Tag Archives: WiFi

Maxis Fibre Warning : WiFi 6 Router NOT Exactly Free!

The free WiFi 6 router that Maxis is touting isn’t exactly FREE as claimed.

Here’s what I just found out, and what you should know about their “free” WiFi 6 router.

 

Maxis Fibre Broadband : What Free WiFi 6 Router?

On 18 February 2021, Maxis announced that they would make a new WiFi 6 router available for FREE to all new and existing Maxis Fibre Broadband customers!

The WiFi 6 router will be available for free from today, 18 February onwards for new customers who sign up for Maxis Fibre plans of 100Mbps and above. Existing Maxis Fibre customers will be contacted in phases for the router upgrade exercise. Maxis’ specialised Internet experts, Maxperts, will also provide free installation of the router to ensure that the WiFi is optimized for the best connectivity experience for the home.

When I wrote about it, I thought that was pretty generous of them, and a brilliant way to reduce churn and eat into Unifi’s business.

I quickly called up Maxis, eager to give it a try myself. But almost 7 months later, no one from the Maxis Fibre Broadband team called me up about this free WiFi 6 router upgrade.

Today, I found out that what Maxis announced in February was not exactly the truth. Here are the facts…

 

Maxis Fibre Warning : WiFi 6 Router NOT Exactly Free!

When Maxis first announced the availability of their free WiFi 6 router, they specifically stated that :

  • it would be made available for FREE for new customers who sign up for 100 Mbps or faster plans, and
  • existing customers would receive the upgrade in phases.

Neither are true… which is good news and bad news.

Based on my conversation with Amir from their Customer Service team, and Intan from their Fibre Broadband team on 17 September 2021, here are the facts :

  1. The WiFi 6 router is only available to new customers, and existing customers who are already (or almost) out-of-contract.

    This WiFi 6 router will not be made available to customers who are still under contract.

  2. Existing customers will not be upgraded in phases as claimed. Rather, you have to call up Maxis customer service to request for the upgrade.
  3. Existing customers MUST upgrade their existing plans to qualify for the WiFi 6 router upgrade.

    If you are on 30 Mbps, you must upgrade to 100 Mbps or higher
    If you are on 300 Mbps, you must upgrade to 500 Mbps or higher

    Existing customers MUST sign up for a 2-year contract, which introduces this penalty should you terminate the contract at any point in time :

    Early Termination Charge of RM500 or the remaining monthly subscription charges in the contract period, whichever is higher.

  4. For existing customers, the WiFi 6 router replaces your existing router, which will be taken back by Maxis.

    Since this occurs at the end of a contract, this implies that the routers are “leased” and do not belong to you even after you complete the contract.

None of the information I gleaned above were posted in the official Maxis WiFi 6 router page.

Their FAQ mentioned that the WiFi 6 router is only given free to “new installations for all plans of Maxis Fibre“, including their cheaper 30 Mbps plan.

There is NO MENTION in the Maxis website of any requirement to upgrade your plan, or sign up for a new 2-year contract, to receive this “free” WiFi 6 router upgrade.

The only reference to the Early Termination Charge is found in the Maxis Fibre Service Specific Terms & Conditions (SSTC) page, but that appears to refer to new installations.

 

Maxis Fibre WiFi 6 Router : Caveat Emptor!

As a long-time Maxis Mobile and Maxis Fibre customer, I’m very disappointed to see them quietly change the terms for what would have been a great upgrade for their loyal customers.

Forcing people to upgrade their plans when they don’t need the extra speed means you are essentially paying for the router.

That’s RM20 to RM80 extra per month, or between RM480 and RM1,920 for a 2-year contract!

Don’t be the fool who ends up paying RM80 extra per month for a “free” WiFi 6 router, unless it’s gold-plated!

I can understand if they wish to tack on a 2-year contract, but at least make it clear to customers in the website, including the early termination penalty!

There is one piece of good news though – even their cheapest 30 Mbps plan comes with the WiFi 6 router!

Pro Tip #1 : Call Maxis customer service and switch to the 30 Mbps plan, before asking for the WiFi 6 upgrade. This way, you don’t have to upgrade to a faster plan unnecessarily.

Pro Tip #2 : If you are currently on the 30 Mbps plan and don’t want to upgrade for the free router, call to CANCEL the service and migrate to Unifi or TIME (which always gives free upgrades!). Their Save team will call you up to try and salvage your business.

 

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Maxis Fibre Broadband : Get WiFi 6 Router For FREE!

Maxis just announced a new WiFi 6 router that will be made available FREE to all new and existing Maxis Fibre Broadband customers! Here are the details…

 

Maxis Fibre Broadband : Get WiFi 6 Router For FREE!

Maxis just announced the availability of a new WiFi 6 router which promises to deliver faster wireless connectivity with greater range, better signal and the capacity to support more devices.

WiFi 6, also known as Wi-Fi 6 or IEEE 802.11ax or WiFi-AX, is the next-generation Wi-Fi standard, which can deliver up to 1.2 Gb/s of wireless bandwidth.

In addition to higher bandwidth, Wi-Fi 6 boasts reduced interference, increased network efficiency, reduced latency, as well as expanded capacity to support more Wi-Fi devices concurrently.

The new Maxis WiFi 6 router also comes with built-in EasyMesh technology, allowing you to easily expand the WiFi coverage by adding more EasyMesh units.

 

Maxis WiFi 6 Router : FREE For All New + Existing Customers!

Starting 18 February 2021, Maxis will make this new WiFi 6 router available for FREE to all new customers who sign up for Maxis Fibre plans of 100 Mbps or faster.

Existing Maxis Fibre customers will be contacted in phases for the free router upgrade exercise, with free installation by their Maxperts team.

 

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HUAWEI MatePad Pro : 10.8-inch Flagship Tablet Preview!

We recently had the opportunity to get our hands on the upcoming HUAWEI MatePad Pro – a 10.8-inch tablet built around the Kirin 990 flagship platform.

Take a look at the HUAWEI MatePad Pro, and see if this is the tablet for you!

 

HUAWEI MatePad Pro : 10.8-inch Flagship Tablet

The HUAWEI MatePad Pro is a flagship tablet with a 10.8-inch display. It uses an LCD panel, with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 and a wide DCI-P3 colour gamut.

It is built around the HUAWEI Kirin 990, which is a flagship mobile platform, featuring fast CPU and GPU cores and neural processing cores.

HUAWEI is offering it in 5G, 4G and Wi-Fi variants, with 6 GB or 8 GB memory options, and storage options of 128 GB, 256 GB or 512 GB.

It comes with an 8 MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture, and a 13 MP main camera at the back, with f/1.8 aperture.

All that is powered by a large 7,250 mAh battery, with a rated battery life of 12 hours. The 5G model supports 27 watt fast-charging, while the 4G and Wi-Fi models support 20 watt fast-charging.

 

HUAWEI MatePad Pro : Specifications (5G / 4G / Wi-Fi)

For your convenience, we created this table to make it easier for you to compare the 5G, 4G and Wi-Fi versions of the HUAWEI MatePad Pro :

MatePad Pro (5G) MatePad Pro (4G) MatePad Pro (WiFi)
Model MRX-AN09 MRX-AL09
MRX-AL19
MRX-W09
MRX-W19
Display 10.8-inch LCD display
– 2560 x 1600 pixels, 540 nits, DCI-P3 colour gamut
Operating System EMUI 10.1 (based on Android 10)
System Platform HUAWEI Kirin 990 5G HUAWEI Kirin 990
Processor 2 x Cortex-A76 (2.86 GHz)
2 x Cortex-A76 (2.36 GHz)
4 x Cortex-A55 (1.95 GHz)
2 x Cortex-A76 (2.86 GHz)
2 x Cortex-A76 (2.09 GHz)
4 x Cortex-A55 (1.86 GHz)
NPU 2 x Big Core + Tiny Core Big Core + Tiny Core
Graphics ARM Mali-G76 MC16
Memory +
Storage Options
6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage (AL09 / W09)
8 GB RAM + 256 GB storage (AL09 / W09 / W19)
8 GB RAM + 512 GB storage (AN09 / AL19)
Storage Expansion Yes, 256 GB NM card slot
Front Camera 8 MP selfie camera (f/2.0 aperture)
Rear Camera 13 MP main camera (f/1.8 aperture)
Network 5G NR + 4G 4G LTE NA
Connectivity WiFi : 802.11a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz)
Bluetooth : BT 5.1
USB : USB 3.1 Gen1 (with OTG)
GPS W09/W19 : GLONASS / Beidou / Galileo / QZSS
AL09/AL19 : GPS / AGPS / GLONASS / Beidou / Galileo / QZSS
M-pencil Optional, 4096 pressure levels
Fingerprint Sensor No
Other Sensors Ambient Light, Hall, Gyroscope,
Compass, Gravity, Colour Temperature
NFC No
Audio HUAWEI Histen 6.0
Battery + Charging 7,250 mAh
– 27 W fast charging
7,250 mAh
– 20 W fast charging
Dimensions 246 mm wide
159 mm tall
7.99 mm thick
246 mm wide
159 mm tall
7.2 mm (AL09/ W09)
7.99 mm thick (AL19/W19)
Weight 492 g AL09/W09 : 460 g
AL19/W19 : 492 g

 

HUAWEI MatePad Pro : Price + Availability

The HUAWEI MatePad Pro is available in selected countries at these launch prices :

  • 5G (6GB + 128GB) : €599
  • 5G (8GB + 256GB) : €699

Here are some online purchase links :

Malaysia

Singapore

United States

  • WiFi (128 GB, White) : $649
  • WiFi (128 GB, Gray) : $649.99

Australia

 

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Fortesys Now Authorised Distributor For Ruckus Networks In Malaysia!

CommScope just appointed Fortesys as the sole authorised distributor for its Ruckus range of networking products spanning all segments across Malaysia! Here are the full details!

 

Fortesys | Ruckus : A Quick Primer

Established in 2011, Fortesys Distribution Sdn Bhd is a leading end-to-end networking solutions provider in Malaysia. In addition to providing digital networking solutions, they also provide training programs as well.

Headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, Ruckus is a world-renowned brand for wired and wireless networking equipment and software. Together with ARRIS, Ruckus is now now of CommScope – a major communications infrastructure company.

 

Fortesys Now Authorised Distributor For Ruckus Networks In Malaysia!

At a recent ceremony held at the Tropicana Golf Club, Petaling Jaya, Fortesys regional sales director Kevin Kuak (left in picture) shook hands with ARRIS Solutions Malaysia regional manager BK Choo representing the CommScope to finalise this partnership for Malaysia.

We sat down with both principals for a quick chat on this new partnership between Fortesys and CommScope.

According to Kuak, Fortesys would continue to deliver a wide range of advanced networking solutions for the Malaysian and regional markets.

“Our mission is to provide the most cost-effective and complete network solutions to meet all our customers’ business needs,” said Kuak, adding that Fortesys’ appointment as the authorised distributor for Ruckus was yet another milestone for the company.

“We are also fully committed to helping companies ‘future proof’ their businesses through state-of-the-art digital networking solutions, added Kuak.

Kuak also shared that Fortesys is today certified by many world class IT vendors, while providing high quality training for customers.

Meanwhile, Choo said that Ruckus had invented and patented various wireless voice, video, and data technologies, such as adaptive antenna arrays that extend signal range.

“Today, we are well known for our Wi-Fi branded products such as indoor and outdoor wireless access points and wireless controllers,” said Choo.

From a market segment perspective, this partnership bodes well for both parties as Ruckus has traditionally been strong in the hospitality and education segments, while Fortesys has various customers across GLCs (government-linked companies), banking and financial services and the public sector.

 

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HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro : What Does This WiFi Router Offer?

The new HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro router promises to offer fast and reliable WiFi coverage both indoors and outdoors that is easily expandable.

Let’s check it out, and find out why WiFi Q2 Pro is a key component of the HUAWEI Smart Life ecosystem!

 

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro Router

HUAWEI has an expanding range of Smart Life devices, which are designed to offer a life of the future at home and at work.

All those capabilities are heavily dependent on those devices being connected to each other. Hence, the lynchpin of the Smart Life ecosystem is the new WiFi Q2 Pro router.

Easy Expansion Of WiFi Range

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro (MY | SG | UK) delivers fast and reliable WiFi connectivity even for the largest office or home, by supporting up to 15 satellite units.

These small satellite units allow you to greatly extend the reach of the WiFi Q2 Pro base unit, both indoors and outdoors. They support both Powerline and WiFi connectivity with the base station, making them virtually wireless!

Best of all, these satellite units are plug-and-play, requiring no extra configuration. They will automatically synchronise the WiFi name and password from the base unit!

200 Mbps From Both Base + Satellite!

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro (MY | SG | UK) delivers 200 Mbps broadband connectivity, like other WiFi-N routers. However, performance usually degrades when you switch to a satellite unit.

That’s not true for the WiFi Q2 Pro’s satellite units, which do not employ the same mesh technology by default, relying instead on faster Gigabit Powerline connectivity.

Specifications HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro A Brand Router N Brand Router
Network Speed
(Base Station)
204 Mbps 204 Mbps 204 Mbps
Network Speed
(Satellite)
201 Mbps 8 Mbps 10 Mbps
Game Delay
(Base Station)
35~50 ms 35~50 ms 35~35 ms
Game Delay
(Satellite)
35~50 ms 50~460 ms 50~460 ms

Seamless Roaming + Wired Connectivity

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro (MY | SG | UK) offers seamless roaming, with band steering capabilities. It will automatically switch you to a different satellite unit or WiFi band as you move around.

And if you need wired connectivity for your gaming computer, TV or NAS, you will be glad to know that every satellite unit has a Gigabit Ethernet port!

Self-Learning Network

According to HUAWEI, the WiFi Q2 Pro (MY | SG | UK) will learn and adapt to the changing Wi-Fi environment every day, and automatically optimise the Wi-Fi channel you’re using in real-time to avoid interference.

Finally, this router will remember your online surfing habits to improve its performance.

 

HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro Specifications

Specifications HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro
WiFi Connectivity 802.11a/b/g/n/ac
2×2 MU-MIMO (1167 Mbps)
LAN Connectivity Base : 2 x Gigabit LAN ports
Satellite : 1 Gigabite LAN port
Backhaul Connectivity 1 Gbps G.hn PLC
Supports HUAWEI PLC Turbo technology
Button + Light H button for one-key / WPS pairing
Reset
button
State indicator light
Router Features 802.11v + 802.11s protocol
PPPoE / DHCP / Static IP Address
Wi-Fi Timer
Guest Wi-Fi
Device speed limiting
Mac Address Filter
Parental Control
VPN Pass-Through
Virtual Server
Security Features Anti-brute force algorithms
WPA-PSK / WPA2-PSK encryption
Firewall, DMZ, PAP / CHAP
DoS Attack Protection
Voltage Range AC 100~240V
Power Consumption < 24 watts
Base Dimensions 112 mm x 73.3 mm x 183.5 mm
Satellite Dimensions 75 mm x 46.3 mm x 103 mm

 

HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro Price + Deals

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro is available with immediate effect, with this recommended retail price list :

  • WiFi Q2 Pro Kit (with Satellite) : RM 499 / ~US$119 / ~£94 / ~A$176 / ~S$164
  • WiFi Q2 Pro Satellite : RM 169 / ~US$39 / ~£32 / ~A$60 / ~S$55

But for a limited time, HUAWEI will bundle every purchase of the WiFi Q2 Pro kit (which already comes with a satellite unit), with a FREE WiFi Q2 Pro satellite worth RM 169!

Here are some online purchase links, with prices accurate as of 13 November 2019 :

 

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5 Ways How HUAWEI Smart Life Devices Boost Productivity!

HUAWEI Smart Life devices are more than just convenient, they can actually give you a big productivity boost at work!

Find out how to use these HUAWEI Smart Life devices to greatly improve your productivity at work!

 

5 Ways How HUAWEI Smart Life Devices Boost Productivity!

HUAWEI created the Smart Life ecosystem to deliver the life of future, both at home and at work.

Here are five ways to leverage HUAWEI Smart Life devices to greatly improve your productivity!

Tip #1 : Eliminate All Dead Zones!

Digital natives are no longer chained to their desks, and the modern office offers a variety of working and collaboration spaces for people to work more effectively.

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro is designed to offer fast, reliable WiFi connectivity indoors and outdoors, even for the largest workspace! Just add satellite units whenever you need greater reach, without messy cables or setting up!

Thanks to its seamless roaming capability and automatic channel optimisations – it will intelligently switch WiFi channels and hotspots to ensure you get the best possible connectivity, even as you move about!

All you have to do is focus on your work. No matter where you go, the Q2 Pro will ensure you have the best possible connectivity!

Tip #2 : Easy Transfers For Quick Work!

Smartphones are great because they are always connected to the Internet, but they are not always the best platform to do serious work.

That’s where the HUAWEI Multi-Screen Collaboration feature comes in – it lets you get work done on both the Matebook 13 laptop and the Mate 30 or Mate 30 Pro smartphone simultaneously!

And with One Tap to Share technology, you can easily transfer files between your smartphone and the laptop with a simple drag-and-drop motion! Now that is truly how things should work in the life of the future!

Tip #3 : Tune Out The Noise!

One of the biggest problems people face at work is noise. Whether it’s from your colleagues’ keyboards, or their chit-chats, noise can really be distracting and even stressful.

But thanks to the HUAWEI Freebuds 3, you can literally tune out the noise with its Active Noise Cancellation technology. And if you need to call someone in a noisy environment, its Bone Sensor picks up your voice for clear conversations!

Tip #4 : Stay Healthy!

It is important to stay healthy, to maximise your productivity. That’s why the HUAWEI WATCH GT 2 will remind you to stand up and move around, so you don’t sit down for hours on end.

It even monitors your stress levels and blood pressure, and suggest breathing exercises to calm you down and lower your stress levels!

Because it has a 14-day battery life, you should wear it to sleep, so it can help to monitor your sleep patterns, and ensure you stay healthy 24/7.

It is also important to take good care of your eyes. The HUAWEI Matebook 13 comes with an Eye Comfort Mode that is designed to protect your retina and avoid eyestrain. This lets you work in optimal comfort for as long as you like!

Tip #5 : Keep Your Hands Free!

One way to greatly improve productivity is to leverage the advanced capabilities of HUAWEI Smart Life devices to keep both of your hands free!

The HUAWEI WATCH GT 2 and the HUAWEI x Gentle Monster Eyewear let you make and receive calls, letting you continue working even as you talk.

In addition to letting you make and receive calls, the HUAWEI Freebuds 3 can recognise your speech, and activate the Smart Assistant app for hands-free capabilities.

 

HUAWEI Smart Life Devices : More Information

For more information on the HUAWEI Smart Life devices mentioned here :

 

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Experience Life of the Future with HUAWEI Smart Life Devices!

HUAWEI is more than just a smartphone manufacturer. They have a veritable ecosystem of smart devices, which they call HUAWEI Smart Life.

Find out how to use these HUAWEI Smart Life devices to enjoy a life of the future!

 

Experience Life of the Future with HUAWEI Smart Life Devices!

Life like a box of chocolates – you never know what you are going to get!

Your flight may get delayed. An idyllic vacation may turn out to be an utter bore. Your boss may suddenly send some urgent work that needs your input.

But digital natives can now leverage HUAWEI Smart Life devices to tackle these challenges for a stress-free life of the future!

Recommended : 5 Ways How HUAWEI Smart Life Devices Boost Productivity!

Tip #1 : Stuck Somewhere? Transport Yourself Away!

If your flight or train ride gets delayed, or you are stuck in a long line, whip out your smartphone for some mobile gaming!

Stop fretting about the delay, and channel your frustrations into finishing off your virtual enemies!

It helps that HUAWEI smartphones are not only powerful gaming devices, they have long battery life for hours of mobile gaming!

In addition, the new HUAWEI Mate 30 Pro come with two virtual buttons on the edge of the screen – one on each side.

Use these buttons to gain an advantage over your opponents – move, scope, aim and shoot at the same time! Nothing beats stress more than winning a game!

Tip #2 : Staying Connected With Two Free Hands

The new HUAWEI x Gentle Monster Eyewear not only look great, they let you pick up calls and stay connected, and enjoy music on-the-go!

Best of all, you can do all that while keeping both hands free!

Tip #3 : Stay Healthy + Sweat It Out!

The life of the future does not mean getting stuck in faceless cubicles for hours on end. Being digitally connected means you get to break out of the office!

For digital natives, results matter more than physical presence. Take time off to sweat it out for a healthier and less stressful life!

Use the HUAWEI WATCH GT 2 to monitor your heart rate, and keep track of your jog or swim. It will help to keep you in tip-top shape!

Don’t forget to slip on the HUAWEI x Gentle Monster Eyewear so you can listen to music and chat with your friends, while you burn off the calories!

Tip #4 : Tune Out The Noise!

One of the biggest problems people face, whether at work or at play, is noise. It can really get on your nerves and ruin a great day.

But thanks to the HUAWEI Freebuds 3, you can literally tune out the noise with its Active Noise Cancellation technology. And if you need to call someone, its Bone Sensor picks up your voice for clear conversations!

Tip #5 : Easy Transfers For Quick Work!

Smartphones are great because they are always connected to the Internet, but it’s not always the best platform to do serious work.

That’s where the HUAWEI Multi-Screen Collaboration feature comes in – it lets you get work done on both the Matebook 13 laptop and the smartphone simultaneously!

And with One Tap to Share technology, you can easily transfer files between your smartphone and the laptop with a simple drag-and-drop motion! Now that is truly how things should work in the life of the future!

Tip #6 : Stay Connected Indoors + Outdoors!

Digital natives get agitated whenever we lose access to the Internet. So it is critical for many people that the WiFi connectivity should not only be fast, it should be stable and reliable.

The HUAWEI WiFi Q2 Pro is a great way of delivering fast, reliable WiFi connectivity indoors and outdoors, even through large buildings. Just add satellite units to extend coverage!

Best of all – it will intelligently switch WiFi channels and hotspots to ensure you get the best possible connectivity, even as you move about!

 

HUAWEI Smart Life Devices : More Information

For more information on the HUAWEI Smart Life devices mentioned here :

 

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The HUAWEI Trump Ban – Everything You Need To Know! 5.5

Rumours have been fast spreading on instant messengers and social media about the HUAWEI Trump ban, leading to a ton of misconceptions, misunderstandings and outright BS.

In this article, we will explain the HUAWEI Trump ban, and what it means to HUAWEI and to you, the customer.

 

The HUAWEI Trump Ban Timeline Updated!

The US government’s distrust of HUAWEI goes back many years, and only grew as HUAWEI became one of China’s biggest and arguably, most visible global companies with over $100 billion in revenue and over 180,000 employees worldwide.

Circa 2010 : US intelligence officers began claiming that HUAWEI was serving as a proxy for the Chinese government

2011 : The US government squelched HUAWEI’s attempt to acquire 3Leaf Systems, a US company that offers server virtualisation solutions.

2012-10-08 : The US House Intelligence Committee released a report about its investigations into HUAWEI and ZTE, which also questioned their dealings with Iran.

2018-08-13 : US President Trump banned the use of HUAWEI and ZTE products by US government agencies.

2018-12-01 : Meng Wanzhou, HUAWEI’s global chief financial officer and the daughter of its founder, Ren Zhengfei, is arrested by Canadian authorities at the request of the United States.

Photo Credit : Darryl Dyck, The Canadian Press / PA Images

Early 2019 : The Trump government begins earnestly pressuring allies to stop using HUAWEI telecommunications equipment, particularly in building new 5G networks.

2019-05-10 : The US-Chinese trade talks failed, and President Trump immediately raised tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.

2019-05-15 : President Trump signed an executive order barring US companies from using telecommunications equipment from sources that are “national security threats”. The US Commerce Department also added HUAWEI to the Entity List of US national security threats.

2019-05-16 : ARM issued a memo instructing their employees to suspend business with HUAWEI. Read our full report and analysis.

2019-05-19 : Google announced that it would suspend business with HUAWEI to comply with US law.

2019-05-20 : Intel, Qualcomm, Broadcom, Micron and Western Digital announce that they will stop supplying HUAWEI. German chipmaker Infineon also stopped some shipments.

2019-05-20 : The Bureau of Industry and Security of the US Commerce Department announced a 90-day temporary licence to HUAWEI, partially restoring their access to US technology and suppliers.

2019-05-21 : FedEx in Singapore and Hong Kong withheld two HUAWEI packages for “delivery exception“. Read our full report and analysis.

2019-05-23 : Two packages from Japan bound for HUAWEI in China were diverted to the FedEx HQ in the United Stataes instead. Read our full report and analysis.

2019-05-25 : The SD Association removed HUAWEI as a member, but the NM Card gives an extra workaround. Read our full report.

2019-05-26 : The WiFi Alliance temporarily suspends HUAWEI, but this only affects future Wi-Fi standards. Read our full report and analysis.

2019-05-29 : HUAWEI announced a legal challenge on the constitutionality of the HUAWEI Trump ban, but it will be too late to help them. However, China has a Trump card!

2019-05-29 : Just as quietly as HUAWEI was removed as members of the the WiFi Alliance, the SD Association and the Bluetooth SIG, its membership was restored!

Even the HUAWEI Mate 20 Pro was put back on the Android Q beta programme! Read our full report and analysis!

2019-05-29 : Malaysian Prime Minister (and the world’s OLDEST prime minister) Dr. Mahathir Mohammad said that Malaysia has no intention on shunning HUAWEI, and that they will “try to make use of their technology as much as possible“.

2019-05-29 : The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) told its editors to stop using HUAWEI scientists and engineers to review scientific papers for fear of “severe legal implications”.

2019-06-02 : The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) reversed their decision to ban HUAWEI scientists and engineers from reviewing scientific papers! Read our full report and analysis!

2019-06-12 : HUAWEI confirmed that they were postponing the launch of their refreshed MateBook laptop indefinitely, because they are unable to purchase the necessary components from US-based companies like Intel.

China’s Global Times reports that HUAWEI will instead launch a different laptop in July that will run Windows 10 on an ARM-based processor. Read our full report and analysis!

2019-06-14 : HONOR is moving ahead with the sale of the HONOR 20 smartphones, starting 21 June 2019. Read our full report!

At the same time, Broadcom slashed its annual revenue outlook by a whopping $2 billion, as a result of the HUAWEI Trump ban. Broadcom shares fell 6% as a result.

2019-06-17 : Microsoft starts selling HUAWEI MateBook laptops again, after removing them from the Microsoft Store when HUAWEI was added to the Entity List.

In their statement, they stated that “[Microsoft] will continue to respond to the many business, technical and regulatory complexities stemming from the recent addition of Huawei to the US Department of Commerce’s Export Administration Regulations Entity List”

2019-06-21 : FedEx refused to deliver a HUAWEI P30 Pro smartphone to a US resident, citing the HUAWEI Trump ban. Read our full report and analysis!

2019-06-22 : FedEx reversed their stance, now claiming that it was “an operational error“. Read our full report and analysis!

2019-06-23 : HUAWEI calls the repeated delivery mistakes by FedEx “a vendetta“. Read our full report!

2019-06-24 : Despite the HUAWEI Trump ban, HONOR reported that they sold their first batch of HONOR 20 smartphones in 3 hours in Malaysia, with over a million units in China in two weeks. Read our full report!

2019-06-25 : FedEx sued the Trump Administration to block trade restrictions (like the HUAWEI ban) that force it to act as enforcement agents. UPS declined to join the FedEx lawsuit.

2019-06-29 : President Trump stunned everyone by reversing the HUAWEI ban, stating that it was “no great national emergency”; and agreeing not to introduce more tariffs… all without a trade agreement with China. Read our full report and analysis!

2019-07-14 : Reuters reported that the US Commerce Department could start approving licences for US companies to start selling again to HUAWEI in a matter of weeks.

2019-07-22 : Impatient with the US Commerce Department, the CEOs of Google, Cisco, Intel, Broadcom, Micron and Western Digital pressured Donald Trump to force the US Commerce Department to issue licenses allowing them to sell to HUAWEI once again. Read our full report and analysis!

2019-08-19 : The US Commerce Department extended HUAWEI’s temporary general licence by a further 90 days. They also added 46 more HUAWEI affiliates to the Entity List. Read our full report and analysis!

 

Who Does The HUAWEI Trump Ban Affect?

The HUAWEI Trump ban covers both HUAWEI and its sub-brand, HONOR. As it so happens, HONOR is launching their HONOR 20 smartphone today.

Together with the success of their P30 and P30 Pro smartphones, the ban could not come at a worst time.

 

What Exactly Does The HUAWEI Trump Ban Do?

Many pundits wrongly quoted Trump’s executive order as the basis for the Google and other US companies suspending supplies to HUAWEI. That is only partly true.

His executive order does not mention HUAWEI at all. In fact, it actually applies to every company listed in the US Entity List, which is over 270 pages long!

It basically prohibits “any acquisition, importation, transfer, installation, dealing in, or use of any information and communications technology or service (transaction)” by “any person… subject to the jurisdiction of the United States” to “persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a foreign adversary“.

It was really the US Commerce Department’s action of adding HUAWEI (and its 68 affiliates) to the Entity List that forced US companies to stop doing business with HUAWEI.

Even without Trump’s executive order, US companies are generally prohibited from doing business with companies listed in the Entity List. They will have to apply for a licence to export products to those entities.

 

The HUAWEI Trump Ban Effects

Google

Google rescinded HUAWEI’s Android licence, as well as access to Google Play services and the Play Store. But what does that mean?

  • Current HUAWEI and HONOR devices that run on Android and were launched on, or before 16 May 2019 will continue to have access to Google Play services, and the Google Play Store..
  • HUAWEI and HONOR devices launched from 17 May 2019 onwards will not have access to Android, Google Play services, or Google Play Store.

  • HUAWEI and HONOR will continue to receive Android software updates and patches until 19 August 2019.

In other words, if you own a HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone that was launched before 16 May 2019, you have nothing to worry about… at least until August 2019.

ARM

The suspension of business between ARM and HUAWEI has no real effect in the short to medium-term, because HUAWEI can continue to manufacture existing and completed designs.

Read our full report : The HUAWEI ARM Business Suspension – How Bad Is This?

Processor Suppliers : Intel, Qualcomm, Broadcom

HUAWEI has long worked on creating their own mobile SoCs, like their flagship-class Kirin 970 and Kirin 980. They have been pretty successful in this regard – all of their top smartphones run on Kirin processors.

They do not have a replacement for the Intel processors that power their MateBook laptops. However, they have apparently prepared for this eventuality by stockpiling 3 months worth of chips.

Memory Suppliers : Micron, Infineon

Fortunately for HUAWEI, most DRAM manufacturers are not US companies, or subject to US law. Whereas Micron (a US company) can no longer supply HUAWEI with memory chips, there are other DRAM companies that can make up the shortfall… including their competitor, Samsung.

Tech Organisations : WiFi, Bluetooth, SD New!

Initially, HUAWEI was quietly but unceremoniously booted from the Wi-Fi Alliance, the Bluetooth SIG and the SD Association. But two weeks later, their memberships were quietly restored. Read our full reports :

Perplexingly, the IEEE announced and retracted their ban on HUAWEI scientists and engineers serving as peer reviewers and editors in just four days.

Read our full report : The IEEE Reverses HUAWEI Ban After Just 4 Days!

 

How Does The HUAWEI Trump Ban Affect YOU?

If you own a HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone sold on or before 16 May 2019, you have NOTHING to worry about.

  • Your HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone will continue to work normally
  • You will continue to have access to Google Play services, and the Google Play Store.
  • You will continue to receive updates and security patches

If you are planning to purchase a future HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone, you should wait and see.

  • Despite the ban, HUAWEI still has access to the Android Open Source Project (AOSP).
  • They can still produce smartphones that run on Android, but won’t be able to install Google Play services, the Google Play Store, or apps by US companies like YouTube and Facebook.
  • HUAWEI has been working on its own mobile operating system, HongMeng OS, which is said to be undergoing trials right now.
  • Future HUAWEI smartphones may run on HongMeng OS and their own slew of apps, but there will be a dearth of third-party apps, at least initially.
  • If the ban persists, HUAWEI will likely be forced to ship future smartphones with stock Android and HUAWEI apps to replace Google Play services.

 

What About New Devices?

The partial licence from the US Commerce Department only permits “service and support” for “existing” devices that were “available to the public on or before May 16, 2019“.

HUAWEI and its affiliates can create and sell new devices. However, they will not be covered by the temporary licence, and therefore…

  • they cannot have Google Play services or Play Store, or any US apps like YouTube and Instagram, installed
  • they are not entitled to Android software updates either

That said, US companies or companies that use substantial US technologies can apply to the US Commerce Department for special licences to sell to HUAWEI. As of July 2019, over 50 applications were submitted for consideration.

 

How Will This Affect HUAWEI’s Business?

This is, no doubt, a really serious problem for HUAWEI. Losing the ability to include Google services will be detrimental to the success of future devices.

The disruption of their supply chain will start to bite if the ban persists beyond three months – that’s when their stockpile runs out. They will also lose the ability to support existing customers with software patches.

However, the issuance of the temporary licence, just days after listing HUAWEI as a foreign adversary and a national security threat, signals that the HUAWEI Trump ban is just another bargaining chip in the US-China trade war.

In all likelihood, Trump is using the HUAWEI ban to force China to accept his terms for a trade deal. He badly needs a face-saving win after numerous failures in recent months.

 

Why This Is Bad For The Global Economy + Security

President Trump’s persistent pressure on HUAWEI is forcing a decoupling of the Chinese and American economies. This is bad for the global economy, as well as global security.

The intertwining of US and Chinese economies is a form of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD) that was once guaranteed by nuclear weapons.

Photo Credit : News.com.au

But with an erratic US President cutting off supply to US products and technology essential for their companies, China will continue to turn inwards to insulate their economy, even adopting a form of economic Juche.

The more their economies decouple, the more the US loses the ability to engage China positively on a variety of geopolitical issues. In fact, it may eventually lead to an outright Cold War between the US and China, if not military confrontation.

Recommended Reading : HUAWEI Legal Motion Too Late, But China Has A Trump Card!

 

The HUAWEI Trump Ban Revision History

Updated @ 2019-08-19 : Added details about the extension of HUAWEI’s temporary general licence (full report).

Updated @ 2019-07-24 : Added details about Trump agreeing to issue licenses for US tech companies to start selling again to HUAWEI (full report).

Updated @ 2019-07-15 : Added details about the slow action by the US Commerce Department

Updated @ 2019-06-29 : Added details about Trump’s shocking reversal of the HUAWEI ban (full report).

Updated @ 2019-06-25 : Added details about the FedEx lawsuit against the Trump Administration.

Updated @ 2019-06-24 : Added details about HONOR 20 sales despite the Trump ban (full report), and FedEx’s refusal to ship a HUAWEI P30 Pro to the United States (full report).

Updated @ 2019-06-20 : Added details of the diverting of HUAWEI packages by FedEx (full report).

Updated @ 2019-06-17 : Added details of Microsoft’s decision to resume selling HUAWEI MateBook laptops.

Updated @ 2019-06-14 : Added details of the upcoming HUAWEI laptop that will run Windows 10 on ARM (full report), the upcoming sale of the HONOR 20 smartphone (full report), and the impact on Broadcom.

Updated @ 2019-06-03 : Added IEEE’s reversal of its earlier decision to ban HUAWEI employees from reviewing scientific papers (full report).

Updated @ 2019-05-31 : Added many updates, including what Malaysian Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir said about maximising the use of HUAWEI technologies. 

Updated @ 2019-05-29 : Added details of HUAWEI’s legal motion and Trump card (full report), as well as the restoration of their Bluetooth, WiFi, SD and Android Q rights (full report).

Updated @ 2019-05-26 : Added details of the HUAWEI WiFi Alliance suspension (full report)

Updated @ 2019-05-25 : Added how HUAWEI outsmarted the SD + microSD ban with their NM card (full report)

Updated @ 2019-05-23 : Added details about the HUAWEI ARM business suspension (full report)

Originally posted @ 2019-05-21

 

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Trump Lifts HUAWEI Ban – No Great National Emergency!

US President Donald Trump not only walked back the HUAWEI ban, he now says that it’s “no great national emergency problem“.

No, it’s not an April Fool joke, although US President Trump seems to behave like it’s all a big fucking joke.

Here is the latest twist in the 4 year comedy-horror show that is the Trump Presidency.

 

Trump In May : HUAWEI Is A National Security Threat

On 15 May 2019, President Trump signed an executive order barring US companies from using telecommunications equipment from sources that are “national security threats“.

He then had the US Commerce Department add HUAWEI to the Entity List of US national security threats, basically labelling HUAWEI as a national security threat.

That barred American companies, or companies using “significant American technology”, from selling their services or products to HUAWEI.

 

Trump In June : No Great National Emergency Problem

Less than 1.5 months after declaring HUAWEI a national security threat to the United States, Donald Trump not only walked back his HUAWEI ban, he contradicted his earlier reason for the ban!

According to CNN, he said that after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on 29 June 2019, “he would allow Huawei to once again buy US products“.

US companies can sell their equipment to Huawei… there’s no great national emergency problem. – US President Donald Trump

Credit : CNN

CNN also pointed out that :

He said he “agreed easily” in his meeting with Xi to continue allowing US companies to do business with the telecom giant.

 

The Donald Is A Thoroughly Confused Idiot

Seriously? Is HUAWEI a national security threat to the United States or not?

If HUAWEI is a genuine national security threat, then it cannot be part of any trade bargain on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

But Trump has now officially lifted the HUAWEI ban and announced that there will be NO NEW TARIFFS, all without an official trade deal, which is very perplexing.

Does he know what he’s doing? Or is he just making stuff up on the spur of the moment?

One thing is for sure – The Donald is a thoroughly confused idiot.

 

The Damage Caused By The Trump Ban On HUAWEI

The HUAWEI Trump ban immediately forced many companies or organisations to immediately suspend business with HUAWEI, including :

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It led to some customer support woes for HUAWEI, some embarrassing reversals (BT, WiFi, SD, IEEE, FedEx), and some interesting ideas (Windows on ARM, rare earths) to circumvent or beat the ban…

 

Is HUAWEI Safe From Another Ban?

As if he’s trying to close the barn door after the horses have bolted, Trump hinted that HUAWEI isn’t 100% safe from his wrath.

“We mentioned Huawei,” Trump said of his talks with President Xi Jinping of China earlier Saturday. “We’ll have to save that for the very end.”

In other words, HUAWEI just scored a welcomed reprieve, but Trump will likely demand concessions during the next trade talks, or he could possibly initiate another ban…

 

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HUAWEI Bluetooth + WiFi + SD + Android Q Rights Restored!

Just as quickly and quietly as HUAWEI lost their Bluetooth, WiFi and SD alliance memberships, they were restored!

They were also added back to the Android Q Beta program! Seriously, what’s going on???

 

What Happened?

It all started on 15 May 2019, when President Trump initiated the HUAWEI Trump ban. That led to Android, ARM, the WiFi Alliance, the SD Association and the Bluetooth SIG to cut ties with HUAWEI over the next few days.

You can read all about it in our full report – The HUAWEI Trump Ban – Everything You Need To Know!

 

HUAWEI Bluetooth + WiFi + SD Rights Restored!

Just as quickly and quietly as HUAWEI was removed as members of the the WiFi Alliance, the SD Association and the Bluetooth SIG, its membership was restored.

There were no press releases, no announcements, no details on why HUAWEI was removed in the first place, or why they were now restored (around 29 May 2019).

Recommended Reading : The HUAWEI ARM Business Suspension – How Bad Is This?

 

HUAWEI Back On Android Q Beta Program!

HUAWEI also found their Mate 20 Pro smartphone back on the Android Q Beta program, just as quietly as it was removed.

The restoration of the Mate 20 Pro into the Android Q Beta program is likely due to the temporary, partial licence issued by the US Commerce Department, which allows for existing HUAWEI devices to be supported with software updates.

Recommended Reading : The HUAWEI WiFi Alliance Suspension Clarified! 2.0

 

Has HUAWEI Turned The Tide?

These sudden, unexpected changes must be a welcomed reprieve for HUAWEI. And the PR value cannot be understated.

Yet there is no clarity about why the WiFi Alliance, the SD Association and the Bluetooth SIG changed their minds about being subject to the Trump ban.

Obviously, they would not have done this without some sort of dispensation or waiver by the Trump Administration. This could be an olive branch to HUAWEI, in return for some concessions from the Chinese government.

Recommended Reading : HUAWEI Outsmarts SD + microSD Ban With NM Card!

 

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The HUAWEI WiFi Alliance Suspension Clarified! 2.0

HUAWEI cannot seem to catch a break. They have been temporarily suspended from the WiFi Alliance, thanks to the Trump ban. But what exactly does this HUAWEI WiFi Alliance suspension mean?

There is so much misunderstandings and false claims on the Internet, we thought we should clear up the confusion…

Updated @ 2019-05-31 : The WiFi Alliance quietly restored HUAWEI as a member. Seriously.

Originally posted @ 2019-05-26

 

The WiFi Alliance

The WiFi Alliance is a non-profit organisation that promotes and certifies Wi-Fi technology, and owns the Wi-Fi trademark.

Based in Austin, Texas, the Wi-Fi Alliance is made up of over 550 member companies, including Apple, Samsung, Intel, Qualcomm, Microsoft and of course, HUAWEI.

 

The HUAWEI WiFi Alliance Suspension

To comply with the US Department of Commerce listing of HUAWEI in the Entity List, the Wi-Fi Alliance has temporarily suspended HUAWEI’s participation in some of their activities.

Wi-Fi Alliance is fully complying with the recent U.S. Department of Commerce order without revoking Huawei Technologies membership.

Wi-Fi Alliance has temporarily restricted Huawei Technologies participation in Wi-Fi Alliance activities covered by the order.

 

Why Didn’t The WiFi Alliance Remove HUAWEI As A Member?

Unlike the SD Association, things are different with the WiFi Alliance, because HUAWEI has contributed significantly to the development of the latest Wi-Fi 6 standard.

Removing HUAWEI completely as a member could jeopardise the Wi-Fi 6 standard, as HUAWEI undoubtedly holds some key patents.

So the WiFi Alliance has to thread carefully… ostensibly complying with the Trump ban, while keeping HUAWEI within the alliance.

Recommended Reading : HUAWEI Outsmarts SD + microSD Ban With NM Card!

 

What Does This Mean For Consumers?

Now, stop listening to your friends who keep sharing scary messages about how your HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone will no longer have WiFi.

The WiFi on your HUAWEI or HONOR smartphone will continue to work normally. In fact, future HUAWEI and HONOR smartphones will still continue to have Wi-Fi capabilities!

Recommended Reading : The HUAWEI P30 Pro vs HUAWEI P30 Comparison Guide!

 

What Does This Mean For HUAWEI?

Let us summarise what this means for HUAWEI, to clear up the confusion for everyone :

  • HUAWEI is still officially a member of the Wi-Fi Alliance.
  • HUAWEI can still make and sell products that use the Wi-Fi standards, including Wi-Fi 6.
  • HUAWEI can still use the Wi-Fi Certified trademark in their products.
  • HUAWEI is just restricted in what input they can have in future Wi-Fi standards.

This temporary Wi-Fi Alliance suspension has no short-term or even medium-term effect on HUAWEI because the upcoming Wi-Fi 6 standard has already been ratified.

Recommended Reading : The HUAWEI Trump Ban – Everything You Need To Know!

 

What Happens If The HUAWEI WiFi Suspension Continues?

If Trump does not lift his ban, HUAWEI will have limited input into the next-generation Wi-Fi standard. This could lead to two possible outcomes :

  1. The Wi-Fi Alliance will have to avoid using HUAWEI technologies in the future Wi-Fi 7 standard.
  2. HUAWEI quits the Wi-Fi Alliance and forms its own competing Wi-Fi consortium with other companies.

Neither are particularly good for the development of better and faster wireless technologies. Alliances work better with more collaboration and cooperation, not less.

But it’s no secret – Donald Trump has never cared about alliances.

Recommended : HUAWEI Legal Motion Too Late, But China Has A Trump Card!

 

And HUAWEI Is Back In Again

Almost as quickly and quietly as the WiFi Alliance removed HUAWEI as a member, they restored HUAWEI’s membership around 29 May 2019.

There was no official explanation for both removing HUAWEI or restoring them, all in a matter of days.

 

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HUAWEI 5G CPE Pro Modem For Home + SME Revealed!

The HUAWEI 5G CPE Pro was first revealed in January. Now, HUAWEI has officially launched their first 5G modem that also supports Wi-Fi 6 technology! Check out what it offers!

 

The HUAWEI 5G CPE Pro

The HUAWEI 5G CPE Pro is powered by the recently-announced Balong 5000 multi-mode 5G chipset. It therefore supports both 4G and 5G connections, as well as older 2G and 3G modes.

In addition to homes, the Huawei 5G CPE Pro can also be used by small and medium-sized enterprises for super-fast broadband access.

Performance

On a 5G network, HUAWEI showed that a 1 GB HD video clip can be downloaded within three seconds, and 8K video can be streamed smoothly without lag.

Its ability to achieve a peak transfer rate of 3.2 Gbps sets a new benchmark for home CPEs (Consumer Premises Equipment).

While those are the current transfer rates, its Balong 5000 chipset is rated for 5G download speeds of up to 4.6 Gbps at the sub-6 GHz spectrum, and up to 6.5 Gbps in the millimetre-wave spectrum. It also has a peak 4G download speed of up to 1.6 Gbps.

For more information, read our coverage of the HUAWEI Balong 5000 multi-mode 5G chipset!

Wi-Fi 6

In addition to 5G, the HUAWEI 5G CPE Pro also supports the new Wi-Fi 6 technology. This allows it to delivers wireless speeds of up to 4.8 Gbps – 15X faster than WiFi 4 (802.11n).

It also has the world’s first “small, cross-polarised” antenna which has a unique two antenna crossing layout. This eliminates the standard 10 mm anti-interference distance between the antennas, reducing its overall size by 20%, while increasing WiFi coverage by 30% in both vertical and horizontal directions.

HUAWEI HiLink

HUAWEI naturally threw in their HiLink smart home platform, which allows easier management of smart devices. You can even use it to build a mesh network, albeit only with other HiLink-compatible HUAWEI access points.

 

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The KEF LSX Wireless Music System Is Now Out!

KEF just launched LSX wireless music system with all the convenience of connectivity and true high-resolution stereo. How will the KEF LSX wireless music system improve your music? Read on to find out more!

 

What is KEF LSX?

The KEF LSX is fully wireless from both source and between the speakers. It features Apple AirPlay 2 technology that enables multi-room streaming from an iPhone, iPad or Mac (in early 2019).

After the success of the LS50 Wireless, the KEF LSX features their Uni-Q driver array, that radically improves stereo imaging across a much wider listening area allowing more people toexperience better sound.

The KEF LSX combines with KEF’s highly advanced trademark-pending Music Integrity Engine, a cutting-edge collection of bespoke Digital Signal Processing algorithms, ensuring accurate time alignment and phase coherence.

 

What Can  The KEF LSX Do?

The KEF LSX is fully wireless both from source and between the speakers, using Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to stream music from Spotify, Apple Music and TIDAL. LSX is also DLNA compliant and boasts TOSLINK Optical and Auxiliary connections, making it ideal for use with TV. It can be set-up in minutes using the KEF’s Control app, which also manages firmware updates as they become available.

The KEF LSX sports four Class-D amplifiers, one for each of the drive units alongside dedicated twin DACs that provide pristine signal path of up to 96kHz/24bit (using the optional wired connection between the two speakers) or 48kHz/24bit in completely wireless operation.

>LSX’s gently curved cabinet was designed with extensive use of Finite Element Analysis as well as  constrained layer damping as found in KEF’s high-end audiophile products.LSX was designed by designer Michael Young who has created a masterpiece of understated elegance and comes in a choice of five colours – Black, Blue, Maroon, and Olive. They are clad in a luxury fabric by Danish textile manufacturer Kvadrat – and a striking Gloss White.

With Spotify Connect (available in November 2018) built in, music lovers can stream Spotify’s entire library directly from the cloud. Uninterrupted streaming lets users watch videos, play games, answer phone calls without pauses to the music even as the listener leaves the room or goes out of range.

LSX goes on sale on 12 November 2018 at selected retailers with a recommended retail price (RRP) of RM 5,999 / ~US$ 1,429.

 

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How To Use World Cup 2018 WiFi Hotspots Safely!

Kaspersky Lab discovered than more than 22% of the World Cup 2018 WiFi hotspots lack encryption, making them quite unsafe for use by football fans. They share some useful tips on how to stay safe while using these World Cup 2018 WiFi hotspots!

 

Many World Cup 2018 WiFi Hotspots Are Unsafe!

According to Kaspersky Lab research, 7,176 of approximately 32,000 public Wi-Fi networks in FIFA World Cup 2018 host cities do not use traffic encryption. This makes them potentially unsafe for use by football fans visiting the cities. The results suggest that fans should take care of their personal data, especially while using open Wi-Fi connections around the FIFA World Cup games.

Global events always result in a concentration of people connecting to networks to upload posts, stay in touch with loved ones, and share the fun with others. However, at the same time, these networks can be used to transfer financial and other valuable information across the Internet. And it’s this information that third parties – not necessarily criminals – can intercept and use for their own purposes.

Kaspersky Lab’s findings are based on an analysis of public Wi-Fi spots in 11 FIFA World Cup 2018 host cities, including Saransk, Samara, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Volgograd, Moscow, Ekaterinburg, Sochi, Rostov, Kaliningrad, and Saint Petersburg. The results show that so far not all wireless access points have encryption and authentication algorithms – aspects that are essential for Wi-Fi networks to remain secure. This means that hackers only need to be located near an access point to intercept network traffic and get confidential information from unwitting or unprepared users.

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The three cities with the highest percentage of unreliable Wi-Fi networks are :

  • Saint Petersburg (37%),
  • Kaliningrad (35%), and
  • Rostov (32%).

In contrast, the safest places were relatively small towns – including :

  • Saransk (only 10% of Wi-Fi spots are open), and
  • Samara (17% of Wi-Fi spots are open).

Almost two-thirds of all public Wi-Fi networks in these locations use the Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA/WPA2) protocol family for traffic Still, it should be noted that even reliable WPA/WPA2 networks can allow brute-force and dictionary attacks, as well as key reinstallation attacks, meaning they are not absolutely secure.

 

How To Use World Cup 2018 WiFi Hotspots Safely!

If you are going to visit FIFA World Cup 2018 host cities, remember to follow several simple rules to help protect your personal data if you plan to use these World Cup 2018 WiFi hotspots :

  • Whenever possible, connect via a Virtual Private Network (VPN). With a VPN, encrypted traffic is transmitted over a protected tunnel, meaning criminals won’t be able to read your data, even if they gain access to it.
  • Do not trust networks that are not password-protected, or have easy-to-guess or easy-to-find passwords.
  • Even if a network requests a strong password, you should remain vigilant. Fraudsters can find out the network password at a coffee shop, for example, and then create a fake connection with the same password. This allows them to easily steal personal user data. You should only trust network names and passwords given to you by employees of the establishment.
  • To maximize your protection, turn off your Wi-Fi connection whenever you are not using it. This will also save your battery life. We also recommend disabling automatic connections to existing Wi-Fi networks.
  • If you are not 100% sure the wireless network you are using is secure, but you still need to connect to the Internet, try to limit yourself to basic user actions such as searching for information. You should refrain from entering your login details for social networks or mail services, and definitely do not perform any online banking operations or enter your bank card details anywhere. This will avoid situations where your sensitive data or passwords are intercepted and then used for malicious purposes later on.
  • To avoid being a target for cybercriminals, you should enable the “always use a secure connection” (HTTPS) option in your device settings. Enabling this option is recommended when visiting any website you think may lack the necessary protection.

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The ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 WiFi Router Revealed!

We were recently invited to the launch of the ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 WiFi router. The Blue Cave is part of ASUS’ new line of lifestyle-focused WiFi routers, which include the ASUS Lyra WiFi mesh system. As such, it’s designed to not only work well, but look good. Let’s take a closer look!

 

The ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 WiFi Router Revealed!

The ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 is a dual-band WiFi router targeted at non-techies. Hence, the emphasis on its aesthetics and user-friendliness. The name Blue Cave, incidentally, comes from the blue circular hole in the middle.

We had an opportunity after the launch to get some hands-on time with the ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 WiFi router. Check it out!

Four Internal Antennas

Its design requires the use of four internal antennas, but that does not mean it is less powerful. According to ASUS, it delivers a peak throughput of 1240 Mbps on the 5 GHz band, which is 20% faster than competing AC2600 routers using external antennas.

ASUS AiProtection

ASUS AiProtection, powered by Trend Micro, is built into the ASUS Blue Cave AC2600 WiFi router. This protects all connected devices, including smart home (IoT) devices, from intrusion, infections and malicious websites.

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Smarter Homes with IFTTT

You can use the ASUS Blue Cave with other IFTTT-compatible devices and apps to create smart automated tasks.

PC-Free Control

You can control the router using a smartphone or tablet. The app will also keep you updated with notifications about network activity, security reports and more.

Family Overview

Parents can use the provided app to easily monitor and control every family member’s Internet and app usage.

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The ASUS Lyra WiFi Mesh System Revealed!

We were recently invited to the launch of the ASUS Lyra. Lyra is a brand-new WiFi mesh system that is designed to provide large homes and offices with corner-to-corner wireless coverage. Let’s take a look at what a WiFi mesh system like Lyra is all about, and how it helps to deliver such extensive WiFi coverage!

 

The ASUS Lyra WiFi Mesh System

The ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) WiFi mesh system consists of three WiFi hubs that boasts tri-band 802.11ac capability, offering speeds of up to 2134 Mbps. Usually, one ASUS Lyra per floor is sufficient, so the basic kit allows you to provide “blanket coverage” for a four-storey home or office building.

Here is a closer look at one of the ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) hubs. Up to five of these Lyra WiFi hubs may be combined to provide corner-to-corner coverage for multiple floors in the building.

Corner-to-Corner WiFi

The ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) WiFi mesh system greatly extends the wireless coverage of your existing WiFi router, eliminating WiFi dead zones.

Single WiFi Network

The ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) mesh system creates a single WiFi network with a single SSID, so coverage is seamless. Your devices connects automatically to the strongest signal, and intelligently switches between Lyra hubs, without the need to change SSID.

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Three Bands For Greater Capacity

The ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) mesh network uses three separate frequency bands. Each Lyra hub uses one band to communicate with the other hubs, leaving the other two bands free to connect to your devices.

Four Smart Antennas

The Lyra’s stylish chassis conceals four smart antennas. Whenever a Lyra hub is added to the network, it assesses the signal strength and quality from each antenna, and selects the best two antennas to use. It also searches for, and connects to, another Lyra hub with the best connection.

ASUS AiProtection

ASUS AiProtection, powered by Trend Micro, is built into every ASUS Lyra (Lowest Price) hub. This protects all connected devices, including smart home (IoT) devices, from intrusion, infections and malicious websites.

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The Latest Cyber Technical Surveillance Counter-Measures

Jason Wells was a military intelligence officer for 17 years, before going into the private sector. He is now the Asia Pacific CEO of QCC Global – the world’s largest company specialising in TSCM (Technical Surveillance Counter-Measures).

In this special presentation at the Kaspersky Lab Palaeontology of Cybersecurity Conference, he gave an overview of TSCM over the years before sharing the latest in Cyber TSCM, particularly with the upcoming 5G technology.

Don’t forget to check out the other Kaspersky Palaeontology of Cybersecurity presentations!

 

Cyber Technical Surveillance Counter-Measures

Like other members of QCC Global, Jason Wells is literally a poacher turned gamekeeper. He now helps organisations prevent their secrets from being leaked or intercepted by technical surveillance.

Here are the key takeaway points :

  • Physical keyloggers are still being used, because organisations ignore the risks.
  • Miniature GSM transmitters (smaller than a one Euro coin!) are now used to wirelessly transmit data over a third-party network.
  • Military-grade devices will use burst transmissions to avoid detection.
  • VOIP calls are possible to tap – as long as the device or line can be accessed, all conversations can be recorded or copied.
  • Light modulation or laser eavesdropping devices are now available to listen from a great distance.
  • WiFi light bulbs can be modified to pick up voices and transmit it to nearby devices via subtle modulation of the light wavelength or frequency.
  • A key concern, other than the typical eavesdropping of corporate offices, is backdoor access to Building Management Systems that are used in many modern buildings.
  • Public WiFi access points are a common source of “man-in-the-middle” attacks, where attackers set-up free access points that mimic actual public access points.
  • Bluetooth technology is a boon to surveillance devices because it is very low-powered. With Bluetooth Class 5, they now have a much longer range (400 m) and twice the speed, while drawing less power.[adrotate group=”2″]
  • Roughly 60% of the surveillance devices that QCC Global detects use cellular technology to transmit their data. The rest still use radio to transmit their data wirelessly.
  • Cellular technology gives an attacker great flexibility in areas of good coverage because he can dispense with additional requirements like a listening post, or rebroadcasters.
  • Using the cellular network also allows the listening device to hide amongst the many mobile devices nearby.
  • 5G technology will be a game-changer, offering new possibilities for technical surveillance.
  • With every 5G device always connected, they will make it much, much harder for counter surveillance companies like GCC Global to detect 5G listening devices.

Don’t forget to check out the other Kaspersky Palaeontology of Cybersecurity presentations!

 

Cyber Technical Surveillance Counter-Measures Slides

Here are Jason’s presentation slides on cyber technical surveillance counter-measures for your perusal :

 

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Name : Adrian Wong
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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

 

Recommended Reading

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NetSpot PRO and Enterprise for Windows Released!

NetSpot just announced that NetSpot PRO and NetSpot Enterprise for Windows are now available! In addition, NetSpot made all purchases universal. You can activate NetSpot on both platforms (Mac or Windows) with the same code!

 

How Does NetSpot Work?

NetSpot is a professional app for wireless site surveys, WiFi analysis and troubleshooting. It is also available for FREE if you just want to do WiFi analysis to improve your home or office WiFi performance.

Best of all, you do not need special equipment to use it. All you need is an Apple MacBook running Mac OS X 10.10 or better, or a laptop running Windows 7 or better. The NetSpot app works with any 802.11 network, whether it’s the old 802.11b standard, or the latest 802.11ac standard.

Analyze your Wi-Fi Coverage

NetSpot is the easiest native wireless site survey software for Mac and Windows. You need just a few clicks to load your office plan or area map before starting a network site survey.

To begin, just point to where you are on the map and NetSpot starts measuring wireless signal right away. You can move around and collect Wi-Fi data of the entire area.

That’s it! Now you have all the needed info to analyze radio signal leakages, discover noise sources, map channel usage, locate effective access points, etc.

 

Visualize Your Wireless Network

Efficiency-wise, your Wi-Fi network needs hotspots placed correctly and wireless channels assigned properly.

The visual Wi-Fi map you get with NetSpot lets you see all dead zones without coverage and optimize hotspots’ placements. You can adjust channels’ load and decide how to use them better.

Wireless Network Planning

NetSpot is also an amazing wireless survey tool for Wi-Fi planning: load a map, collect some wireless site survey data, and build a comprehensive heatmap of your network.

Now viewing each channel separately is as easy as making a pie. Once you locate an empty channel with no wireless networks – it’s the optimal selection for a new Wi-Fi network. NetSpot also lets you easily select channels for new Wi-Fi hotspots with minimal signal-to-noise ratio.

Troubleshoot Wireless Networks

Thanks to new Troubleshooting visualizations, you can easily and quickly identify connectivity and wireless interference issues, find sources of excessive noise, resolve Wi-Fi configuration problems, and get automated professional advice on every issue visualized by NetSpot PRO.

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NetSpot PRO & Enterprise for Windows

NetSpot PRO and NetSpot Enterprise used to be available for Mac OS X, but both versions are now available for Windows as well. Here are the four versions that are currently available for both Mac OS and Windows :

NetSpot made all purchases universal. You can activate NetSpot on both platforms (Mac or Windows) with the same code!

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ASUS PCE-AC88 Dual-Band 802.11ac Wi-Fi PCIe Announced

7 September 2016ASUS today announced PCE-AC88, a dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi PCI Express (PCIe) adapter that instantly upgrades a desktop PC to the latest ultra-fast wireless standard.

PCE-AC88 is the first PCIe adapter to feature a 4×4 (4 transmit, 4 receive) MIMO design that delivers AC3100-class speeds of up to 2100Mbps on the 5GHz band and 1000Mbps on the 2.4GHz band.

For the best signal reception, PCE-AC88 includes a magnetic antenna base that allows flexible placement of the four detachable external antennas on any suitable surface.

PCE-AC88 allows PC users to take advantage of the latest high-speed 802.11ac routers, which offer wireless speeds that match or exceed wired Gigabit Ethernet networking speeds. When paired with a 4×4 802.11ac router, PCE-AC88 unleashes the full performance and coverage potential of the 4×4 MIMO technology, but it is also backward-compatible with all existing Wi-Fi standards.

 

Ultra-fast 802.11ac Wi-Fi — on a desktop PC

The latest ultra-fast 4×4 802.11ac routers require compatible 4×4 Wi-Fi clients in order to unlock the full potential and speed of the 4×4 MIMO architecture. ASUS PCE-AC88 is the first 4×4 802.11ac PCIe adapter for desktop PCs, and uses NitroQAM (1024-QAM) technology to unleash full 4×4 data speeds of up to 2100Mbps on the 5GHz frequency band and up to 1000Mbps on the 2.4Ghz band — speeds that are up to 60% faster than a 3×3 802.11ac adapter. With these faster-than-wired speeds, users can upgrade their desktop PC instantly to enjoy the benefits of smooth streaming and latency-free online gaming.

 

4×4 MIMO design for wider range and more stable signals

ASUS PCE-AC88 is equipped with four external detachable antennas to provide wide coverage and stable signals. The antennas are attached to a convenient magnetic base for flexible placement that can be ASUS PCE-AC88 is equipped with four external detachable antennas to provide wide coverage and stable signals. The antennas are attached to a convenient magnetic base for flexible placement that can be n under the heaviest loads, PCE-AC88 features a custom heatsink design for optimum heat dissipation, resulting in improved stability and reliability.

 

ASUS PCE-AC88 Availability & Pricing

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TP-Link TL-WPA9610 Powerline Kit Announced

2 September 2016TP-Link, a leading global provider of consumer and business networking products, announced the AV2000 Gigabit Powerline AC Wi-Fi Kit TL-WPA9610. With the first powerline product in the world to deliver both AV2000 via powerline and AC1200 via Wi-Fi, it fulfills the most demanding networking tasks throughout the home. Along with the latest innovations in their home networking portfolio, the AV2000 Gigabit Powerline AC Wi-Fi Kit TL-WPA9610 was unveiled at this fall’s IFA, which will run from September 2-7 in Berlin.

Today’s typical home looks something like this: a living room television streaming the latest season of a hit drama series, a bedroom laptop broadcasting a video chat with family abroad, a family room game console deep in another live multiplayer matchup, and several smartphones and tablets browsing, sending and posting as they move from room to room. Simply put, the modern home needs a faster network for more devices at the same time. Luckily, the TL-WPA9610 delivers exactly that, supporting any router with a host of industry-leading features.

 

Wired and Wireless Speed Like Never Before

The TL-WPA9610 connects the network to the world’s first product with both AV2000 and AC1200 speeds. For wired devices, it takes advantage of the HomePlug AV2 standard to support data transfer rates of up to 2000Mbps. At such high speeds, wired devices such as consoles, computers and digital media players can effortless stream 4K video. For the home’s wired devices, dual band ac Wi-Fi delivers up to 1167Mbps. 300Mbps 2.4GHz is ideal for web browsing, emailing and social media posting, while 867Mbps 5GHz enables HD streaming and lag-free gaming.

 

Designed for Stability and Ease

The TL-WPA9610 is meant to open your entire home to the network, so it features technologies to achieve this with peace of mind. 2×2 MIMO with beamforming establishes simultaneous connections to enjoy higher powerline speeds and greater stability, so rooms farther away from the router can finally connect through its power outlet. Wi-Fi Clone automatically copies the network name (SSID) and password of the router with the touch of the Wi-Fi Clone button, making for quick and simple setup, while Wi-Fi Auto-Sync applies all Wi-Fi settings across the powerline network with the Pair button.

“Our Powerline devices are well-received for their impressive performance in delivering wired and Wi-Fi data throughout the home’s electrical wiring, and the TL-WPA9610 is our latest advancement,” explained Kevin Wang, Head of TP-Link Europe. “By combining the fastest powerline speeds and robust ac Wi-Fi, it gives every device in the home access to make full use of the network.”

 

TL-WPA9610 Key Features

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  • AC1200 dual band delivers up to 1167Mbps* Wi-Fi speeds over 2.4GHz (300Mbps) and 5GHz (867Mbps) bands
  • HomePlug AV2 standard supports high-speed data transfer rates of up to 2000Mbps, supporting all your online needs
  • Gigabit Ethernet ports enabling lightning-fast wired connections
  • 2×2 MIMO with Beamforming establishes multiple simultaneous connections for you to enjoy higher powerline speeds and greater stability to hard-to-reach power outlets
  • Wi-Fi Clone button automatically copies the network name (SSID) and password of your router with a single touch
  • Wi-Fi Auto-Sync allows you to automatically sync your Wi-Fi settings across your Powerline network by pressing the pair buttons
    tpPLC utility allows easy management of powerline devices and the powerline network through an intuitive web interface, while the tpPLC app enables management through your mobile device (Android, iOS)
  • Supports 802.11ac and backwards-compatible with 802.11a/b/g/n

 

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ASUS USB-AC68 WiFi Adapter Announced

5 September 2016ASUS today announced USB-AC68, a pocket-sized dual-band 802.11ac Wi-Fi USB 3.0 adapter with AC1900-class performance that offers an instant wireless networking upgrade for a laptop or desktop PC.

 

ASUS USB-AC68

With a 3×4 MIMO configuration and ASUS AiRadar beamforming for optimum reception, USB-AC68 delivers ultra-fast Wi-Fi performance — up to 1300Mbps on the 5GHz frequency band and 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band.

The ASUS USB-AC68 has two internal antennas plus two external 3-position folding antennas that help improve reception in any environment. In order to remove potential data bottlenecks, USB-AC68 uses a USB 3.0 interface, which is up to 10 times (10X) faster than USB 2.0.

USB-AC68 has a stylish and futuristic design, featuring a black and red color scheme, and it comes with a handy cradle for desktop use.

 

Upgrade a laptop or desktop PC to ultra-fast Wi-Fi — instantly

Many laptops and desktop PCs are unable to take full advantage of the capabilities of modern 802.11ac routers, as they only have previous-generation Wi-Fi. With ASUS USB-AC68, users can enjoy an instant upgrade to the latest Wi-Fi standard simply by plugging it in to a spare USB port.

Delivering speeds of up to 1300Mbps on the 5GHz frequency band and 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band, USB-AC68 offers faster-than-wired-networking speeds for smooth streaming and low-latency online gaming. Maximum performance is achieved when paired with an 802.11ac router, but USB-AC68 is fully backward-compatible with all previous Wi-Fi standards.

Flexible antenna configuration for optimum performance

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For wide coverage and stable reception, ASUS USB-AC68 has a 3×4 (3 transmit, 4 receive) MIMO configuration. It features two internal antennas, plus two additional external antennas that fold neatly into the body of the device. When the device is plugged directly into a USB port these 3-position antennas can be extended at 90° to the adapter body, and when it is used in the supplied desktop cradle they can be deployed at 180° to the adapter for optimum reception. These convenient folding antennas ensure that USB-AC68 is perfectly portable, yet delivers the best possible reception.

For the clearest signals and most stable connections, the ASUS AiRadar feature in USB-AC68 uses beamforming to focus signals towards the Wi-Fi source for better reception.

ASUS USB-AC68 is a USB 3.0 device with data-transfer speeds up to 10 times (10X) faster than USB 2.0, ensuring no data bottlenecks between the adapter and the computer. For flexibility it is also fully compatible with USB 2.0 ports.

 

USB-AC68 Pricing & Availability

 

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Western Digital Introduces New WD Pro Series

In an exclusive media event yesterday, Western Digital introduced the new WD Pro Series, spearheaded by the My Passport Wireless Pro mobile WiFi storage, and the My Cloud Pro NAS series. In this video, Albert Chang, Senior Manager of Product Marketing at WD Asia Pacific, explains the key features of both WD Pro Series devices.

Designed for the creative community, the new WD Pro Series is designed to enable seamless transfer of content between devices, whether the users are on a remote shoot, in the studio or editing their work at home. Both WD Pro Series devices use the My Cloud mobile app to manage their content. They are also both compatible with the Plex Media Server, and My Cloud OS 3 software.

 

My Passport Wireless Pro

The new My Passport Wireless Pro mobile WiFi storage is an upgraded version of the original My Passport Wireless mobile WiFi storage drive. Using the direct WiFi connection, users can automatically back-up content from up to eight compatible cameras or devices. You can also use the built-in SD card reader and USB 2.0 port for data transfers.

The My Passport Wireless Pro is available in 2 TB and 3 TB capacities, and will come with a 6,400 mAh battery that can last up to 10 hours. The battery can even serve as a power bank to recharge smartphones and other digital devices.

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My Cloud Pro Series NAS

Offering up to 32 TB of storage, the My Cloud Pro Series NAS are optimised to import from cameras and memory card readers or other USB storage using a simple one-touch backup button. But it doesn’t just serve as a backup NAS.

The My Cloud Pro Series NAS boasts a hardware-accelerated video processor, giving it powerful transcoding capabilities. This allows the My Cloud Pro Series NAS to store, edit and stream content to and from a variety of formats with ease.

 

WD Pro Series Pricing & Availability

Both WD Pro Series devices will be available at select retailers in August and is distributed by Eternal Asia (M) Sdn Bhd in Malaysia.

The My Passport Wireless Pro mobile WiFi storage will have a manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) of RM 1,099 / ~US$275 (3TB). It will come with a 2-year limited warranty.

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The My Cloud Pro Series NAS will be available in two versions – the 2-bay My Cloud Pro PR2100, and the 4-bay My Cloud Pro PR4100. Both will have a 2-year limited warranty for diskless models and 3-year limited warranty for populated models.

The My Cloud Pro PR2100 will have a MSRP of RM 1,759 / ~US$439 for the diskless NAS, RM 2,699 / ~US$675 for 4TB, RM 3,279 / ~US$819 for 8TB, RM 4,229 / ~US$1059 for 12TB and RM 4,599 / ~US$1,149 for 16TB.

The My Cloud Pro PR4100 will have a MSRP of RM 2,589 / ~US649 for the diskless NAS, RM 4,159 / ~US$1,039 for 8TB, RM 5,749 / ~US1,439 for 16TB, RM 7,699 / ~US$1,929 for 24TB and RM 7,999 / ~US$1,999 for 32TB.

 

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U Mobile Launches WiFi Calling

KUALA LUMPUR, 26 May 2016U Mobile Sdn Bhd, the telco with the fastest mobile network in Malaysia, is the first in the industry to offer WiFi Calling service to its customers. With the new service, customers will be able to make and receive voice calls over a personal or public WiFi connection. Hence, every available WiFi station in the world will effectively become a U Mobile network tower, expanding the telco’s reach way beyond its current network footprint.

One of the key challenges faced by telco operators in Malaysia today is providing good in-building voice coverage especially for high-rise and offices. U Mobile WiFi Calling is the perfect solution to voice coverage issues as most buildings today have WiFi connectivity.

 

U Mobile WiFi Calling

U Mobile WiFi Calling is available to both its prepaid and postpaid customers from today at no additional charge. With the new service, customers will be able to call and receive calls even in areas of limited network coverage such as basements, indoor or remote areas as long as they are connected to a WiFi terminal.

Unlike other Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) calls such as Skype, Viber and WhatsApp, WiFi Calling provides a similar experience to normal mobile phone calls as WiFi calls are made and received using existing mobile numbers. Apart from that, one may make WiFi calls to both mobile numbers as well as landlines. One may also make IDD calls with WiFi Calling.

As for U Mobile customers who are travelling, U Mobile WiFi Calling offers savings, as there will be no roaming charges for any calls made via a WiFi connection. This means, every time a U Mobile customer makes a WiFi call to a Malaysian number, regardless of where he or she is, the call will be treated like it was made from Malaysia.

Jasmine Lee, U Mobile’s Chief Marketing Officer said “U Mobile is growing rapidly and we strive to provide good coverage to our ever increasing number of customers wherever they might be. We believe WiFi Calling will be of great benefit as our customers no longer have to worry about not being able to make or receive calls, even in areas where network coverage may be weak like in basements as long as there is a WiFi connection. The best part is the U Mobile WiFi Calling experience is incredibly seamless”

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To enjoy WiFi Calling service, U Mobile customers need to ensure that the WiFi Calling function on their smartphone is enabled and that they are connected to U Mobile’s WiFi Calling service. Once that is done, WiFi Calling will be a seamless experience for U Mobile customers.

Calls made or received via WiFi Calling will be in High Definition (HD) Voice*. The service is available to U Mobile customers with iPhone 5C, 5S, SE, 6, 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus models. U Mobile will also be offering WiFi Calling to customers with Android phones soon.

HD Voice is available when the call is being made or received from a mobile phone that supports HD Voice via a HD Voice enabled network.

 

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ASUS RP-AC68U Dual-Band WiFi Repeater Launched

Kuala Lumpur, 4th May 2016 — ASUS today announced the immediate availability of the ASUS RP-AC68U here in Malaysia. It is top-of-the-range 802.11ac (AC1900) dual-band Wi-Fi repeater. The compact and stylish RP-AC68U features four internal high-performance antennas (3 transmit, 4 receive) and allows users to easily extend coverage of an existing 802.11ac Wi-Fi network with ultra-fast speeds of up to 1900Mbps.

 

ASUS RP-AC68U

The ASUS RP-AC68U is equipped with a USB 3.0 port for connecting storage devices. This high-performance port supports ASUS AiCloud and delivers up to 10-times (10X) faster data transfers than USB 2.0.

Five Gigabit Ethernet ports add great flexibility for connecting wired devices, and combined with the convenient Media Bridge mode they allow users to convert any wired network devices to wireless operation. RP-AC68U can also be used in Access Point mode to add ultra-fast Wi-Fi convenience to any existing wired network.

The compact RP-AC68U has a sophisticated and stylish design, with illuminated red accents that can be turned on or off by a convenient touch sensor incorporated in the ASUS logo on the front. With its simple one-touch setup and LED signal strength indicators for optimized installation, RP-AC68U is the hassle-free way to extend ultra-fast Wi-Fi coverage to any part of a home or office.

 

Extend ultra-fast Wi-Fi, everywhere!

ASUS RP-AC68U works by connecting wirelessly to an existing router and extending the Wi-Fi signal to areas of poor coverage, which are often a problem in large or multi-floor homes. With its blindingly-fast up to 1900Mbps combined speeds (600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 1300Mbps on the 5GHz band), the ASUS RP-AC68U is the perfect companion for extending the coverage of the latest 802.11ac routers, but it can also be used with routers supporting any older Wi-Fi standards.

RP-AC68U is perfect for extending multi-device HD streaming, online gaming, and other bandwidth-intensive tasks to every corner of the home.

 

Create a personal cloud server with AiCloud

The ASUS RP-AC68U includes a USB 3.0 port that delivers up to 10-times (10X) faster data transfers than USB 2.0, ensuring fast and responsive performance for connected USB storage devices.

Users can easily create their own personal cloud server by connecting USB storage and using the ASUS AiCloud app to access and stream stored content anywhere. AiCloud is a free app for iOS and Android™ devices, and works seamlessly with RP-AC68U to give users the ultimate mobile flexibility.

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Connect more devices with five Gigabit network ports

With five Gigabit Ethernet ports for connecting wired devices, RP-AC68U gives users the performance and flexibility to configure their home network to suit any situation.

With RP-AC68U, users now have the freedom to connect all their wired devices — including game consoles, PCs, smart TVs, printers, NAS devices and much more — and make RP-AC68U the powerful heart of their home media and gaming network.

 

Easy setup and installation

Setting up and installing the RP-AC68U couldn’t be easier: the user simply needs to press the WPS button on both RP-AC68U and the router, and that’s it! There’s no CD needed and the entire operation can be completed without a PC.

For the best results, the ASUS RP-AC68U needs to be located in a position where there is a sufficiently-strong signal from the router. Perfect installation is made foolproof thanks to RP-AC68U’s dedicated LED signal strength indicators for each frequency band, which help the user find the best location for RP-AC68U.

 

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ASUS RT-AC5300 Tri-Band WiFi Router Revealed

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (23rd February, 2016) — ASUS Malaysia today announced RT-AC5300, an ultra-high-performance AC5300-class tri-band wireless router, with Broadcom NitroQAM technology that delivers the world’s fastest combined Wi-Fi data rates of up to 5334Mbit/s.

Designed as the ultimate state-of-the-art router for enthusiasts and gamers, the futuristically-styled RT-AC5300 uses a 4×4 (4-transmit, 4-receive) MIMO antenna array on all three bands. Combined with AiRadar universal beamforming and Tri-Band Smart Connect, RT-AC5300 provides outstanding multi-device performance, with super-wide coverage.

For the smoothest-ever online gaming, RT-AC5300 includes an exclusive built-in game accelerator powered by Gamers Private Network (GPN) from WTFast, which significantly reduces ping times and latency for an unrivaled experience in virtually all competitive multi-player online games.

The stunning better-than-wired speeds of RT-AC5300 will be a boon to any gamer needing the freedom and convenience of Wi-Fi, with the reliability and performance normally associated with a wired network.

 

The world’s fastest Wi-Fi speeds, delivered to more devices!

Increasingly, the available wireless bandwidth in a household has to be shared between a large number of Wi-Fi-enabled devices, including laptops, smartphones, tablets, smart TVs and smart home devices. To provide additional bandwidth for these multi-device households, RT-AC5300 uses a tri-band AC5300-class design, with two independent 5GHz frequency bands and one 2.4GHz frequency band.

Broadcom NitroQAM technology boosts the maximum speed of each 5GHz frequency band from the standard 1734Mbit/s to a blistering 2167Mbit/s, and on the 2.4GHz frequency band speeds are increased speeds from 800Mbit/s to 1000Mbit/s for a world-leading combined throughput of 5334Mbit/s — over five times (5X) the bandwidth of a wired Gigabit Ethernet connection.

This extreme bandwidth means that the advanced RT-AC5300 provides users with more than enough capacity to deliver low-latency online gaming, smooth streaming of 4K/UHD videos and ultra-fast file sharing to all connected devices.

 

Enhanced Coverage, For Every Device, Everywhere!

For outstanding multi-floor and multi-room coverage, ASUS RT-AC5300 uses eight detachable dual-band external antennas in a 4×4 MIMO array, with ASUS AiRadar universal beamforming providing unrivaled multi-device performance and wireless signal coverage. AiRadar focuses the Wi-Fi signal on a device to improve performance, stability and range.

 

Built-In Game Accelerator For Smooth, Fast Online Gaming

ASUS RT-AC5300 includes an exclusive built-in client and a free subscription to WTFast that gives users the very best online gaming experience — at no extra cost! WTFast uses GPN, a dedicated global private network, which automatically gives users the lowest ping times and reduced latency — critical network parameters in online games — for smooth, uninterrupted gameplay.

GPN can reduce average game ping times by 30-60%, lower average speed deviations by 70-90%, and cut bad router hops by 70-90%. By routing gaming data packets automatically via the most efficient internet route, packet loss is reduced, ensuring a responsive and frustration-free gaming experience. GPN supports virtually all competitive multi-player online games, and has optimized settings for many of the most popular titles.

The game accelerator is integrated into RT-AC5300’s easy-to-use ASUSWRT graphical user interface, so it consumes no system resources on the game device. This also means that the benefits can be experienced on any gaming platform — including Windows, Mac OS, Linux and game consoles — regardless of the manufacturer or operating system.

 

Advanced Technologies For Enhanced Speed, Reliability And Ease Of Use

ASUS RT-AC5300 features many state-of-the-art technologies to enhance performance and improve stability even on the busiest networks.

[adrotate banner=”4″]Tri-Band Smart Connect technology intelligently selects the optimum frequency band for each device, based on the device’s speed, its signal strength, and how busy each band is. This means users never have to decide which band to use, as RT-AC5300 does it all automatically. The result is better range and faster, more reliable connections — all the time!

For advanced users, Link Aggregation (802.3ad) support provides a way of combining two of the Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports into a single ultra-fast 2Gbit/s wired connection (using two network cables). This feature, normally only found on professional-grade network switches, will be of particular interest to users with high-speed network-attached storage (NAS) devices, which increasingly offer 802.3ad support. This means that users can fully exploit the capabilities of the latest NAS devices, for fast device backups and file sharing.

 

ASUS RT-AC5300 Price & Availability

The ASUS RT-AC5300 is available for purchase at the recommended retail price of RM 2,199 (~US$ 519), inclusive of GST.

 

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