Africa -- Engadget Mobile

africa posts

Nokia bringing Mobile-XL's SMS-based XLBrowser to African mobiles

by Darren Murph posted Feb 16th 2009 @ 7:59PM

In an effort to bring the wonders of the world wide web to more remote locations, Nokia is teaming with Mobile-XL in order to pre-load handsets with the latter company's XLBrowser. Unlike traditional mobile browsers, this one relies on SMS technology in order to deliver "useful information, such as news, currency conversion, finance information and games." The software was designed to bring snippets of the web to handsets where internet, WAP and GPRS services are "slow, limited, and unreliable." We're told that a "select series" of Nokia handsets shipping to Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania will be equipped with said browser starting as early as next month, though there's no indication of exactly which phones will have it and which will not. Oh, and you should definitely opt for an unlimited messaging plan should you choose to take advantage here. Just sayin'.

[Via mocoNews]

British surgeon saves life by obeying SMS instructions

by Darren Murph posted Dec 10th 2008 @ 12:11AM

Not that we haven't seen text messaging save a life before, but this situation was clearly more intense than anything we've heard of in the past. British vascular surgeon David Nott was volunteering in the Democratic Republic of the Congo when faced with a 16-year-old boy that had "his left arm ripped off." With the knowledge that it was "badly infected and gangrenous," he relied on SMS instructions from a colleague in England in order to perform a forequarter amputation. Out of respect for your stomach, we'll spare you the details (believe us, plenty are in the read link), but the end result was that the boy was able to survive thanks to the text-based how-to guide. Who says messaging has no practical purpose?

[Via textually]

Samsung's Soul gets candybar'd, called Soulb

by Darren Murph posted May 29th 2008 @ 12:45PM

Remember that U800 we peeked in the middle of last month? Turns out, that very mobile is the one pictured above, though it now has an official moniker to round things off. In an attempt to migrate the Spirit of Soul (Samsung's words, not ours) to the candybar design, the Soulb was born. The handset checks in at 9.9-millimeters thick and features a 3-megapixel camera (with Power LED flash), document viewer / editor, web browser, multimedia player, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio (with RDS support), 1GB of internal memory and a microSD slot just in case. It's also noted that the Soulb will be available in Soul Grey, Platinum Silver, Metallic Black, Soul Pink and Amethyst Violet for an undisclosed price, but things aren't looking too swell for North Americans. Germans will get first dibs when it lands in "early June," while just about every region save for NA gets it shortly thereafter.

[Via phoneArena]

M4Girls pilot project uses Nokia 6300 handsets to teach math

by Darren Murph posted Apr 29th 2008 @ 10:47PM

Considering that some countries are mulling the idea of making texting a recognized subject and allowing students to use text-speak on exams, we suppose it's not too outrageous to hear of handsets being used as educational tools and not seen as a hindrance. Nokia has teamed up with Mindset Network in order to spearhead the M4Girls pilot project, which utilizes Nokia 6300 handsets loaded with educational material to "help improve the mathematics performance of Grade 10 girl learners." Reportedly, the initiative will be piloted in two South African schools, and students lucky enough to take advantage will have access to educational games and other material created to meet the needs of the national curriculum. No word on whether the program will filter out to other locations if it proves successful, but here's to hoping that eventually gets answered with a resounding "yes."

[Via textually]

Nokia blasts out four affordable handsets for emerging markets

by Darren Murph posted Apr 2nd 2008 @ 9:33AM

Hot on the heels of the 1606 and 3606 comes a foursome for emerging markets announced today not at CTIA, but at the Growing Together 2008 conference held in Johannesburg, South Africa. Getting us started is the €90 ($142) 5000 (ships in Q2), which checks in with a QVGA display, FM tuner, MP3 ringtone support, Bluetooth, GPRS connectivity and a 1.3-megapixel camera -- the firm's first at the aforesaid price point. Next up is the Q3-bound 2680 slide (pictured), which boasts a camera, FM radio and a manageable €75 ($119) price tag. Moving on, there's the 7070 Prism, which rocks those same geometric patterns we've grown to love (or hate) on the 7500, a voice recorder and a €50 ($79) sticker. Lastly, the 1680 classic (ships in Q2) arrives as the company's most "affordable cameraphone to date" at just €50 ($79). Go on, check out the whole gang in the gallery below!

Gallery: Nokia blasts out four affordable handsets for emerging markets

Cellphone criminal dubbed "dumbest" by police

by Darren Murph posted Jan 9th 2008 @ 2:01AM

Rest assured, we've seen some brainless criminals in our day, but this one ranks pretty high on the list. Reportedly, a (potentially inebriated) individual waltzed into a police station and frantically announced that his phone had been stolen at gunpoint. When the detective called the number of the phone reportedly stolen, however, a ring was heard from the "victim's" pocket. After pondering what the criminal hoped to gain from the situation, we here at Engadget HQ came up empty, and apparently, the police involved in the situation were equally stumped -- so stumped, in fact, that they issued a statement entitled "Dumbest criminal?" with details of the event in a local newspaper. We'd say that sums it up fairly accurately.

[Image courtesy of FOTW, thanks LordFarkward]

Nokia unveils low-end 1325 / 1265 handsets for international markets

by Darren Murph posted Dec 10th 2006 @ 11:23AM

Nokia seems to be on its own campaign trail, releasing a few new phones each time it makes a stop in a new country. Not too long after taking the wraps off four new handsets over in Amsterdam, the firm is unveiling two new low-end handsets that are getting ready to hit the international front. At the 3G World Congress in Hong Kong, Nokia announced the forthcoming availability of two new candybar-styled CDMA mobiles, stripped down and ready to rock. The 2.5-ounce 1325 features a 64k color screen, wallpaper / ringtone customization, speakerphone, 90-second voice recorder, 3.5 hours of talk time, and up to 6.5 days of standby time. The 1265 goes way back, by offering up a monochrome screen, 60-second voice recorder, predictive text software, speakerphone, alarm clock, and the same battery life on both fronts as the slightly more luxurious 1325. Both of this units are slated to hit "select markets" within China, Asia-Pacific, Middle-East Africa and Latin America during "Q1 2007," but the presumably low prices still remain a mystery.

[Via I4U]

Cellphones are dangerous/not dangerous, Africa edition

by Chris Ziegler posted Oct 29th 2006 @ 3:40PM

For us, moving around to get a better signal on our phone might mean strolling outside or standing near a window. For some Africans whose love for cellphones is stronger than the carriers' networks themselves, though, "going out on a limb for a better signal" is an entirely literal phrase. So literal, in fact, that a Ugandan author has coined the term "Nebrols," short for Network Broken Limbs Syndrome, to describe the injuries suffered from folks climbing things (usually trees) in an effort to get a bar or two of signal strength on their cellies. It seems a lot of older Africans who've come to rely on their newfound ability to stay in touch are falling out of trees and breaking all manner of bones in the process. To be fair, we feel their pain -- we'd probably do the same if it meant we could get some HSDPA out in the boondocks.

[Via textually.org]