Both of these get shortlisted by the same buyer profile — family upgrader or second-home buyer looking for a proven freehold on the northern seafront — and the decision comes down to what matters more: precinct amenity around your building, or boutique building feel with area amenity next door. Here's how I'd frame it.
The short version
- Buy Andaman @ Quayside if: you want E&O's Straits Quay marina and retail spine as part of your daily walkable amenity, and you're comfortable sharing the estate with the other Quayside towers.
- Buy Setia V Residences if: you want a boutique 178-unit tower with larger family-scale floor plates, and you're happy to walk out into Gurney's established area rather than a masterplan.
- Both wrong for: buyers who want the newest available product (both are completed 2017-2018, so the "new build" premium isn't on the table — Lightwater Residences or W Residence Gurney Bay fit that instead).
Side by side
| Factor | Andaman @ Quayside | Setia V Residences |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | E&O Property Development | SP Setia |
| Location | Seri Tanjung Pinang, Tanjung Tokong | Gurney Drive |
| Tenure | Freehold | Freehold |
| Land title | Residential | Residential |
| Total units | 338 | 178 |
| Unit sizes | about 914 – 4,800 sqft | 1,300 – 4,118 sqft |
| Completion | by 2017 | 2017 |
| From price | RM1,280,000 | RM1,580,000 |
| PSF | RM1,086 – 1,955 | RM1,000 – 1,400 |
| Building density | Large tower | Boutique tower |
| Amenity model | Integrated precinct | Standalone tower + area |
| Zac's rating | 4.7/5 | 4.3/5 |
Two developers with different design instincts
E&O built Andaman as part of a masterplan. That's the point of the building — the marina retail, the seafront promenade, the wider Seri Tanjung Pinang street network were designed as one integrated address. When you buy Andaman, you're buying into that whole system, not just a tower.
SP Setia built Setia V as a standalone premium condo on Gurney Drive. There's no in-precinct retail, no marina, no linear park under the building. What SP Setia gave 178 households instead is a lot of amenity per unit — infinity pool, sky deck, sky lounge, gym, badminton and squash courts, sauna, jacuzzi, function rooms, and generous common areas. If Andaman spreads its amenity out into the precinct around it, Setia V concentrates its amenity into the building itself.
Neither is objectively better. The Andaman resident's Saturday morning is a walk to the marina for coffee; the Setia V resident's Saturday morning is a swim in the sky deck pool followed by a short drive up Gurney Drive for lunch at Gurney Plaza. Different rhythms, both legitimate.
What "no compact investor stack" actually means at Setia V
Setia V's layouts start at 1,300 sqft. That is family-scale entry — there is no 800-1,000 sqft investor unit in the building. Every neighbour is a household using the unit as a home rather than a Bonvoy-lite rental. That resident consistency shows up in daily building feel: quieter lifts, fewer short-let guests coming and going, a more residential atmosphere.
Andaman's smallest unit is about 914 sqft, but it also has the full range up to about 4,800 sqft and the tenant mix in the compact units skews more toward investors and shorter-term occupiers than at Setia V. Not dramatically, but noticeably.
For a family that plans to move in and stay, Setia V's homogeneous owner-occupier profile is a real plus. For a second-home buyer who doesn't mind the wider tenant mix — and gets the precinct amenity in return — Andaman's diversity is a non-issue.
Things to think through first
At Andaman: the density trade-off is real. If you value quiet common areas and short lift waits, 338 homes, plus the shared Quayside estate, means more foot traffic than at Setia V's 178. Also, the exact unit and floor matter far more than at Setia V — 80% psf spread within Andaman is orientation-driven, so walk the exact unit before offering.
At Setia V: the amenity programme is generous for 178 units, which is pleasant to live with and a recurring cost to check. Ask the JMC for the service charge per square foot and the sinking-fund position. Also, thin ease of resale — when you sell, you have almost no competing sellers within the building (good for pricing) but a smaller active buyer pool watching it (longer time-to-market).
For both, ordinary due diligence at year seven-to-eight of a tower's life: first major maintenance cycles are approaching, ask for sinking-fund contributions history and any special-contribution decisions in the last three years.
What I'd do
The decision I see most buyers land on: if precinct amenity around the building matters, Andaman. If interior space at the entry ticket and boutique building feel matter, Setia V. For a family-upgrader Malaysian buyer already living near Gurney Drive, Setia V is often the smoother lifestyle transition — you're staying on the same area. For a foreign second-home buyer who's not tied to Gurney, Andaman's precinct integration is usually the more legible amenity story.
Neither is a mistake for the right buyer. Both are proven, both are freehold on residential title, both are foreign-eligible. The tiebreaker is lifestyle preference, not project quality.
Zac’s Take
Zac Ong
Both are proven completed freeholds on residential land title, both foreign-eligible, both on Penang's northern seafront — but they answer different lifestyle questions. Andaman @ Quayside is E&O's 338-home Tanjung Tokong tower pair with delivered precinct amenity; Setia V Residences is SP Setia's boutique 178-unit Gurney tower with generous in-building amenity and no in-precinct retail. My working rule: if you already live near Gurney and want to stay there, Setia V is the natural upgrade; if you want a purpose-built waterfront masterplan and precinct walkability, Andaman is the honest answer. Setia V has larger minimum floor plates (1,300 sqft vs 1,127 sqft) and slightly lower psf on family-scale units, so if interior space is the priority at the entry, Setia V is a rational value pick.
Where to go from here
Tell me on WhatsApp whether you already live on the Gurney side of the island (Setia V is usually the smoother move) or elsewhere (Andaman is worth the walk-through), plus your budget and family size. Both buildings have real active inventory — I can arrange back-to-back viewings the same day.
Full reads: Andaman @ Quayside review, Setia V Residences review, Best condos in Gurney Drive 2026, Best condos in Tanjung Tokong 2026. For the foreign-buyer costs, see the foreign buyer guide.
Sources: Both projects' specs checked against E&O Property Development and SP Setia materials, plus live portal listings September 2026. Foreign-buyer rules per Penang state policy and Budget 2026. Prices change often, so ask for the current figure on the home before you make an offer.