Google may have gotten a new name which rationale we don’t really get – Alphabet. Ick – but the company is still awesome on multiple levels. Google’s affordable smartphone program, Android One debuted in five African countries today after almost a year in India. What this means is no one needs to break a bank to use a stock Android device anymore.
In Nigeria, BoP smartphones manufacturer, Infinix announced its Android One device, the HOT 2 that retails at 17,500 ($87), as well as a partnership with local telco, MTN, that will see users get 1GB of data at N500 ($2).
More; Google will soon introduce offline YouTube access in Africa, after initial roll-out in India.
Here are more stories that made the rounds across Africa today.
Yes, still Google. Android M, the newest iteration of Google’s flagship mobile OS, announced in May at the Google I/O event, has finally been named. Meet Mashmallow. It’s the latest in the long list of delicious names Google has named the different iterations of the OS; Cup Cake, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, Jelly Bean, KitKat, Lollipop..Stooop. I gotta hit the corner store as soon as I am done here.
Click n Compare, the South African comparison website for insurance, consumer goods, banking and a slew of other services has begun operations in Nigeria and Kenya.
Mintor gets a $4,000 funding boost from Vinny Lingham
Monitor, a South Africa-based freelancing platform, has cinched $4000 in funding after it emerged winner of the Silicon Cape-organised #PitchVinny event
PwC announces a shortlist of 20 awardees for its Vision to Reality Awards
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), a multinational professional services network, has named 20 companies that will participate in its Vision to Reality awards, a programme that celebrates emerging companies that employ technological solutions.
A company that wants to make phones and PCs in Nigeria just got the green light
Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has approved the operating licence of RLG Communications Limited to enable it manufacture computers and other similar devices within Nigeria. But we are not sure if it’s the made-in-China-assembled-in-Nigeria model we are looking at here.
Interested in Bitcoin, but confused about it? You’ll be interested in Bitcoin Academy
The academy is in South Africa and offers three courses for different users from beginners to developers who want to design their products around Bitcoin and the blockchain technology.
Featured on TechCabal:
There is forum trying to get your attention
It’s Yarnme. It is a new forum, sorta. Think, Nairaland, meets Punch newspaper, meet Facebook. But how come you’ve never heard of it until now?
Don’t miss:
South Africa’s Competition Commission won’t sign off on Telkom and MTN’s deal
The Competition Commission in South Africa has informed Telkom and MTN that it has not recommended the approval of the proposed radio access network sharing and bilateral roaming deal proposed by Telkom and MTN. Bummer.
Naspers is in talks with Vodacom to offer Africans mobile Video-on-Demand
Naspers is in talks with wireless carrier Vodacom Group about delivering video content to mobile devices across Africa as the media company seeks to compete with Netflix Inc. in offering video streaming services to Africa.
