Category: Broadband
60 minutes and 500MB FREE when you buy US$5 airtime on Telecel.
It’s that time again to hunt for that Telecel line. They have announced the Free for Five promotion, rewarding their customers with free on-net minutes and data when they spend US$5, US$3, and US$2 in airtime. RTGS purchases also qualify because we have to be all-inclusive. This is what the rewards will look like. The […]
Utande LTE now available in Harare West
Utande has been pushing LTE expansion pretty aggressively, beating Liquid Home to the punch in Mutare. The LTE service will use Sim cards and an outdoor unit kit. Also, these sim cards will be geo-locked so if you thought this meant cheaper mobile data I am sorry to say this is not the case. A […]
Liquid Home’s LIT USD bundles. Are they any good?
Liquid Home has been offering USD packages on their FibroniX and WibroniX services, a bit of convenience for those of you that prefer paying in USD. These packages are running in parallel to the already existing ZW$ packages so merely a case of what is more convenient for you. The LIT bundles are currently on […]
Liquid Home vs TelOne vs Zodsat vs Telco vs Utande. Which is the best VSAT provider?
We made a comparison of the best fixed internet provider. Then we did another for the best mobile internet provider. But maybe these 2 classes of internet providers don’t reach some of you in the most remote parts of Zimbabwe and you need to go satellite. Look no further. This is all of the VSAT […]
Dolphin Telecom plus 2 other MVNOs. We wanted competition and it’s here. Almost
In an address by the POTRAZ Director General Dr. Gift Machengete, it was revealed that 3 companies have been granted Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) licenses to operate in Zimbabwe with Dolphin Telecoms being the one that is closest to going live. the other 2 are yet to be named. It is exciting stuff because […]
All USSD Codes for Econet, NetOne, Telecel, Banks, and more!
You are looking for a USSD code for something and you can’t quite remember what it is? You are confused about which one is for checking your balance and which one is for buying a bundle. Well here is a full list of all the USSD codes in Zimbabwe for Econet, NetOne, Telecel, Banks, and […]
Xiaomi AX9000 review. The most extreme Wifi router
There are normal routers. Nice and compact ones with support for 64 connected devices, which also blend in with the furniture. Nice, modern, and sleek. But what if normal is boring and ultimate excess is more of your cup of tea…like me. Then you get a router that comes in a behemoth of a box. […]
Experiencing call drops and dodgy 4G? Don’t blame your service provider. It’s probably your phone.
Many times someone you know is complaining about their phone just not being reliable. Calls just spontaneously drop and network connectivity just falls from 4G to 3G or even 2G without any warning. I remember back in 2015 I bought an LG G4 and it was a 4G capable device. However, when I put my […]
TelOne new voice and data tariffs effective 1 November 2022
Just like clockwork, what we hope is the last wave of tariff adjustments by telecom operators is upon us. TelOne has announced new prices for their voice and data services which will be in effect from 1 November 2022. Data Prices: Old vs New Also read: Brace for 61% more expensive internet. Again Liquid Home […]
Brace for 61% more expensive internet. Again
In a letter sent to Telco subscribers, a data price increase of up to 61% was approved by POTRAZ for November 2022 for all Telecommunication operators. This price increase is affecting ZW$ pricing which is not really moving with the official rate. The letter also says that these 61% increments have been in effect since […]
Liquid Home (Zol) prices rising by 61% in November to this
You’re used to it now. Or at least you ought to be. There will be price adjustments every other month and you better be at peace with that. The regulatory authority, Potraz, somewhat controls how often ISPs like Liquid Home can increase their prices. However, price controls or not, the prices still go up. The […]
Zimbabwe to get fibre optics, renewable energy funding from Africa50, is this a big deal?
What no one can dispute is that Africa is underdeveloped. Zimbabwe, for example, needs US$40 billion for infrastructure development currently and has a tiny fraction of that on hand. Where we disagree is on how to remedy that. There are a thousand ideas from a thousand pan-Africanists on how Africa should proceed. That’s not to […]
WhatsApp bringing multi-device support to mobile devices
A lot of features have been added to WhatsApp and it’s also been a while since we dived into them. This is a complete rundown of all the more interesting ones. Multiple device support coming to mobile devices At the moment you can set up your account on up to 5 different devices running the […]
Starlink getting better, to beam directly to phones and Zambia to get the service soon
We have written about Starlink, Elon Musk’s satellite internet provider. The service is still relatively new but they are already making strides that have us wagging our tails in these parts of the world. Starlink’s next generation satellites are, to quote the man, “almost an order of magnitude more capable than Starlink 1.” Musk did […]
Forget the Mate 50, Huawei is making cars now!
Huawei held its September event and it was one long one. Rightfully so because they had a lot to show us and here is the rundown. Huawei Mate 50 series They have finally landed and they are as shiny as advertised. Nothing is really out of this world when it comes to the specs of […]
Windows Phone was COOL!
I have with me a Microsoft Lumia 640 XL. Yes, it has seen better days but regardless this has to be the most user-friendly smartphone OS to ever be created. Better than anything during its time. Dare I say, still better than current offerings and this is why. Runs smoothly on any hardware Windows Mobile […]
Econet eSim: Everything you need to know
Econet made a bit of a quiet rollout of their eSim service and Econet being Econet they are the first to bring this tech to Zimbabwe. And as it is with new tech we have a lot of questions needing answers. Let’s answer some of these. What is an eSim? eSim is short for embedded […]
[Video] “People in the community we serve can’t afford data, so we used WhatsApp” – Richard Fani, Mbilez24 Founder
Richard Fani is the Founder and Director of Mbilez24 – a community newsletter which provides access to developmental information on what is happening to young people in the communities of Mbare, Hopley, Epworth, & Hatcliffe. The organisation bridging the gap between these communities and service providers, and government office was established in 2018. In Episode […]
Econet ‘quietly’ rolls out eSim service [Updated]
For the longest time, the more up-to-date members of the Techzim community have been asking when we will get VoLTE and eSims. Well, we can still keep wishing for the former but the latter has arrived. At the 2022 annual Zimbabwe Agricultural Show Econet quietly rolled out eSim service. And because I like shiny new […]
Econet new voice, SMS, and data bundle tariffs effective 1 September 2022
Econet has once again revised the tariffs for their voice, SMS, and Data bundle prices. The new tariffs will be taking effect on 1 September 2022. PUBLIC NOTICEDear CustomersPlease take note of the following changes effective Thursday, 1 September 2022: 1. Introducing USD Airtime Out of Bundle UsageYou will be able to use your USD […]
TelOne’s new data prices effective 1 September 2022
TelOne has recently announced their new data prices for home internet. This comes about a month after their last tariff increase. The new tariffs are to take effect on the 1st of September 2022 and they will only be affecting the ZW$ packages. US$ packages remain unchanged. New prices vs old prices Also read: Google’s […]
Google’s subsea cable meant to improve internet speeds and lower costs reaches South Africa
Earlier this year we talked about Google’s Equiano cable landing in Africa. The first country to be connected was Togo back in March. This subsea cable of theirs should lead to lower internet costs and faster speeds in some African countries in Africa. You can read about the cable here: Google subsea cable lands in […]
Liquid Home (Zol) prices to rise again in September to this
We will get no respite in this country of ours. Just when you think you might get used to the current prices, they will be raised to just out of reach. Today, we are talking about Liquid Home adjusting their prices. We knew this was coming. We were told when the last price adjustment was […]
How do Zim mobile data prices compare to other countries in the region? Not too bad
The question came up a few times these past months, is internet access now cheap in Zimbabwe, relative to other countries in the region. The main point was that we are paying less for data than we were in the past because of inflation coupled with infrequent price hikes. It does not feel like it […]
NetOne’s OneFusion bundles are unavailable
It seems as if NetOne is facing some challenges with its bundle system. Subscribers to the MNO have been making reports that they are failing to make any OneFusion bundle purchases. When attempting to buy a Onefusion bundle it is giving out an error saying: “One Fusion bundles are currently unavailable” NetOne has not put […]
Declining data usage, spiraling operating costs – telecom operators not sitting pretty
Recently we went through Econet’s financial statements for the year ended February 2022. We gleaned what we could from that but unfortunately for us, we don’t get to see their competition, NetOne and Telecel’s financials. The best we get are the sector performance reports from the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ). That’s […]
Xiaomi vs Oraimo. Battle of the bluetooth speakers
The first bluetooth speaker head to head. Who would have thought? And the contenders are the. In the blue corner, is the Mi portable bluetooth speaker 16W, and in the black corner, is the Oraimo Sound pro. Unboxing and accessories Let’s talk about the unboxing experience. The Mi speaker comes in a relatively ordinary box […]
Can’t use the internet whilst on a call? Voice over LTE allows for it, why are we yet to get it in Zimbabwe?
The best way to communicate is verbally, face to face. It’s not my preferred way but there’s no arguing that nothing beats it. If it’s done in a nice and quiet location, you can hear your companion as clearly as God intended. We can’t always have face to face conversations though. We are usually in […]
Voice, SMS and data prices set to increase two more times in 2022
Still trying to wrap your head around the new tariffs as Econet, NetOne, Liquid, Telone and others increased their prices recently? Sorry to pile it on, but you are going to have to do the same two more times this year. It’s better this way, when the scheduled price hikes eventually hit, you will not […]
Buying $1 airtime? At least 40c is going to gvt
We have always known that telecom consumers in Zimbabwe are heavily burdened with taxes, levies and fees but still when I was going through Econet’s latest financial report this paragraph jumped at me: The Postal Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (“POTRAZ”) installed a system on our sites which, according to the TTMS regulations (SI 95 […]