Here’s a comprehensive comparison of Samsung Galaxy S9 telco plans in Malaysia

The Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ are hitting Malaysia on 16 March 2018. If you prefer to get it on contract, it’s now available on our big 4 telcos – Celcom, Digi, Maxis and U Mobile. So which telco has the lowest cost of ownership, lowest monthly commitment and the most data for your money? It’s time for a telco plan comparison for the Galaxy S9 and S9+.

To recap, there are a total of 4 models available and below is the official Malaysian pricing:
Samsung Galaxy S9 64GB – RM3,299
Samsung Galaxy S9+ 64GB – RM3,799
Samsung Galaxy S9+ 128GB – RM3,999
Samsung Galaxy S9+ 256GB – RM4,399

For the 64GB and 128GB models, it comes in Midnight Black, Coral Blue and Lilac Purple, however, the 256GB model is only available in Midnight Black for the time being. Among all telcos, only Celcom has the full range of products while the other three – Digi, Maxis and U Mobile, are only offering the Galaxy S9 64GB and Galaxy S9+ 128GB.

At the moment, all four telcos are accepting pre-orders and you can receive your unit as early as 9 March, which is a week before it hits retail outlets. Unlike the previous Galaxy S8/S8+ pre-order promo, Galaxy S9 and S9+ pre-order customers will get a Harman Karon Wireless Bluetooth speaker worth RM699.

Below is a comparison of all plans sorted by their monthly subscription from lowest to highest with a breakdown of its data quota, calls, minutes and subscription fees. You can click on the table below for a bigger view.

When deciding on a plan, we recommend that you get one that fulfils your monthly usage. It’s normal for telcos to offer the device at a lower price if you commit to a higher monthly plan but that would also drive up the overall cost of ownership. It would be a waste if you can’t fully utilise your plan’s monthly quota.

Also listed is the advance payment which telcos would often require when signing up for a contract plan. This would be rebated back to your monthly bills and on certain telcos, it could be rebated across 24-months. If you’re an existing loyal customer, some telcos would waive this advance payment if you have been with them for at least a year with good payment history.

Monthly commitment below RM130

Monthly commitment of RM130 above

Don’t want to fork out thousands of RM upfront? There’s another option…

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If you don’t want to fork out so much cash for the Galaxy S9/S9+, both Celcom and Maxis are also offering easy payment plans which allow you to pay for your brand new phone in 24-month instalments. Below is the comparison of the base instalment plans without any optional device protection or upgrade add-on.

Maxis Zerolution has RM0 upfront while Celcom EasyPhone would require 3X EasyPhone monthly fee as advance payment which will be waived for existing Celcom customers of at least one year. Unless you’re an existing Celcom customer of at least 3 months with no call barring, you are also required to sign up with auto-billing with Master or Visa credit card.

With these device instalment plans, you don’t need to pay RM2000-3000 upfront for the phone but if you compare them versus the normal contract plans, the cost of ownership is significantly higher. If you already have a credit card, it would probably make more sense to go for a standard contract unless you’re really interested in the yearly upgrade option on Maxis Zerolution.

Before you lock yourself into a 24-month contract, there are several things to consider. The biggest one is network coverage and its performance in your area. Not all 4G networks are the same and its performance varies depending on location. So even if a telco offers huge amounts of data, it would be pointless if you can’t get a decent connection. There are several ways to determine if a network is good in your home or at work. One of it is to use 3rd party tools such as OpenSignal and YouTube Video Checkup. Alternatively, you can get a prepaid SIM and try it out or ask someone who’s using the network in your area.

Hate contracts altogether? The Galaxy S9 and S9+ are also available directly from Samsung Malaysia or through retailer Senheng/senQ and Harvey Norman. It’s also available through e-commerce sites such as Lazada, 11street and Shopee.

To learn more about the Galaxy S9 and S9+, you can check out our first impressions and our feature rounddown post.