ZOL Zimbabwe introduces Pay As You Go service with a $9 package

Internet connections in Zimbabwe are made predominantly from mobile devices, so it’s no surprise that the different internet service providers we have are tapping into that market with on-the-go solutions.

ZOL is playing the same game. Besides its use of widespread WiFi hotspots that now have to be paid for, it recently introduced a Pay as You Go service accessible through a dongle. This is not the first time ZOL has had dongles though. The ZOL dongle used to be offered with its old entry level $29 monthly subscription service, but this was retired sometime last year.

According to information on ZOL’s Facebook page, this new Pay-As-You-Go option works with two types of dongles priced at $25 (a USB version that works on Windows only ) and $55 (has WiFi and works with a built-in battery).

So what’s the cost? Well, the cheapest bundle will cost you $9 for 1GB that is valid for 30 days and the largest bundle gets you 10GB for $50 and is valid for 90 days. You can check out the bundles list and prices in the table below.

Topup (GB)	Validity Period (Days)	Price ($US)
1	30	9
2	60	15
5	90	30
10	90	50

When I saw the price, I thought about how this seems to work as a great backup solution for anyone who wants to have mobile internet that doesn’t come with restrictions on what you can do with it. At the same time, it doesn’t ravage your pocket, as is the case with reliable solutions from the mobile network operators.

$50 gets you 10GB which is way more than the +/-2.5GB that the 3 MNOs have on offer and at that price it easily outpaces other conventional mobile internet solutions from guys like Powertel and Africom. iWay is the only other player whose $42 mobile solution sounds like a better deal, but then the aspect of coverage will be the bargaining point at the end of the day.

Have you had a chance to use this service? What are your thoughts?