Tag Archive for 'Nairobi'

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A review of Samsung’s Galaxy Mini Android.

Published on October 2, 2011 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments Tags: 2011, android, Galaxy Mini, Kenya, Nairobi, October, review, safaricom, samsung.

The Samsung Galaxy Mini

I have been using Samsung’s Galaxy Mini (model GT-S5570) for the better part of a month, or slightly longer. The Galaxy Mini is being retailed in Kenya for Kes. 12,999.00 by Safaricom which places it in the entry-level range of Android handsets available in the market to-date. This is more expensive than Huawei’s IDEOS which has been a runaway success for Safaricom but its also a more capable phone on many levels. Included in the Safaricom price for the Galaxy Mini is 600 MB of free data for three months or rather 200 MB per month which is decent enough for most people. In reviewing the Galaxy Mini, here are the details based on my experience:

Screen Size: On holding the Galaxy Mini for the very first time, a few things caught my attention. The first was the size of the screen. Its a large 3.14 inch screen which got me all excited. This is almost as large as the screens you get on much more expensive Android phones in the market. However, on turning the phone on, I was disappointed with the quality of the screen – clearly this was no AMOLED or Super AMOLED screen with a fuzzy looking resolution of only 240 X 320 with a range of only 262 colours. However, I got used to it, eventually.

The back of the Samsung Galaxy Mini

Packaging: In terms of the packaging or the casing of the Galaxy Mini, it does feel low-end in terms of the finish. However, for the price on offer this is hardly a surprise and it certainly does have a “plasticky” feel that seems to plague all low-end (and sometimes high-end) smartphones. Its pretty hefty in terms of weight at 106.6 grams but you really could not compare it to an HTC or iPhone in this respect, which generally have a solid metallic feel. It does however have a “chunky” feel to it that I like.

Responsiveness: In terms of panning through apps on the Galaxy Mini, the experience was generally was satisfactory but not excellent in my opinion. You did feel at times that the processor was light-weight and it took ages for apps to open at times – hanging was not uncommon after a few weeks. But putting things in perspective, this is an entry-level Android that I am STILL using it as I write this review.

Memory: The Galaxy Mini comes with limited phone-based storage. However, you do get a Micro SD card with 2GB which is sufficient for handling most of your multimedia needs for video and audio. However, it is small compared to what you get on more expensive Android handsets which can be in the region of 16GB out of the box. But then again, this is an entry-level handset.

The Galaxy Mini - Exposed

Contacts: As mentioned earlier in this blog post, I was able to download all my contacts from my iPhone and Outlook. However, I was also able to integrate and synchronize Facebook and Twitter contacts as well. This is a pretty nifty feature as it puts everything in one place.

Camera: The Galaxy Mini can do video and stills. Still pictures are taken at 3 MP which is not bad for a phone of this level. However, it lacks autofocus and a flash which are now becoming commonplace on more recent Android handsets being launched globally. Personally, it’s worked really well for me and I have no complaints.

Battery Life: I was actually quite impressed with the battery life on the Galaxy Mini. It does not always last as long as I would like but at least it could take me through a whole day – provided I turned off the Internet when I did not need it from sucking all the battery life. The regular email and social media notifications are quite simply battery draining.

Video: The Galaxy Mini worked well in terms of accessing YouTube videos. However, it does NOT support Flash which is a hindrance to browsing a good number of web sites. I can only imagine that this is the case due to processor constants.

The Galaxy Mini - Side Profile

Music: I used the Galaxy Mini in the gym as a replacement for my iPhone. It comes with all the expected accessories such as headphones with basic controls. However, the user interface and overall experience including the quality of sound could not match that of an iPhone or iPod.

Networking: The Galaxy Mini is able to connect to data in a myriad of ways. It supports EDGE and 3G meaning it get online fast. However, it also supports Bluetooth and WIFI networking. Lastly, like the Huawei IDEOS, it can also work as a WIFI hotspot for multiple computers. In a nutshell, it connects, whenever and wherever you need it to!

Conclusion

In concluding, I have found that the Galaxy Mini was able to meet both my professional and personal needs when it came to having an entry-level Android handset. It did however have some short-comings like the screen quality and becoming less responsive as I installed more applications and content. I was able to use it for work email and personal email, as well as social media apps, etc. It worked and continues to work for me. However, it’s not a Galaxy S or Galaxy S2 – but then again these phones cost 3 to 5 times as much. At the end of the day however, the Galaxy Mini is a decent Android phone and I would recommend it with a strong buy if you are budget constrained and want great value for money.

Is e-ticketing finally taking off in Kenya?

Published on October 2, 2011 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: africa, BernSoft, concerts, e-ticketing, e-tickets, events, Kenya, music, Nairobi, PataTicket, Pesapal, TicketSasa.

Buying and selling of tickets, or ticketing, is not a particularly sexy topic in Kenya when it comes to technology. In fact, you could say, the business of ticketing has remained in the proverbial dark ages with only a few businesses and companies bothering to digitizing the process – be it paying for bus tickets or the next big music concert. One of the major players in this space would have to be Kenya Airways who have had an online booking engine for years that lets you buy tickets using your credit card or mobile money. Personally, I have bought tickets on Kenya Airways using M-Pesa and apart from being super convenient for someone like me, it works just fine!

However, when rethinking the concept of ticketing in the context of technology in Kenya, this is an area that has been largely untouched, until now that is. Over the last year or so, it seems to me that two companies are aiming to capitalize on this nascent opportunity to streamline the ticketing process for businesses and people, online, and on mobile. The big deal here is that there are over 10 million Internet users in Kenya and over 16 million mobile subscribers have access to mobile money in the form of Safaricom’s M-Pesa. This convergence of sorts if a BIG untapped opportunity for a vast range of digital services, e-ticketing included.

E-ticketing from TicketSasa.com

The first company of note is PesaPal, which is probably the first business that really got into on e-ticketing in a serious way. I remember buying tickets to the Jonathan Butler concert held in Nairobi late last year in this way, using Safaricom’s M-Pesa for payment. However, what was ironic is that on arriving at the concert, no one (initially) seemed to know about the e-tickets that had been sold and someone had to rummage through a file to get details. I suspect that this logistical hiccup must have been resolved by now at current and future events. PesaPal has since branded their e-ticketing offering as TicketSasa.com and it seems they are signing up a good number of businesses – it seems to be paying off.

E-ticketing from PataTicket.com

The second company of note in Kenya’s burgeoning e-ticketing space came to my attention this past week. I am attending the Safaricom Classical Fusion event this afternoon and having been out of the country I needed to buy tickets online by this Friday as this was the deadline. After searching online, I found a solution through PataTicket.com which seems to be a product of BernSoft, a well-established ICT solutions business based in Nairobi. It seems to me that PataTicket is essentially the same as TicketSasa and what remains to be seen is which of these offerings will scale fastest in signing up businesses, and become a part of mainstream consumer brand consciousness.

South Africa's leading e-ticketing business, Computicket.co.za

I think that the e-ticketing space has a very large opportunity in Kenya and the broader East African region. What is already apparent in both TicketSasa and PataTicket is that mobile money and more specifically Safaricom’s M-Pesa will be key due to the lack of adequate credit card penetration in the region – it’s a perfect fit! It means that long queues and missed opportunities could be a thing of the past for a wide range of businesses that need e-ticketing solutions. It would be great to see this reach the level of what I recently experienced in South Africa when using CompuTicket to buy movie tickets – it works across a myriad of payment channels and they even have an Andorid mobile app. South Africa’s CompuTicket is essentially how far both SasaTicket and PataTicket could potentially go. It’s a bright future for e-ticketing in Kenya – whichever way you look at it!

[Video] Dealfish interview with Lizz Ntonjira on NTV PM Live.

Published on August 26, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: 2011, Dealfish, East Africa, Interview, July, Kenya, Lizz Ntonjira, Moses Kemibaro, Nairobi.

This is an interview I had last month on the 25th July 2011 with Lizz Ntojira on NTV’s PM Live Show. We discussed how Dealfish has performed thus far in East Africa, as well as other Internet related aspects in Kenya and the broader African continent. For those of you who missed it, here it is finally!

Orange finally launches the second 3G mobile data service in Kenya.

Published on August 25, 2011 in Uncategorized. 13 Comments Tags: 2011, 3G, August, Kenya, launch, Nairobi, orange.

Today will go down as a big milestone in Kenya’s mobile broadband history as Orange Kenya officially launched its 3G network this morning. Details including pricing are still sketchy as of this writing but various sources on social media noted that their network will be able to run as fast as 21 Mbps from day one.

This means that Kenya now has its second 3G capable mobile network after the long standing monopoly that Safaricom had for years. It also explains why Safaricom earlier this week launched its 21 Mbps capable dongles in the media since they probably knew of Orange Kenya’s impending 3G launch. All the same its refreshing to see that there is finally a second 3G network to compete with Safaricom and hopefully we will see much better pricing for the services going forward.

What remains to be seen is how Airtel Kenya will respond to Orange Kenya stealing the march on them by launching 3G services earlier on their network. Its a major coup for Orange Kenya and frankly I would finally consider buying an Apple iPhone 4 on their network on this very basis with the good packages they have been offering recently. Meanwhile, let the 3G price wars begin!

AccessKenya signs-up Airtel for fibre network backhaul services in Mombasa and Nairobi.

Published on August 18, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: 2011, AccessKenya, airtel, announcement, August, Backhaul, fibre, Kenya, launch, mombasa, Nairobi, optic, partnership, Voice.

Press Release

AccessKenya and Airtel Kenya (Airtel) have entered into a partnership that grants Airtel access to AccessKenya’s extensive fibre optic network to provide connectivity services for fixed line voice services, also known as “E1″.

In the deal, Airtel will buy E1 circuits from AccessKenya’s fibre optic network in over 300 building sites in Nairobi and Mombasa to connect their customers. By taking up the service, Airtel is now set to leverage AccessKenya’s extensive fibre presence to reach more customers, more buildings and to give highly reliable services.

Speaking during the signing of the partnership, the two companies acknowledged the need for getting into a strategic partnership to continuously give superior and reliable services to customers. AccessKenya’s Mr. Somen stated: “Our goal remains to provide the most reliable, most consistent services in Kenya backed up with first class customer service. Given our record uptime of 99.93 per cent last year on our fibre network, partnering with Airtel to provide top quality fixed line services will help both companies to further expand our market shares. By forming a partnership with a leading and global brand such as Airtel, it reinforces our ability to deliver world-class services to the Kenyan public.”

Airtel’s Rene Meza observed that the partnership is a perfect complement to Airtel’s goal of offering first class services in support of its goal of providing a truly differentiated and superior quality customer experience of its products and services. “This new partnership helps us strengthen our competitive position besides the quality delivery of our voice services through AccessKenya’s excellent fibre network to the delight of our customers in Nairobi and Mombasa”, said Mr. Meza.

Through the deal, Airtel will gain access to AccessKenya’s existing fibre network as well all new buildings the firm connects every month (at least 10 new buildings are connected every month). This move is expected to significantly improve revenue for both companies as Airtel sells fixed voice services to new clients while opening new wholesale revenue streams for AccessKenya.

Said Mr. Somen: “We have invested millions of shillings in building this capacity to provide backhaul services for mobile networks. This deal marks our first wholesale agreement with a mobile network and that further enhances our services and leverages our investment in infrastructure and primarily our outstanding fibre network”.

[More] on social media and QR codes in Kenyan print advertising.

Published on August 8, 2011 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: Advertising, August 2011, Bata, Customer Service, Kenya, marketing, Nairobi, Newspapers, NikoHapa, print, QR Codes, Safariom, sales, social media.

No. I am not going to preach on how social media is going into overdrive in Kenya – you already know that, or you should know that already? In addition, as in my recent post on QR codes coming into print advertising in Kenya, I do not intend to go “gaga” over the same.

So, social media and QR codes are “happening” in Kenya. I want to cite three cases of this happening with local Kenyan brands over the last couple of weeks in leading newspapers. The first in this case (and no special prizes for guessing) is Safaricom.

Safaricom is really getting social media “mojo” as seen with all their recent media campaigns that embrace Twitter and Facebook. They use these channels for customer service and sales. Have a look at the picture on the left of the print ad. In addition, in what is probably one of the first for QR codes for a local brand is the QR code on the right image in the print ad. This is really good.

But it’s not just Safaricom that’s doing interesting stuff with social media, QR codes and print ads. Take a look at the ad on the left that ran in the newspapers for Bata Kenya. They had a nice print ad with some their recently launched shoes for women. However, they also leveraged this (expensive) print ad and dropped in mentions for their Twitter and Facebook profiles (however, no QR code here, yet?).

It goes to show that Bata Kenya takes social media seriously for marketing and customer service (incidentally I tested them recently after buying a pair of shoes that collapsed after a few months and got in touch via Facebook – they actually responded and showed serious concern to sort the issue out for me).

My last example of some interesting use of QR codes is a business called NikoHapa. NikoHapa is a business that operates on the basis of using QR codes and SMS via mobile phones to generate sales using loyalty points.

This in itself is nothing particularly new – it’s the same as a discount card or a loyalty card for a business like frequent flyer miles work for many airlines. However, it’s a souped up approach using mobile technology to work.

I think NikoHapa is an excellent idea but I worry as to how well it will scale over time. It means signing up lots of businesses and issuing lots of printed QR codes linked to a database as well as SMS charges for sending notifications for loyalty points. However, its a novel business concept and it could really grow if it catches on.

Nokia’s “Create for Millions” Series 40 Mobile Apps Contest Launched In Kenya.

Published on July 30, 2011 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: 2011, announcement, applications, apps, Contest, Create for Millions, iHub, July, Kenya, launch, Mobile, Nairobi, nokia, Register, Series 40.

Yesterday I was at the iHub in Nairobi for Nokia’s launch of its local version of the “Create for Millions” mobile apps contest. The contest has both a local and global versions that aim to bring consumers and developers together to create applications for Nokia’s Series 40 mobile phones.

In light of the hyper-growth and interest surrounding smartphones globally, it’s very easy to forget that the majority of mobile subscribers in emerging markets such as Kenya cannot afford them. It’s for this very reason that entry-level phones such as Nokia’s Series 40 handsets continue to lead the market in terms of uptake and general internet usage as per statistics. Therefore, this is still a very large market for mobile apps, even as smartphones become more widely adopted.

The best thing about the local version of Create for Millions is that three winners will be chosen by a select panel of judges and they will be flown to London on an all expense-paid trip to attend Nokia World which will be held in October 26-27, 2011. Nokia has invited me to be one of the judges on this local panel so this is something I am really looking forward to.

The last day for entries in the local Create for Millions competition is the 2nd of September 2011 so there is not that much time left. One thing that left me thinking that Kenya could really win the global event is that VirtualCity did this last year and pocketed a cool US$ 1 million in Nokia’s Calling All Innovators mobile apps contest. It’s very possible!

So, if your that budding mobile application developer or a tech firm that has the chops to enter, good luck and give it a go by registering online at www.developer.nokia.com/create4millions/

[Business Daily Article] Mobile Advertising needs apps to grow.

Published on July 28, 2011 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: 2011, africa, applications, Article, business, business daily, Dealfish, Digital, Frankline Sunday, Internet, July, Kenya, marketing, Mobile Advertising needs apps to grow, Moses Kemibaro, Nairobi, Neil Schwartzman, web.

Mr Moses Kemibaro (left), Dealfish regional manager for East Africa, and Mr Neil Schwartzman, general manager for East and West Africa. The firm has challenged local online publishers to place inventory on mobile web.

This is an article from today’s edition of the Business Daily Newspaper in which I was quoted and Dealfish also got good mention. The article by Frankline Sunday talks about the importance of local mobile applications in Kenya for mobile (web) advertising to really take off. In effect, local publishers and mobile application developers are key to drive growth. You can read it here>

[Video] Interview with Johann Van Tonder of Naspers Labs.

Published on July 27, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: 2011, iHub, Interview, Johann Van Tonder, July, Kenya, Labs, Moses Kemibaro, Nairobi, Naspers, Video.

This is a video interview I had with Johann Van Tonder yesterday at the iHub in Nairobi. Johann is the Internet Strategist at Naspers Labs and he has an interesting and long professional career in South Africa’s media and Internet space. Naspers Labs is sort of a skunkworks for Naspers in South Africa that works on various Internet business projects and initiatives, off the radar.

In the interview, Johann was unable to disclose much about why he was in Kenya and what plans they have for launching some of their initiatives here. However, one thing is certain, in a few months time Naspers Labs will launch at least one of their projects in Kenya, and even possibly in Nigeria. He did however note that Kenya is truly an exciting and fast growing market for technology services across the board.

For those of you who may not know, Naspers is one of world’s leading media groups with operations mostly in emerging markets. Naspers owns MIH Internet Holdings which in turn owns and operates Internet brands such as Dealfish which I happen to run in East Africa. Naspers is quite a large business with lots of diverse interests on a global scale. Therefore, the two-year old Naspers Labs is just one of their many initiatives that aims to build out Internet businesses in Africa and beyond. Enjoy the interview!

Safaricom slashes Internet prices by 150%.

Published on July 22, 2011 in Uncategorized. 15 Comments Tags: announcement, Bundles, cheap, data, July 2011, Kenya, lower, Nairobi, rates, safaricom.

Press Release

Move is meant to pass the benefits of an improved business and regulatory environment to customers and is in response to the presidential directive on internet pricing.

Beginning today, Safaricom subscribers can enjoy more affordable internet services following a major price reduction as the country’s leading telecommunications company passes on the benefits of an improved business and regulatory environment to its customers.

The reduction has been effected by increasing the data volume for every bundle by up to 150 per cent for the same value. For example a subscriber who pays KShs999/- for 600 MB of data will now get 1500 MB, indicating a more than double increase in data volumes.

The move to lower the data access rates follows yesterday’s meeting between industry players and Government which was held to discuss how best to implement the Presidential directive calling for a review of internet pricing in Kenya. President Mwai Kibaki made the directive two weeks ago when he launched the government open data website (www.opendata.go.ke), which aims to boost transparency in governance and empower citizens with relevant information.

It further follows commitments made by the industry regulator, Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK) and the Ministry of Information and Communication to lower spectrum fees and review the overall spectrum policy for industry players by end next of month.

The government has also undertaken measures to address rampant fibre vandalism, which has been a huge cost to the industry, as well as classify ICT infrastructure as national utilities to bring the sector up to par with power and water providers. The new guidelines are expected to allow for compensation by local authorities and public works bodies for damage occasioned to ICT infrastructure during road or sewer construction.

According to the new prices issued today, heavy data users will also have the option to subscribe to either a weekly tariff for KShs1,000 or a monthly tariff for KShs3,000. This allows them to manage their data spend and access internet without worrying about their usage.

While announcing the reductions, Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore said the move was in line with the Safaricom 2.0 culture which puts customer needs at the centre of all the firm’s actions. “We are continuously reviewing our value proposition to ensure that our customers enjoy unrivalled communication services at the most affordable rates while expanding the options available to them.
“Safaricom is sensitive to the strain placed on our customers’ finances by the obtaining high cost of living and hence our effort to ease this by passing the benefits of an improved working environment by lowering our prices.”

The unprecedented price reduction is expected to further underline Safaricom’s leadership in the data market in Kenya. Besides being a major investor in infrastructure, Safaricom has also taken the lead in developing local content to make the internet more useful to Kenyans. Today, nine out of 10 regular internet users rely on the Safaricom’s network, which consists of Kenya’s fastest 3G network, a growing WiMAX footprint and the widest data and voice network coverage across the country.

Mr Collymore thanked the CCK and Ministry of Information for leading by example in addressing the industry’s concerns regarding the macro issues affecting the pricing of internet access in the country. Mr Collymore stated further, “We see this improved offering as the first phase of our data strategy and we are confident that as the Government follows through on its commitments to address our remaining concerns, we shall pass on additional benefits to the consumer”.