Remember those days when you wanted to send airtime to friends, family members or even colleagues while abroad but dint know how?, apparently, Airtel has joined the world’s leading airtime top up service provider Ezetop to allow its subscribers receive airtime top ups from friends and relatives abroad. Although Ezetop is limited to specific countries, Airtel subscribers in Kenya can use this service as of now without any complications provided the important steps are undertaken; the person sending airtime is not charged at least until the intended airtime recipient has received the top up. With continued reduction in cross border calling tariffs among service providers and innovative airtime top up methods, the world is becoming connected at a tremendous rate than ever thought before.
Safaricom’s Cloud Computing Service Customized to Local SME’s
Kenya’s ICT sector has so far experienced a substantial growth with both local and international ICT firms eying the data storage segment keenly. There are more than three firms including both local and foreign who have so far expressed interest in offering data storage services either for public use or on demand by individuals. This development clearly symbolizes Kenya’s vibrant economy which is in dire need for enormous investments in the ICT sector; however, without clear regulations, it could pose a great risk to sensitive information which some people may use for malicious gain. As of now, the Kenyan government and individual’s outsourced information is limited to non sensitive documents at least until after necessary legislation have been enacted. Three major firms have already invested heavily in the data storage sector with anticipation of the continued growing industry.
Array Solar Powered Laptop Charging Backpack from Voltaic
After experiencing much success with making solar powered backpacks for charging mobile devices such as cameras, phones and tablets, Voltaic Systems is now placing its bet on making backpacks with built in solar chargers for laptops. The new backpack dubbed Array has a built in 10w solar charger capable of charging laptop computers thereby shifting emphasis that was previously preserved for smaller devices. At the same time, Voltaic has made it easier for consumers who already have solar powered backpacks for charging smaller devices but want to use them on laptops; they can choose to get a cheaper 10w laptop charger fuse designed to be strapped onto an existing rugged backpack. This development presents a milestone not only for the backpack maker but also consumers who like traveling to remote areas without electricity but wish to use their laptops.
The two systems contain three 3.4 watt solar panels and a 16000mAh, 60Whr-battery which provides power for charging your laptop computer regardless of being plugged in or not. Apart from charging your laptop, Array solar powered backpack can be used to power the included battery which can later be utilized for backup purposes; on top of that, you can also charge the included battery using AC power source. It’s estimated to take an average of 12hours when placed on direct sunlight to fully charge the battery and half the time using AC power; Voltaic estimates about 30 minutes of laptop power when the Array Backpack is placed on direct sunlight for 1hour. To make it even more compelling, the battery has two power outlets so you can use on different devices at the same time such as charging both your laptop and smart phone at the same time. The Array Solar powered backpack measures 18ichx14ichx8inch and weighs 5.5pounds; it can accommodate laptops with screen sizes of up to 17inches.
The 10w solar laptop charger fuse is designed to be attachable on technical backpacks, panniers and almost anything else courtesy of its flexible buckle and strap attachment system. It comes packed with 10w of solar power and 60w hour universal battery power to charge your mobile devices such as phones tablets, cameras and laptops anytime you. For those who intent to buy Array laptop solar charger, the front solar pocket is removable so you can attach it to any bag of your preference just like the 10w solar power laptop charger fuse.
Array Solar Laptop Charger Features/Specifications;
- Three 3.4Watt solar panels, water proof, lightweight and built to withstand abuse
- 10watts total peak output at 6 or 18 volts
- 60watt hour capacity on universal battery
- Universal battery Supports AC power charging
- Universal battery fully charged by 12hours of direct sunlight
- Battery capacity: 16000mAh, 60watt hour
- Output: 5V/2A, 12V/4A, 16V/3.5A, 19V/3A
Array Solar Laptop Charger Price: $389
Nokia Lumia 800 and Lumia 710 Windows Phone 7.5 Mango Smart Phones
Nokia has finally pioneered its Windows Phone mobile portfolio with two new handsets featuring some of the flourished features in the industry. The handset maker has been pro windows on its high-end smart phones and Symbian on its low-end phones despite the continued popularity of Google’s Android based devices. Nokia Lumia 800 and Lumia 710 have put to rest rumors and anxiety previously witnessed after the handset maker and Microsoft signed a deal the would see Nokia manufacture devices running on Microsoft’s latest handset operating system. It is highly anticipated Windows Phone 7 based devices will offer a stiffer competition to Android OS especially after Google unveiled v2.4 Ice Cream Sandwich. Nokia Lumia 710 and Lumia 800 were officially unveiled during the Nokia World show.
Brother MFC-J430w Wireless Inkjet Printer
Most Inkjet printers have been associated with catering for home use; however, this is not the case with Brother MFC-J430w wireless printer despite its amazing low price tag. Besides home use association, Inkjet printers are popular for their multi-function capabilities which includes; printing, scanning and copying, Brother MFC-J430w also dubbed as MFC-J425w is not an exception. Besides its low price tag, Brother MFC-J430w wireless printer possesses office features which qualify it into the office centric genre. Considering its affordable price structure, it suits both office and home use just like most entry level printers; it can serve a dual role as both an office and home printer. Unlike Canon Pixma MG8220which lacks fax functionality, MFC-J430w works perfectly as a fax machine either from a computer or just as a standalone fax machine.
Canon Pixma MG8220 Wireless Inkjet Photo All-in-one Printer
Canon Pixma MG8220 printer is the latest high-end product from the manufacturer that offers incredible photo print quality compared to other wireless Inkjet printers in its arena. Although it poses close resemblance to its siblings such as Canon Pixma MG6220 that’s estimated to cost between $150 and $250, Canon Pixma MG8220 wireless printer comes with a new capability that enables it to scan 35mm slides and strips of film. On top of that, it boasts of being the manufacturer’s latest high-end printer capable of producing brilliant photo quality prints from different sources without necessarily connecting to a computer. The new Canon Pixma MG8220 comes as a replacement to its outgoing though still available MG8120 sibling offering new functionalities such as copy, print or scans; the scan feature is further enhanced to include 35mm film.
The copy feature is also enhanced to allow users print photos directly from the film; in addition, Canon Pixma MG8220 allows users to print photo images from various locations such as USB memory keys, PictBridge cameras and memory cards with or without connecting to a computer. Users can also utilize the copy feature to perform standard photo copy functions or advanced photo copy which is know to produce high quality prints; the standard photo copy function also lets users print documents with reasonable print quality. Canon Pixma MG8220 is convenient for sharing photos to online albums such as Picasa web albums and Canon image gateway that’s accessible from its front panel so you don’t worry in absence of a computer; however, incase you prefer connecting to a computer, you can still perform all these functions such as printing photos or just sharing them online. Canon Pixma MG8220 houses a 3.5inch LCD display panel that lets users preview photos before printing or sharing them online.
Other flourished additions include the capability to print both page sides on a single instance commonly referred to as duplexing. The printer can as well create beautiful prints on printable optical drives without experiencing any hiccups and for those who are time conscious, Canon Pixma MG8220 allows two 150 sheet paper trays essentially to load both plain paper and photo loaded at a single instance. On the down side of this printer, it lacks fax support or an automatic document feeder rendering it only suitable for home light duty functions.
Canon Pixma MG8220 Features/Specifications;
- 3.5inch photo preview LCD screen
- Ink Jet Printer, All-in-one printer (copy, print and scan)
- Supports USB, Ethernet and wireless connection
- Maximum supported paper length: Legal
- Automatic print duplexing
- Allows two 150 sheets paper trays
- Supports online album photo sharing such as Picasa and Canon image gateway
- Scan feature includes; 35mm film (slides and stripes of film)
Canon Pixma MG8220 Price in Kenya: $300
Safaricom’s Vodafone VF555 Blue Facebook Handset
Vodafone VF555 Blue is the world’s first handset specifically designed to keep friends, family members and colleagues updated on their facebook accounts. It was explicitly designed for Vodafone which is a UK based telecommunications giant with presence in many countries abroad including Kenya through Safaricom. Safaricom which is Kenya’s biggest mobile service provider, is a public listed company also partly owned by Vodafone; there is no surprise therefore why Safaricom is introducing VF555 Blue given its attachment to the UK based service provider. Over the past few years, facebook has gained a commanding authority among social networking sites with an enormous estimate of millions of new signups each day; having a facebook specially designed entry level handset from Safaricom and Vodafone is therefore a reasonable gamble.
Samsung QX411-W01UB General Purpose Laptop
In a development that’s expected to solidify its QX series portfolio, Samsung has introduced QX411-W01UB general purpose laptop rivaling the likes of Apple MacBoook Pro Thunderbolt and Dell XPS 15z (Windows). Samsung QX411-W01UB boasts of the sturdiest aluminum design among its peers which is best known for its robust construction to withstand various presses such as a good palm press; the electronics giant, paid a considerable attention to QX411-W01UB’s aluminum frame design to be sturdier than other devices in its genre. Unlike the last two QX series laptops from Samsung which had NVIDIA graphics enhanced by ‘switching graphics’ technology and an enormous hard drive capacity, QX411-W01UB is powered by only integrated graphics and 640GB/750GB hard drive capacity.