I made my way to the KLCC a few weeks ago for what i expected to be an extremely crowded event. Judging from last year’s turnout for the iPhone 4 launch @ Gardens, i thought it smart that Maxis moved the launch to a bigger venue this year – the KLCC Convention Centre.
I arrived promptly at 8pm to see a long queue stretching across a few Halls. I thought, “This is crazy..! People are nuts..!” as the new iPhone 4S was only going to launch at the stroke of midnight, so they had 4 more hours to wait!
The media gathered in Hall 2 for the speeches and Q&A session.
Speeches were to start at 8:30pm, then dinner at 9:30pm.
I was hoping everything would run on time cos i WAS STARVING and a hungry fairy is a distracted one!
Thankfully, everything went according to schedule and the speeches started on the dot.
Besides having brought in the first iPhone to Malaysia in 2009, Maxis continues to offer a whole range of smartphones to customers which has resulted in more than 7.5 million active mobile users.
Sandip Das, Chief Executive Officer of Maxis, said, “Having an iPhone is one thing, but to experience it on Maxis is something else.” He then went on to elaborate on Maxis’ support of its customers’ continued demands, how they were improving data network experiences, and the wide range of data packages available to everyone’s needs.
Maxis is offering four new iValue plans for customers, with the highest combined mobile & WiFi data of up to 11GB. Of course, if you don’t think you require that much, you can just go for the other iValue plans. View all the plans *here*
Also included in the new iValue plans are:
– increased data quota
– free WiFi connection of 4GB per month across Maxis hotspots nationwide
We can download the Maxis WiFi app for free to find out the nearest WiFi hotspots at any time. Besides the aforementioned app, i was interested to know that Maxis has launched a Customer Service app – the first for any telco on the iPhone in Malaysia. This app will allow customers to easily access their account and bill info, subscribe/unsubscribe to services and contact Maxis’ Customer Service. If this is going to help me keep track of my bills, i’m all for it.
T. Kugan, Vice-President and Head of Products, Devices & Roaming
Most of us know that the iPhone 4S’ most interesting feature is Siri – the first Personal Assistant software that is available to us on a commercial phone. I watched this video some months back, when i was researching what Siri was about:
It’s pretty crazy right? Imagine not needing to manually key in what you’re searching for! The iPhone 4S is seriously the future in our hands.
Besides Siri, the iPhone 4S is includes:
– Apple’s dual-core A5 chip for blazing fast performance and stunning graphics
– an all new camera with advanced optics and full 1080p HD resolution video recording (i’ve seen amazing comparisons online bout this cam!)
– iOS 5, the world’s most advanced mobile operating system with over 200 new features
– iCloud, which means no more plugging USB cables. It automatically and wirelessly syncs your iPhone, iPad, Mac or PC devices together.
After the speeches and Q&A sess, all the media were treated to a buffet dinner. It felt really good to have some smoked salmon & salad, fried rice & chicken curry, and two cups of hot black coffee thrown in to last me till past midnight.
After dinner, i was walking around thinking i should look for Kenny to catch up, when he appeared right in front of my face! So we both headed to the VIP Launch Party at Hall 4, to have some drinks, chat and wait till midnight.
The Launch Party was set up all swank, with enough space and drinks going around constantly for a large number of people!
Performances were going on back to back so people were well-entertained while they waited.
Henry Golding and Elaine Daly emceed the party
me & Kenny
I was wearing flats that night and told Elaine how i look like an absolute SMURF next to her in the picture -_-
Jayaram + i
JJ and Jayaram – i feel the love!
After a few hours of drinks and chatting, Kenny and i hurried back to the Hall where the FIRST people were going to be let in to buy their iPhone 4S. The queue that i observed at 8pm had multiplied by then from Hall 1 – Hall 4!
[pic courtesy of Maxis]
Just LOOK at how crowded it was!
We still had a few minutes to go so we took pictures of ourselves :p Hey, we rarely see each other anyway!
Even the payment counters seemed to be holding their breaths… all still and waiting for the barrage of people to enter in a short while.
All the photographers were poised with cameras in hand… waiting…
The Maxis head honchos all waiting by the door to personally greet and congratulate the first customers to walk through that night…
A massive countdown was going on outside, led by Henry, and we could all see it from the huge live screens in the hall. 5 seconds! 4… 3… 2… 1… 0!!!
It was one of those occasions being short was not so great.
Some of the first people in Malaysia to get their hands on the brand new iPhone 4S with Maxis!
Every customer who had been queueing got a number which flashed up on screens coupled with counters they should be heading to. Talk about efficient!
Sandip Das, Chief Executive Officer; Raja Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Arshad bin Raja Tun Uda, Chairman; Fitri Abdullah, Head of Enterprise and Government Business; and T. Kugan, Head of Product, Device, Innovation & Roaming showing the new iPhone 4S.
////////////////
Customers will enjoy a 0% interest installment plan and existing customers will be able to conveniently upgrade to new plans which features enhanced data and WiFi. They will also be able to extend their contract with Maxis, making it possible for everyone and anyone to own an iPhone with Maxis.
The iPhone 4S is available at all Maxis Centres and Maxis Exclusive Partners (MEPs) nationwide from today!
To view the rates, click *here*!
