Malaysia’s second 5G network currently deployed by U Mobile has achieved 54.9% 5G population coverage according to Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil. This marks a major milestone just months after U Mobile launched its ULTRA5G network with Berjaya Times Square as its first location.
Based on Fahmi’s tweet, U Mobile’s own 5G network has already covered a high percentage of populated areas in the Klang Valley and here’s the breakdown for the top states and territories in Malaysia:
- Putrajaya – 99.7%
- Kuala Lumpur – 90.9%
- Labuan – 90.8%
- Pulau Pinang – 82.3%
- Selangor – 70.9%
With Kuala Lumpur having over 90% of 5G populated coverage, we decided to put U Mobile’s ULTRA5G network to the test using U Mobile’s Prepaid SIM.
Take note that U Mobile customers can now access two different 5G networks – “U Mobile” via DNB network and “UM ULTRA5G” which runs on their own 5G network.
For this test, we ran speed tests around multiple locations in Kuala Lumpur which were all conducted outdoors.
To ensure that we are connected to U Mobile’s 5G network, we made several attempts for our Galaxy S24 Ultra to connect to the “UM ULTRA5G” network. If it doesn’t switch after a few minutes, we turn “Airplane mode” on and off, to give it a chance to search and connect to the ULTRA5G network.
Once connected successfully, the Network name should reflect as “UM ULTRA5G”. If it just shows “U Mobile”, that means the device is connected to DNB’s network.
Since we are using a prepaid plan, we won’t be able to access 5G SA and 5G Advanced. U Mobile has enabled 5G SA only for customers on their postpaid plans of RM98 and above.
However, the main objective of this test is to check the live availability of the ULTRA5G network. Below is the full breakdown including the 5G Network, ping, download and upload speed.
Out of 19 locations in Kuala Lumpur, we only managed to connect to ULTRA5G at 5 locations namely TTDI, TRX (Exchange 106), Bukit Bintang (in front of Lot 10), Berjaya Times Square and GMBB (along Jalan Pudu). This shows that U Mobile customers in Kuala Lumpur are still heavily reliant on DNB’s network for 5G services.
That’s only 26.3% of tested areas ( 5 out of 19 ) being covered by ULTRA5G, and the reality which seems far off from the purported 90.9% 5G population coverage.
It could be possible that U Mobile may have the sites ready but they are not commercially “on-air” yet. At the time of writing, U Mobile has not disclosed its immediate 5G rollout targets and there’s no coverage map to illustrate ULTRA5G’s coverage footprint. The ULTRA5G page only mentions that ULTRA5G is now available in Berjaya Times Square.
The orange telco’s long term goal is to achieve 80% 5G population coverage by the second half of 2026. This is followed by 90% 5G population coverage a year later.
We’ve reached out to U Mobile to seek clarity of ULTRA5G’s current rollout including the number of active sites accessible by customers.
In terms of performance, the telco’s very own ULTRA5G does show higher download and upload figures ranging from 357Mbps to 682Mbps. This is to be expected as DNB is currently shared by multiple operators with more active subscribers versus U Mobile’s own 5G network which has lower load.
U Mobile ULTRA5G: 90.9% 5G population coverage in KL? We put it to the test
News Reports PH
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