Good news for Xiaomi fans everywhere, MIUI 9 Global ROM 7.9.7 update is now live and the third batch of Xiaomi smartphones are now eligible to download it which you can get it from Xiaomi's forum thread here. Below is the list the third batch that can be updated:

Xiaomi just announced that the latest MIUI 8.2 update is now rolling out to most of the Xiaomi phones made over the last 2 years. These devices would progressively receive the update over-the-air (OTA) through the Updater app. Users can also run a manual update by downloading the update from here too.

The first round of devices that’ll receive the MIUI 8.2 update are: Mi 3, Mi 4, Mi 4i, Mi Note, Mi Max, Redmi 1S and Redmi Note 4G.

Xiaomi's MIUI 8 beta has been going well so far, the Stable version is ready and has started rolling out in Over-the-Air (OTA) update worldwide. Xiaomi smartphones that are running on MIUI 5, 6 and 7 will definitely get the update. Below is the official list of phones that will get the update first:

Great news for Mi fans, Xiaomi is getting ready to roll out their latest OS - the MIUI 8 globally with a beta ROM through online. Only a few selected devices will get the update today and the rest of the devices will follow. Below are the official devices that can get the beta ROM:

Mark your calendars! On 27 October 2015, Xiaomi is excited to present you the MIUI 7 Global Stable Build for MIUI users to upgrade their phones! MIUI fans will be able to update their beloved phones through over-the-air (OTA) on the Updater app next Tuesday or visit the MIUI download page to download the ROM package. 

Devices getting MIUI 7 global stable build on Oct. 27 are: 

• Xiaomi Mi 3 
• Xiaomi Mi 4 
• Xiaomi Mi Pad 
• Xiaomi Mi Note
• Xiaomi Redmi 1S 3G 
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G, 
• Xiaomi Redmi 2/Prime

The Mi Fan Festival is starting today with various games, discounts and deals for Xiaomi or Mi Malaysia products. As stated earlier the Mi Fan Festival discounts will start from 10.00am to 10.00pm on 8 April 2015 while stocks last and the new Mi products will be put on sale at 12pm and 8pm. Discount coupons won from the Give Mi Five game can also be used except for the Redmi 2, Redmi Note 4G and Mi Pad. In addition, new deals and products are also available like the 30% PayPal discount and the Mi Headphones going for just RM319.

Xiaomi Malaysia recently announced that only one device in their range of products available will be affected by the impending implementation of GST. This device would be the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4Gwhich goes to RM625. All other products like the Redmi 2, Mi Pad, Mi Band and various Mi Power Banks or Headphones will stay with the same pricing as before. This also means that the Redmi Note 4G will be available for RM589 from now till 11:59pm, 31 March 2015 so if you've been planning to buy the Redmi Note 4G, now is the time to get it. Asides from 4G LTE, the Redmi Note 4G offers tech specs that include a Snapdragon 400 processor, 5.5-inch display, 13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera.

Celebrate an abundance of good fortune with a brand new smartphone and the best plans to stay on top of this Chinese New Year 2015! Taking advantage of Malaysia's fastest and most reliable mobile network, Celcom are offering various smartphones for the Year of the Goat with the FIRST by Celcom plan. Utilizing Celcom's OPTIMISER feature with the FIRST plans you can get a mobile plan personalized exactly for your needs based on your usage. Featuring up to 4GB of WiFi Internet or up to 250 minutes of voice and 250 SMS FIRST plans offer one of the best packages around. Offering something for every user, the smartphones available for Celcom's Blue Cube Outlets Chinese New Year Campaign include the following from RM38 to RM1088:

• Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G ~ RM88 with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM589)

• Samsung GALAXY Note 4 ~ RM1088 with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM2,499)

• BlackBerry Passport ~ RM988 with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM2,399)

• Sony Xperia Z3 ~ RM988 with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM2,399)

• OPPO Find 7 ~ RM538 with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM1,798)

• OPPO Neo 5 ~ RM38  with Celcom FIRST plans (RRP: RM598)

Drop by a CELCOM BLUE CUBE store and ask for any of these smartphones and the plan, FIRST by Celcom to get massive savings for this Chinese New Year. For more information regarding this promotion and the various smartphones check out the Celcom site or www.celcom.com.my.

While Xiaomi Malaysia have yet to officially announce the Xiaomi Redmi 2 for Malaysia just yet, the Redmi 2 and Redmi Note 4G smartphones are already available via Malaysian third-party sellers. A quick search on Lelong.com.my reveals that the Redmi Note 4G is going for RM519 while the Redmi 2 is going for RM459 from third-party sellers like SatuGadgetDotCom and DirectD. Both smartphones support 4G LTE tech specs but the Redmi 2 packs in a 64-bit Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor. The Redmi 2 price may be a bit higher than the expected Malaysia pricing but the Redmi Note 4G is actually priced lower than the RM589 it is being offered for on the official Mi Malaysia site (but it may have not-original warranty). In related news, Xiaomi Mi Power Bank prices have gone up with the 10400 mAh Mi Power bank costing RM49 from RM36, while the 5200 mAh Mi Power Bank now costing RM34 from RM25 due to a rise in value for the Chinese Yuan.

The newly announced ASUS ZenFone 2 and ZenFone Zoom smartphones are making waves around the world as ASUS have opted to make one really good ZenFone instead of a new version for each of the three previous original ZenFone smartphones. Due to the 5.5-inch display (which hits a very nice sweet spot in our opinion) the closest original ZenFone in terms of size would be the ZenFone 6, so we've used our tech comparison tool to compare all three smartphones. Key features that the new ZenFone 2 and ZenFone Zoom bring to the table are 64-bit Intel Processors, 5MP selfie-ready front cameras, 4G LTE cat 4 connectivity, dual tone LED flash and for the ZenFone 2, rear volume controls. While there are no Malaysia release dates yet, we expect the ZenFone 2 and ZenFone Zoom to reach us in the next few months or so as the original ASUS ZenFone smartphone range was launched regionally in April 2014.

Local Malaysia price details for the ASUS ZenFone 2 or ZenFone Zoom are also unknown still but based on the current US price of $199 (RM707) we expect the 2GB RAM ZenFone 2 to be priced around RM699. This would result in a drop in price for the existing ZenFone 6 and other previous ZenFone smartphones. Rumours indicate that AnTuTu benchmarks for the new ZenFone 2 could be around 39000 to 41000, which is a huge jump over the previous ZenFone 6 which scored 19661 on AnTuTu. Feel free to compare the ASUS ZenFone 2 or ZenFone Zoom with other smartphones using our tech spec comparison tool or check out the links below:

• ASUS ZenFone 2 vs ASUS ZenFone 5 vs ASUS ZenFone 6
• ASUS ZenFone 2 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 4 vs Huawei Ascend Mate 7
• ASUS ZenFone 2 vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G vs Samsung Galaxy Grand 2