There’s no denying that the internet has become a necessity in our everyday lives. Sadly though, while the price of mobile data has dropped drastically over the past few years, it can still be a burden for many. Not everybody, especially students or those from low-income families, can afford to pay so much just to stay connected. Hence it is important that they get the most out of what they can afford.
With that in mind, we’ve put together a comparison of prepaid data plans you can get for RM30 a month on some of the most popular prepaid telcos and MVNOs in Malaysia. We selected RM30 as it is usually seen as “the golden number” for prepaid reloads – this amount usually comes with a 30-day validity period to keep the number active throughout the month.
U Mobile
As always, U Mobile is the telco that offers the most data – not just monthly data, but also additional unlimited data for use on some of the most popular apps and services available. It comes with unlimited App-OnzTM, unlimited Music-OnzTM, unlimited late night streaming on YouTube, and unlimited data for Waze.
App-OnzTM provides unlimited data for social media apps including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This is available for all U Mobile Unlimited Power Prepaid subscribers.
Music-OnzTM on the other hand provides unlimited data for streaming on some of the most popular music streaming services including Spotify, Apple Music, Joox, Tidal, Milk Music, various local radio station apps, and more.
If that’s not enough, for you night owls, UMI 30 also provides free unlimited data for late night YouTube usage every day from 2am to 10am. Finally, UMI 30 also comes with unlimited data for Waze, so you can have peace of mind knowing that even if you are out of monthly data, you can still navigate around on Waze.
As for other usage like regular web browsing and mobile gaming, UMI 30 comes with up to a total of 10GB of monthly data. There’s 7.5GB for you to use on anything and everything, and 2.5GB of Video-Onz data for use on some of the most popular video streaming services such as iflix, Netflix, YouTube, Facebook, tonton, Astro Go, HyppTV Everywhere, Viu, and many more.
App-Onz, Music-Onz, Video-Onz and free unlimited data for Waze are available 24/7 and on any U Mobile network you are connected to. Combined with the huge data allocation, makes this a really good plan for those who are always connected.
Hotlink
The RM30 Hotlink Fast Plan monthly internet plan sounds pretty interesting. It may come with only 2GB of monthly data, but it also offers additional data (though it can get a little tricky). You get free 8GB weekend data, and also 30GB Happy Hour data.
Happy Hour data offers 1GB of data for free each day of the month, but it’s only valid for one hour from 7am to 7pm. In order to claim the free Happy Hour data, users will need to do so via Hotlink’s Red app. On top of the 8GB free weekend data, Hotlink will offer FAST plan subscribers free 1GB of 4G LTE data every Saturday and Sunday.
Do note that the free 8GB weekend data is only valid for 4G LTE network, which means that if you are connected to 3G, Hotlink will deduct from your monthly internet quota.
Xpax
Xpax recently launched brand new internet plans that continues their #NoKelentong tagline, offering a fuss-free experience to its subscribers. The RM30 monthly plan comes with a generous 5GB of monthly data, as well as 10GB of high-speed internet for use on Facebook, which is great for heavy social media users.
Unlike Hotlink’s time and network limit, there isn’t any additional limit on Xpax’s data; the data quota can be used “for anything, on any day, whether on 4G or 4G networks without any split quota”, and the 10GB high-speed internet for Facebook is for all your usage on the social network.
Digi
For Digi, the telco has got two different internet plans that cost about RM30 a month. For those who only need only internet, the RM30 Internet Plan comes with 5GB of data, and as part of the telco’s biGBonus, you get an additional 30GB of data.
But, there’s a slight catch. The biGBonus is limited to 1GB of free data each day from 1PM to 7PM – making it similar to Hotlink’s Happy Hour (albeit with longer validity period). In addition, this promotion is only valid until 31 August 2017.
On the other hand, if you need more than just data, Digi’s RM28 Internet Plus Plan offers 3GB of high-speed internet, 300 minutes of free local calls, and Facebook Bonus data for use on Facebook and Twitter (limited to 500MB a day only).
Tune Talk
Tune Talk also has got two different data plans for around RM30. The RM28 Datatata plan comes with 4GB of monthly data, and if you reload RM30, you get an additional 1GB of high-speed internet for free. It is a simple and straightforward plan with no limitation on the time and network you are on.
However, the newly launched +Vibe 30 plan is definitely more attractive than the former, offering 4GB of data, 2GB of free data, as well as RM5 airtime credit. One caveat: all of the telco’s +Vibe plans are available online only, and subscription must be made via Tune Talk’s website.
Mcalls
Mcalls, a newly launched MVNO in Malaysia, definitely has one of the most interesting plans. You do not need to subscribe to any additional data plans – just top up RM30 on your Mcalls number, and the Y33 plan will grant 5GB of data, 33 minutes of calls, and 33 SMS. The data and calls & SMS are completely free, and you get RM30 of airtime credit for any additional usage. The telco rides on Digi’s mobile network, so coverage should also not be too much of an issue.
Final Words
For what each plan offers, U Mobile definitely wins this battle, with the best value for money deal of them all. For RM30, the UMI 30 prepaid plan gives you the most amount of data at 7.5GB that can be used on all online activities – with no limitations. On top of that, you also get unlimited data for App-Onz, unlimited Music-Onz, unlimited Waze, and free calls to all networks. Together with an additional 2.5GB of data for Video-Onz, that makes a total of 10GB of data.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that the other prepaid plans are not good. If you are patient enough to claim your free Happy Hour data from Hotlink, it adds up to 30GB of data at the end of 30 days. Digi’s biGBonus promotion is very attractive too, however, it is a limited promotion that will be ending soon.
The Mcalls Y33 prepaid plan is no slouch either, being the only telco that does not require you to subscribe to a data plan; all you need to do is reload RM30, and you get 5GB, 33 minutes of free calls, and 33 free SMS, along with RM30 of airtime credit.
But in terms of sheer value for money and flexibility in how you can use your data, U Mobile’s UMI 30 prepaid plan is definitely worth a closer look.
Disclosure: This article was sponsored by U Mobile.
