When I wrote about 5 apps I wished Nigerian Developers would build, it was intended to be more goofy than thought-provoking. But folks seemed to like it. One developer, Ugochukwu Chimbo Ejikeme, really liked one the ideas, so he went on to develop it. Enter iFlash
Quick overview
iFlash is a simple app that lets you flash your friends with zero risk of losing the minutest units of airtime. Ugo’s implementation is very simple and straightforward in getting the job done.The default landing screen has a simple search field, for finding your contacts, and a timer for setting call duration. The default call duration is aptly set to 0:00; the whole idea of flashing is to drop the call before, or at least just as, the receiver picks up. In the undesirable event the receiver picks up sooner than you expect, setting the call duration to 0:00 will ensure you don’t lose a kobo.
What I’d like to see
Ugo’s idea is that the timer is also perfect for implementing another feature I originally wrote about; the ability to use quick prerecorded 2-second voice notes like “Abeg call me back”, that will auto-play on pickup and then drop the call immediately. According to Ugo, “why record a voice message when you can set a call duration?”. I still think prerecorded voice notes will be a nice idea. Anything than can be automated usually makes life so much easier.
I would also like to see maybe a VOIP implementation that will allow users to flash and make quick calls without airtime. The calls will be limited to nothing more than say 5 seconds, to keep within the philosophy of the app
Ugo’s developed iFlash only for legacy Blackberry devices because, “I assumed it’s about the most used smartphone in Nigeria”, and a number of other reasons. I’d also like to see cross-platform availability.
If you have a legacy Blackberry device and you think you might be interested in this app and its future iterations, you can get it now on Blackberry World. Of course, suggestions for improvement are welcome. Ugochukwu will be playing close attention to the comments section.
Image credit: Smallville Wiki
