Category: Gadgets & Apps
Road Angels Assist app now live on Google Play
A week ago we announced that a local emergency road rescue services company, Road Angels is working on an Android road assist application. Today we can reveal that the application is now live on Google Play and you can download it here. It will be a couple of weeks before the app is available for […]
Econet Services to launch EcoSchool in 2 days time
That Econet has been working on a new Econet Services product called EcoSchool has been public knowledge for at least a couple of months now. The group’s founder and chairman Strive Masiyiwa made the announcement back in November last year. However, when EcoSchool would actually launch hasn’t been so clear. Well, until now. We have […]
EcoCash Droid app by local developer replaces EcoCash USSD codes
A local developer, Gedion Moyo, has developed an android application that will enable users to transact through EcoCash without going through the regular tedious USSD menus. The EcoCash Droid app does all EcoCash transactions (cash-outs, cash transfers, balance inquiry, pay merchants, pay billers airtime purchase and airtime transfer) by running the USSD menus in the […]
The Titan smartphone at Econet: Our quick specs and thoughts
Econet is selling an interesting rugged-tough smartphone called the Titan R5 retailing for US $366. Our immediate reaction was thinking about last year’s Motorola launch of a rugged smartphone here in Zimbabwe which, unlike Econet in marketing at least, was clearly targeted at enterprise customers. In their ad this week, Econet is not deliberate about any specific kind […]
iPhone 5S review: Still a beauty even with minimum spend of $800 locally
When Apple released the iPhone 5S and the iPhone SC there was little they could improve from the already acclaimed iPhone 5 but Apple had something up its sleeve and made a strong case for an upgrade. Locally, pricing is always a contentious issues and often dissuades even the unflinching loyalists from upgrading. The lowest […]
Sweet MiFi
If I were to make a list of things that I absolutely hate: capped internet connections and paying for my internet on a per megabyte basis would not only make the list but top it as well. I know that there are a lot of people out there who share my malcontent with this sort […]
Road Angels working on a road emergency services and rescue app
One of the leading, (maybe most visible) 24 hour emergency roadside rescue services company, Road Angels is developing an Android based road emergency services and rescue app. Sources at the company say the app development process is at the 90% complete and the app is expected to hit the market within weeks. We managed to […]
Does anyone in Zimbabwe use BBM at all?
There was quite some expectation when BlackBerry launched their BBM mobile chat service on IOS and Android platforms last year. We remember we were as excited as any regular Zimbabwean who’s had their South African relatives speak highly about BlackBerry and its services. And we rushed to install it too and added a number of friends, […]
Telecel Play: Operator kinda, sort of, launches an online store (update)
So as early as December last year, we got a tip letting us know Telecel had launched an online store called Telecel Play. Brilliant we, finally some local portal to buy locally relevant digital content and who knows, maybe even some physical goods. Brilliant, so lets look at the store. Nothing. Despite advising subscribers via […]
ZOL relaunches local mirror for largest Linux distros: Debian, Ubuntu & CentOS
As we step into a new year, I can’t help but look back on the current year and wonder that there has been a lot of talk in the broadband/internet side of things locally but not a great amount actually done about it. Now I know that sounds very negative, ISP’s have innovated quite a […]
Here are some emerging market relevant gadgets at CES 2014
The CES has always been too advanced to interest most African markets on a “lets do business now level”. The technology presented at CES 2014 is largely for early adopters and too expensive for emerging markets to even contemplate. However, the technology eventually reaches our humble markets and over the years, the technology has been […]
CES 2014 day one round up
The Consumer Electronics Show 2014 (CES 2014) kicked off in Las Vegas, Navada today (technically yesterday with pre-event announcements from different consumer brands). For those not in the loop, the CES is an annual gathering of the top global consumer electronics manufacturers and retailers. Techzim will be giving you a round-up of each days proceedings, […]
Startup Profile: Deaftronics’ Tendekayi Katsiga
“For me it’s all about team work really. When this solar charger was being developed, there was a lot of input from the hearing impaired. There was a team a behind. I was at the technical side but the research came from the team. It also has to do with a lot of support from […]
Econet Voice Mail: Will it ever catch on?
For mysterious reasons there are some technologies which, although they are popular everywhere else, have simply failed to be popular here in Zimbabwe. On the list are technologies like BlackBerry Messenger, MMS, and voicemail. Whilst we can blame the regulators for the BlackBerry Messenger woes, I think our operators are to blame for the failure […]
Some fun with USSD codes *123*4*5*6#
USSD – short for Unstructured Supplementary Service Data – commands have been there since the first cellphone. They are the codes we have been using to top up airtime, buy bundles, check your credit balance, or even mobile money transactions (if you use EcoCash or TeleCash that is) The main issue however with a lot […]
Huawei Ascend P6 review: Brilliant, but pricey at $500
China’s leading smartphone maker Huawei, released its flagship Huawei Ascend P6 in June 2013 hyping it with phrases like “elegance with edge”, “impossibly slim”, “impossible beautiful” among other high sounding words. Econet has brought the Huawei Ascend P6 to Zimbabwe and it definitely lives up to the hype with its crafty design, ultra-slim shape and […]
Astro Funbook Review: Does it justify the $399 price tag?
We finally got our hands on an Astro device and we were fortunate enough to be given one of their most expensive devices to review. This is exciting because we are able to review what they have as their “best foot forward” and ultimately draw a conclusion on what their brand stands for device wise. […]
Huawei Ascend Y220 is a great deal at $70
As part of its “Unbelievable Christmas Deals” promotion, Econet is advertising the Huawei Ascend Y200 for just $70 and the package includes 50MB of data for six months and a free Huawei T-shirt. Released in May 2013, The Huawei Ascend Y220 is an upgrade of the Huawei Ascend Y200. The Huawei Ascend Y220’s main upgrades […]