Fact: Young Malaysians change their mobile phones every 12-18 months. But telco contracts usually tie you down for 24 months. Hence, you’re stuck with an old phone by the time you serve out your contract. Well, here’s some brilliant news. Maxis announced today its Zerolution program – a breakthrough phone ownership program that lets you upgrade to a new phone, every single year.
Present at the media launch was Dushyan Vaithiayanathan, Maxis head of consumer business; Arjun Arman, Maxis head of postpaid; and Michael Tung, Maxis head of device marketing.
It’s a long time coming. While we’ve been tied down with long contracts and obsolete devices, consumers overseas have enjoyed the option to upgrade their phone every 12 months.
Zero is one helluva good number
The great news is that now with Maxis you can too. Maxis brings the first ever phone contract that combines Zero Cash Upfront, Zero Penalties for changing plans, Zero Interest easy instalments (no credit card needed) and the revolutionary “New Phone Every Year” feature.
You can walk into a Maxis Centre or Maxis Exclusive Partner store nationwide with merely your IC (you won’t even need to bring your wallet), and come out with a brand new phone.
The device instalment is billed conveniently together with your monthly bill, and no, there is absolutely no upfront payment or advance fees and no lock-in period.
You no longer need to feel trapped in a 24-month contract as you’ll be able to upgrade to a new device every 12 months, by paying a small fee of RM30/month.
A selected range of flagship devices will be offered including the Samsung Galaxy S6, HTC One M9+ and more. More devices will be offered soon.
When you upgrade in 12 months, though, you will need to hand in your old phone in working condition. Maxis also offers an add-on insurance premium for your device to ensure it’s always in good condition, for RM15/month.
The only pre-requisite for the program is that you need to be a MaxisONE plan subscriber. You can subscribe to a new plan, migrate from an old plan like SurfMore, or port from another network.
New MaxisONE plans
Maxis unveiled new MaxisOne plans that now offer up to 8GB of data. The plans offer truly limitless calls and SMS across the board.
The base MaxisONE plans starts at RM98/month and spans to RM128, RM158 and RM188 delivering 1GB, 3GB, 5GB and 8GB of data quota respectively.
MaxisONE plan also offers extras including free unlimited social chat via WhatsApp, WeChat, LINE and more. Additionally, you get a free Spotify Premium subscription with a separate data quota.
READ ALSO: MaxisONE Plan dissected: Is this the ultimate worry-free postpaid plan?
When I asked the Maxis team later regarding exclusive perks for MaxisONE Club members, I was informed that MaxisONE Club (MOC) Elite members will get a waiver on the RM30 upgrade fee. You can check the status of your MaxisONE Club membership via the MyMaxis app on your Android or iOS device.
Naturally, as a MOC member you’re already pre-qualified for Zerolution and its benefits.
Initial thoughts
This is a brilliant move by the Malaysian #1 telco, and one that’s been long overdue. You may argue that this might resemble U Mobile’s Easy Payment Plan, but aside from being an instalment plan, they’re really quite different. From the offset, this isn’t a financing/leasing plan.
Firstly, zero upfront fee means you do not have to shell out hundreds and sometimes thousands as upfront payment for the device you’re buying. And also no advance payment fee as you would a traditional plan. That makes it affordable from the get go.
Secondly, the yearly upgrade option is attractive. With the speed of how mobile devices are improving every 6-8 months, it lets you own the latest devices while not being tied to a long-term contract.
The program isn’t for everyone, of course. But, for early adopters and those who love to be current, this is the only plan that gives you the flexibility and affordability.
