MTN Eswatini is set to roll out the most affordable smart feature phone in keeping with a commitment made last year. The new MTN Smart (Smart S 3G) phone comes with features of an Android smartphone, hence it is christened a smartphone. The new handset supports popular Applications (Apps) such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
MTN Eswatini’s business of introducing the MTN smartphone is to bring connectivity to everybody, regardless of their social status. This is acutely in line with MTN’s belief that ‘everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life.’
Primarily, the new smartphone seeks to accommodate customers who were previously reluctant to buy a smartphone because of different reasons, one being prohibitive pricing. This phone will improve smartphone penetration in the Kingdom of Eswatini. With an increased smartphone penetration, there will be increased online activity, some of which will be business-related, opening communication and contact with both local and international markets. This direction will, directly and indirectly, contribute to creation of business opportunities, including job creation at a time when His Majesty’s Government aspires to create 10 000 new jobs each year.
Much as it is an open secret that the new MTN Smartphone will be affordable, MTN Eswatini will only announce the official retail price of the handset on the day of its official launch. However, it can be said that the MTN Smartphone will be the cheapest smartphone available on the local market. The phones will be available in all MTN stores nationwide, allowing Emaswati to take the opportunity to have more access to internet connectivity.
The phone has two cameras (front and rear), a two-day battery life, 2.4-inch screen, 256MB RAM, and 512MB of storage. It also supports dual SIM and microSD card with up to 3GB storage space. It also offers users Wi-Fi, Bluetooth connectivity, and Google assistant.
The MTN Smartphone is a great, affordable and tailor-made solution aimed at bridging the device gap due to affordability and ensure that every Swati is able to benefit from the modern connected life.
To produce this mobile phone, MTN Group has partnered with KaiOS Technologies, a company headquartered in California which specialises in creating a smartphone user experience for feature phones for the rollout of the handsets in 15 countries where MTN operates in Africa, including the Kingdom of Eswatini.
The phone’s hardware was created by China Mobile, with a faster 3G smart chipset created by Chinese technology company Unisoc. The tech manufacturer has already worked in Africa for over a decade, with feature phones like South Africa’s MobiCel.
