Following the news about how the expansion of Taxify to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja in Nigeria was trending across social media in the country, the cab hailing and hire platform is now fully operational in the city. In a message sent via email to all users of the cab hire platform in Nigeria, Taxify announced that all residents or visitor inhabitants in the country’s capital will enjoy a price slash of 40% when they book a ride. “We are excited to announce that we are launching in Abuja today. Yes, we are in Nigeria’s capital with all rides -40% OFF!”, the…
Author: Olanrewaju Sodiq
Infinix Mobility shared a not-so-cryptic post via her Twitter handle (@InfinixNigeria) that most likely translates into the coming of a new smartphone that will feature a dual camera lenses on the rear as its primary shooters. Two good heads are better than one, so are two good lenses. Where is this artifact & who is hidden there? use the Hashtag #CapturedWith5 pic.twitter.com/ACsjIEY0f1 — Infinix Nigeria (@InfinixNigeria) November 6, 2017 As seen in the above tweet, the Hong Kong-based smartphone manufacturer opines that “two good lenses are better than one” and really, I don’t think there is any other meaning to this…
What started off as a rumour have eventually transcended into reality. WhatsApp have officially released the “un-send” feature for global use across all mobile platforms (Android, iOS, and Windows). Albeit the capability to un-send messages or delete texts that haven’t been read and making them unavailable to the recipient have been undergoing testing by Beta users of WhatsApp for quite sometime now, all users of the instant messaging platform can now have access to the feature. 3-in-1 offer: New app update, Un-send message and new emoji To effect the new Un-send feature, WhatsApp introduced a new app update across all…
As smartphone users, they are certain things we ignorantly do with/to our devices that does more good than harm to them. Some we know, some, we don’t. The 3 below are some common things we do daily that quietly kills our smartphone faster than we can imagine. Using substandard or low-quality accessories Many phone companies, engineers and enthusiasts have recommended that using the accessories that comes out of the box with any smartphone is the best practice to keep your phone safe. However, daily practices like using accessories (like chargers) that are subpar or not made for your device is…
As earlier stated in this article where we listed some rationale behind why a completely bezel-less smartphone with 100% screen-to-body ratio may be impossible and why we may never get to see one (at least not anytime soon), well, we still strongly stand by our belief and here are more reasons why we still hold the same opinion and why you probably don’t need to buy one… for now, or never. …consider this a sequel. Accidental clicking/pressing When we hold our smartphones or grip them, there is a 99.9% chance our hands (fingers and palm) will, one way or another,…
The latest Apple flagship smartphone, the iPhone 8 has been officially unveiled and launched in Nigeria. Officials and representatives of Apple Inc. hosted invited guests and fans to the launching of one of the best smartphone in the world at the moment, the iPhone 8. The device was launched alongside its “older brother”, the iPhone 8 Plus. The launching took place on Friday, 27th September 2017 at the Renaissance Hotel GRA Ikeja, Lagos State Nigeria and in attendance were several Apple lovers, people of the press, and local celebrities who treated guests to some nice entertaining tunes. The launch was…
Over the last couple of months (and years), numerous smartphone manufacturers have been trying and pushing so hard to cut down the size of bezels on their devices and have the highest screen-to-body ratio – all in the pursuit of a “Full View” display. I’m not sheerly ruling out the possibility of a device with a pure Full-View display happening in the future but the following reasons are why I think it may never actualize. Will be Selfie Camera be killed? In the journey of smartphone makers trying to create a device with only the screen occupying the front’s real…
The era we currently live in and the level we have reached technologically has warranted the need to make things much less complex. Like Apple did with Siri, the Google Assistant is Google’s way of making smartphone usage and human interaction easier. And further following Siri’s footsteps, Google have made some changes to its virtual assistant. For as long as I can recall, all digital assistants I have come across are accompanied by a default female voice response to all commands and requests (I really don’t know why though. Probably because the task of “assisting” have been stereotyped to be…
….a sequel to Times when other Tech companies copied Apple’s products and innovations Emojis WhatsApp recently released its own set of native emoji after a long run of using those of Apple’s. The move was a good one and while many were still basking and singing WhatsApp praises to for such a brilliant and innovative move, Emojipedia was quick to point out that the WhatsApp emojis were somewhat a clone of Apple’s emoji; even though WhatsApp claimed it wasn’t using them anymore. “At a glance these could be confused for Apple’s own emojis. It appears that the brief for this project…
Apple is no doubt one of the biggest Tech companies in the world. Their gadgets (laptops, smartphones, music players, accessories, softwares etc) are always of top quality… and often replicated by other top Tech companies and rivals. It is in this light that we shall be looking at times when Apple have been copied in terms of products design and innovations. Product Design The iPhone 6 was one of Apple’s best designed phone in the history of iPhones. The device was revolutionary in numerous number of ways. The device’s appearance and aesthetic was darn appealing that even the former Vice…
You would agree with me that selling off an old or new car (particularly an old car) have over the years proven to be not as easy and convenient as buying one. It might take some time for that to turn around but are you planning to sell off your car(s) in Nigeria and you want that done fast? and with convenience? Don’t want to go through the hassles of finding a buyer for your car? Then you might want to try these online platforms below. 1. JiJi Founded in 2014 by Anton Wolyansky in Lagos State, Nigeria, the 3-year-old online…
TECNO Mobile is that smartphone brand that is gradually growing from being a local brand to the global scene. How’s the brand doing this? By churning out top-level smartphones with top quality specifications (we saw what the brand did with the Manchester City Tecno Camon CX Limited Edition, yeah?) and by also following the industry’s latest trend. The Dual rear camera innovation is a trend that took the smartphone scene by storm and hasn’t shown any sign of fading out anytime soon. Keeping up with the league of smartphone brands with dual cameras on the rear (with Huawei being the…
Ever since our phones and gadgets started becoming “smart”, the phone technology scene have welcomed countless number off innovations and trends. Before now, our phones used to be bigger than our hands, bulky and heavy as a brick. There was even a time our phones had antennas. The thickness of an average pencil is seven millimeters (7 mm), now our phones are becoming as thin as a pencil. Who else is impressed? I am. A lot of trends have come and gone, while some have remained. There are so many I would have loved to list here but that’d be…
After waiting in patience for more than a month now, Tecno fans and lovers in Nigeria can now finally have a feel of the Tecno Spark Plus K9 as the smartphone company finally rolls out the devices across various online and offline stores Nationwide. The wait is over. Spark Plus is now available in all our stores nationwide at just N42,500. Price may differ in stores. #LightUpYourDream pic.twitter.com/xhGEyLGCT1 — TECNO Mobile Nigeria (@TECNOMobileNG) October 6, 2017 While announcing the release and availability of the device via its official Nigeria Twitter handle (@TECNOMobileNG), the smartphone brand also revealed the official retail…
For the first time ever, Google is bringing the Developer Launchpad to Lagos, Nigeria with Co-Creation Hub (CCHub) being the host. The Developers Launchpad is a program initiated by Google and broadly aims to bring together budding start-ups or start-ups in their early stages and providing support in the form of mentorship, tutoring, guidance and more. Basically, the Google Developer Launchpad grooms start-ups founders and help them take their start-up to the height they hope to attain and beyond. The Google Developers Launchpad will play host to start-ups based in Nigeria for a whole week and the hosting company, CCHub Nigeria…
The Pixel 2 is the latest flagship smartphone from search engine giant, Google. The device was announced alongside the Pixel 2 XL, which is the tuned up version of the Pixel 2 in that it sports better and better specifications than the Pixel 2. We have made a specs table to highlight the major differences between the two smartphones. You can check it out HERE. The Pixel 2 smartphone is quite amazing in its own space but to be quite honest, my idea of a flagship smartphone is that it should have features that would make it a headache to…
Continuing our analysis of TSTV Africa’s “5000” penetration strategy, we conclude by looking at the second part of the strategy below. 2. Gifting 5,000 Decoders Though the satellite TV launched on the first day of October, it won’t however be available till November. But come November 1st, the Cheif Executive Office who is also the Managing Director, Bright Echefu have made it known that five thousand (5,000) decoders and satellite dishes will be given out for free to selected individuals in different regions across all 36 states in the country. Keyword here being FREE. As it mostly is with every…
It wasn’t too long ago that Telecoms Satellites (TSTV) Africa launched in Nigeria and we also reported the incredible services they proposed to offer and the unbelievably juicy complementary bonuses and attractions that followed. One of the highlight attraction was the affordably cheap price of the Set Top Box and entire TSTV setup (compared to other Satellite TVs) which was pegged at N5,000. And while we were still dangling in the web of the affordability euphoria, TSTV pulled up another “5,000” stunt (will be discussed below). We will therefore do some breakdown to see if TSTV can penetrate deep into…
Search engine giant, Google have released two new devices to her “Pixel” line of smartphone. The devices {Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL} before now, have been subject of numerous headlines and rumours. Likewise, several renders and schematics have the surfaced on the internet as it always is for any upcoming flagship smartphones from any brand. The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL have been announced and you can proceed to view the basic specs of the devices below and comparison. Device / Specifications Google Pixel 2 Google Pixel 2 XL Screen size 5.0 inches 6.0 inches Screen type…
Spoiler alert: … it has to do with the Face ID technology Seem we would never stop hearing new developments concerning Apple’s latest device, the iPhone X; particularly the Face ID technology. Well, that isn’t surprising. You would all agree that new innovations always seem to generate a great deal of attention as there are always criticism, complaint and even misconceptions. It wasn’t long ago that we wrote about some Android devices that features the Facial recognition security system and could serve as a cheaper alternative to the iPhone X. Not too long after, we cleared some misconceptions hovering around…
When the iPhone X was unveiled at the Steve Jobs theatre on September .., one of the many features that caught most people’s attention (followed by the over $1000 price tag) was the Facial recognition feature which Apple stated was for device unlock and purchase verification on Apple Pay and other supported third-party applications or platforms. While a sizeable portion of smartphone users all across the globe saw the good side of this innovation, a large chunk managed to see the ‘supposed’ fault of the Face ID technology. On several social media platforms, particularly Facebook and Twitter, the iPhone X…
When the iPhone X was launched, one of the major highlight features that wowed everyone and stole everyone’s attention was the inherent infrared camera which is used for facial recognition. Short-termed “Face ID”, the feature has completely taken the smartness of phones to another level. That is why we saw it worthy of listing the Face ID feature in one of our article where we mentioned some features that changed the way we use smartphones. However, as lovely as trying out the Face ID technology on the iPhone X smartphone may be, the cost is a major restraining factor. This…
Picking up from where we paused on “Features that changed the way we use smartphones”, this sequel aims to highlight more features that have been introduced into our smartphones and how it has changed the ways we use our devices. Quick Charge Technology This feature and what it does is simple and direct. As the existence and usage of smartphone lengthened, the battery capacity was no longer sufficient and satisfying for daily usage. Smartphone users clamoured for more and verily, several OEMs responded to the distress call and provided users with large battery capacity in the region of 4,000 mAh to…
Who remembers the days when there were no phones in existence at all? When all that was used for communication back then were merely letters sent and received through post offices and also the fax machine. Then came the mobile phone. But still, all we could use our phones for was just to receive and make calls. Years later, our phones became “smart”, many thanks to technology which made it possible to things way do beyond making and receiving calls or text messages. Things like snapping pictures, surfing the internet, downloading multimedia, playing console games and many more. This is…
… continued from Part 1 CAB HIRE CONFIRMATION TIME To check the time of confirmation of a can hire, I tried hiring a taxi from the same location to the same destination on both apps. On Taxify, my order was confirmed and my designated driver was assigned to me in less than 30 seconds. Although I have read reviews about Uber late time of confirmation of cab hire, I set out to see if there is any truth in those reviews. Alas, when I hired a came from and the same destination as I did in Taxify, it took Uber…
Cab hiring services is one innovation that took the world of start-up by storm as it witnessed massive acceptance and patronage in many countries all across the world. I do not have enough facts, figures or statistics to back up my next statement but I think Nigeria, if not the African country that uses cab hiring services the most, will be among the top three. This piece therefore aims to pit three widely used cab hiring platforms (Uber, Taxify, and Lyft) against each other and see how Taxify is winning the war. Mind you, this is more like a personal…
Picking up from where we paused on the “Changes WhatsApp have made to revolutionize Instant Messaging” article, this sequel seeks to round things up on how WhatsApp have grown to become the biggest and most used Instant Messaging (IM) app over, how they did it and what revolutionary changes they incorporated into their platform to make them attain such height in less than 4 years after being purchased by Facebook billionaire, Mark Zuckerberg. Let’s continue, shall we? Voice and Video Calls Before WhatsApp brought on voice call, then followed by video calls, several smartphone users opted for other third-party apps that…
As Nigeria celebrated her 57th year of Independence on the 1st day of October, 2017, a new satellite TV which goes by the name Telcom Satellites Television (TSTV in short) was also officially launched. TSTV Africa was founded by a Nigerian by the name of Bright Echefu (@echefubright on Twitter). Bright is also the Managing Director and CEO of TSTV Africa. The satellite television company was founded in partnership with Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) which has it’s headquarters in Hamilton, Bermuda. The collaboration of the two companies will see TSTV provide Satellite-to-Home TV services to Nigerians at an unbelievable price that no satellite…
With more than a billion users all distributed across every country on the globe, WhatsApp didn’t just become everyone’s favourite instant messaging application overnight, it took some ideas and impactful changes to get to such position. Back when WhatsApp was purchased by Facebook in 2014 for USD 19 Billion, many ridiculed the acquisition and thought that would be the end of the fun and innovation in WhatsApp. Three years later, opposite seem to be the case. Let’s have a peek at 5 changes that WhatsApp have brought on board ever since the acquisition that have changed the way and manner…
This piece is a sequel to the earlier post “Know Your Smartphone Screen: Types and Quality {Part 1}” where we discussed some types of screen used on smartphones, their advantages and benefits over other type of display screen, downsides, their relative quality, those commonly used in majority of smartphones and why, among other information. Continuing from where we left things, two other types of screen will be discussed as related to quality under the headers below. PMOLED Screen We have discussed about AMOLED in the preceding article {Part 1}. PMOLED stands for Passive Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode and is…