Besides that, there were also in-game canopies, tables, chairs, and a buffet set up for the 'guests'. The virtual kenduri came complete with pantun and performances like silat. If anyone else considered virtual weddings like this a thing, this is as good of an example as you could get.

This is the second virtual ceremony we've seen since the Minecraft primary school graduation. But what other ceremony or event could be done via games like this? Share your suggestions with us on our Facebook page and stay tuned to TechNave.com for more interesting news.