The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic multimedia device

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic was announced back in October 2008 with the earliest phones hitting the market the following month. The multimedia device was cutting at that time and was widely considered as Nokia’s answer to the iPhone. Indeed, it was one of Nokia’s earliest touchscreen mobile phones and one of its most successful. As of November 2009, 8 million units had been sold.

Nokia has systematically kept the phone close to the hearts and minds of its fans by releasing periodic firmware updates that have fixed known bugs and added some functionality which have improved overall user experience.

Firmware Updates

From firmware version 20.0.012 onwards, the 5800′s CPU clock was increased from 369 MHz to 434 MHz matching the N97 specification[3]. However, improved overall performance can be observed since firmware version 30. On January 13, 2010, Nokia released a major firmware update, version 40.0.005. The update includes bug fixes, speed improvements and new features. The most visible are kinetic scrolling to all menus (except the main and applications menus) and an improved home screen that was first introduced on the Nokia 5530. This version update also saw the removal of alphanumeric keypad in portrait view during text input. This was replaced by a full QWERTY keyboard. The new home screen provides a contacts carousel, with up to 20 contacts and program shortcuts on screen at the same time.

On April 19, 2010, firmware version 50.0.005 was released. This new major update brought some new features available in Nokia N97, such as an upgrade to the existing web browser to version 7.2 and full kinetic scrolling and auto-full screen while browsing the web; a new music player with mini-album art in the song list and the album list, initial letter filtering of track titles in the music player while scrolling using the scroll-bar. As a result, the search function was removed from the music player. A new application called Ovi Sync was installed and the Nokia Music Store received a revamped user interface and was renamed to “Ovi Music.” In some regions, Quick Office 4.2.374 is integrated with full free license. Search application’s icon was changed and a few more minor updates for better touch sensitivity and tweaks for faster operation of the phone are present.

Firmware 51.0.006 appeared in August 2010 and contained minor bug fixes and updates to various applications.

A powerful application has since been made available to a selected number of Nokia smartphones, including the 5800. Nokia’s Ovi Maps has since gone off its premium business model and is now subscription-free. Ovi Maps makes the 5800 even more attractive to end-users.

Of course, Ovi Store opens up the device to a world of apps. A wide variety of entertainment apps exist in Nokia’s marketplace that take advantage of the 5800′s multimedia credentials to offer even more value and functionality.

One cannot help wondering how long the 5800 would stay relevant considering the imminent entry of Nokia N8.

SMS, the happy accident of mobile technology that turns 17 this year, shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, maintains Pieter Streicher, managing director of BulkSMS.com, if anything SMS is going to accelerate its stellar trajectory thanks to increased business adoption.

Texting on a keyboard phone

Figures released recently by mobile maven Tomi Ahonen show that SMS is the most widely used data application on the planet, with 53% of the total world’s population and 78% of the world’s mobile phone users texting. Even in the USA, which was famously late to the SMS game, more than two-thirds of Americans send text messages. If you look at the number of users, SMS eclipses email by 2.6 times, despite email having been around for 39 years.

And all over the world, people increasingly prefer to send SMS messages than to make voice calls. Back in 2007, JD Powers reported the first ever decrease in number of voice calls had taken place in the UK while the number of text messages continued to grow. In 2009 Lightspeed Research reported that 11% of mobile phone users surveyed in the UK don’t initiate voice calls at all, but do send texts. In the US this number is 13%.

There is a range of reasons for this shift, and Streicher argues that one of them is that in this day and age of information overload, SMS is simply better suited to the way we want to communicate, and be communicated with.

Unlike with landlines in previous generations, we aren’t as compelled to answer a mobile phone and are happy to let a call go to voicemail, especially with call volumes increasing. But voicemail is problematic – we don’t always pick them up immediately, it’s not always convenient to take down phone numbers, and sometimes details get garbled. Indeed, the younger generation often switch off voicemail all together.

Compare this to SMS. It’s a simple matter to quickly skim text messages and it can be done very discreetly. All the details are there and can be used immediately or saved for future reference. A 160 Characters study showed that we respond to text messages in five minutes, while we take up to 24 hours to reply to email.

So it seems to make sense that if you are arranging a meet-up with a friend, you’ll text her, the message will get to her even if she is otherwise occupied, she’ll reply as soon as she is able to, and the message will get back to you whether or not you are available at the same time. SMS makes this type of asynchronous communication incredibly interactive and effective, even though it is not strictly taking place in real time.

Increasingly we are seeing this type of asynchronous communication being adopted by businesses. And it’s not only for marketing messages but for day-to-day business communications to customers. This is demonstrated by BulkSMS’s own traffic reports, which show an increase in single SMS messages from companies rather than bulk send-outs. If you need to reach a client, you could make multiple phone calls until you get hold of them, or you could send a single SMS, to be read as soon as the customer is able to.

More and more people are refusing to answer calls that come up as a “private number” because they have been the victims of too many unsolicited marketing calls. But if your company uses a least cost router that doesn’t display an outgoing number, your legitimate calls may also be ignored. Provided an SMS is sent with clear details in the message identifying the sender, and provided your company has a track record of using messaging responsibly, your message is unlikely to be ignored.

In addition, the stats quoted in this article show very clearly that Jane and Joe Soap prefer to communicate via SMS. So it’s madness to try to force them to communicate with your company in a different way to their choosing, especially if it’s a customer services issue.

And SMS isn’t just playing a role in customer-facing communication. The Mobile Data Association, quoted by Ahonen, reports that UK executives receive as many as 40 work-related text messages daily, and consider SMS to be their most valuable time management tool.

Business communication is going to lag consumer behaviour. But modern managers and businesses see the value and necessity of this type of communication – and this will further drive the already rapid growth of SMS.

-  Zap Eco-system to enrich lives offering customers more flexibility and security in a multitude of transactions 24 hours a day

Tuesday 16 March, Accra – ‘Zap’, Zain’s award winning mobile commerce service that allows customers to use their mobile phones like a mobile wallet to pay for goods and services and conduct banking services regardless of the type of handset they use, was launched today in Accra. Zap is a novel product that provides the most comprehensive and accessible package of m-commerce features currently available anywhere in the world.

Philip Sowah, Country Manager of Zain Ghana speaks to the press at the Zap launch

At the recent Global Mobile Awards in Barcelona, Zain was awarded the prestigious GSMA’s 2010 ‘Mobile Money for the Unbanked Award’ for the Zap service. The award is in recognition and appreciation of the efforts Zain has put in making mobile monetary transactions easy for all its customers.

Zain Ghana is the seventh Zain mobile operation to launch ‘Zap’ following the successful implementation of the service in Kenya, Malawi, Niger, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda.
Zap allows Zain customers to:

• Pay bills and pay for goods and services
• Receive and send money to friends and family
• Top up your own airtime account or top up someone else’s
• And soon in the following weeks, customers will be able to:
  • Send and receive money to their bank accounts
  • Withdraw cash
  • Manage their bank accounts

In a statement made at the launch, Philip Sowah, Country Manager of Zain Ghana, stated,“Once again, Zain is creating a wonderful world where customers can move about freely with their mobile phones transacting on goods and services. Our aim is to create an eco-system where Zap enriches lives by providing customers with increased security and flexibility, reducing the need to carry cash. The positive economic and social effects on the community we serve will be abundant”.

Zap Registration
Signing onto the Zap service is a simple and easy process. Customers will initially be required to register their personal details, with a valid photo ID card, at any of the Zain shops nationwide or with any of the partner banks like UBA, Standard Chartered Bank or Ecobank and their nationwide branches. Registering on to the service automatically registers the SIM card, which is currently a requirement by the NCA for telecom operators. Customers do not have to worry about opening a bank account before accessing the service as Zap does not rely on a bank account to operate.

Safety and Security
Zap is a safe and secure product, protected by a password that ensures that customers will not have to worry about their Zap account if they lose or damage their phones. The service is protected through a state-of-the-art security application and customers’ money is always safe as a password is needed for every transaction carried out.

Unlike other mobile commerce products, Zap provides customers with increased security and flexibility, reducing the need to carry cash and ensuring prompt payments of bills, goods and services. The payment of utility bills will become much easier as customers will be able to pay from the comfort of their homes or offices. Zap services are only available to Zain customers. The uniqueness and convenience of the product allows customers to do all this without having to swap SIM cards or change their handset.

Currently 80% of the Ghanaian population is unbanked, a situation which has several disadvantages to it. Traditional financial services are either remote or unavailable and Zap will alleviate the challenge that people travelling to these remote areas experience just to send money to friends and families or to conduct business.

Zap and One Network
The distinctiveness of Zap is further enhanced as it is compatible with Zain’s award winning ‘One Network’ platform, which allows all Zap customers to move freely across geographical borders and be treated as a local customer in any of the 22 ‘One Network’ countries in terms of pricing. Furthermore, they retain home network service functionalities; they can access their Zap accounts, send/receive money and pay for goods and service exactly the same way as they can at home.

-ENDS-

About Zain
Zain Ghana is part of the Zain Group, a leading telecommunications operator across the Middle East and Africa providing mobile voice and data services to over 70 million active customers as at 30 September, 2009 with a commercial presence in 23 countries.

Zain operates in the following countries: Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. In Lebanon, the company manages ‘mtc-touch’ on behalf of the government. In Morocco, Zain owns 31% of Wana Telecom through a joint venture.

Zain offers innovative services in its markets such as ‘One Network’, the world’s first borderless mobile telecommunications network enabling customers when abroad to receive calls and sms without charge and to make voice and data calls at local rates throughout 22 countries in Africa and the Middle East. This service allows a customer to top up airtime in their home country or from more than 1,000,000 outlets within Zain’s ‘One Network’ footprint.

Opera Mini

Opera Software ASA has again released its latest State of the Mobile Web report. The report provides information on the top global trends affecting the mobile Web. In addition to the top global trends and country snapshots, the report highlights trends in Africa and aggregate operator data for the top 10 countries.

On a global scale, Opera Mini usage in Nigeria continues to surge, pushing past Poland and taking the #9 spot.

The top 12 countries using Opera Mini in Africa are South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, Libya, Zambia, Tanzania, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Namibia, Ghana and Gabon.

From April 2008 to April 2009:

• Overall page-views in the top 12 countries listed increased 422%.
• Overall unique users in the top 12 countries listed increased 169%.
• Overall data transferred in the top 12 countries listed increased 348%.

Important milestones

• Since the last spotlight on Africa in September 2008, Nigeria jumped from #4 to #2 and Zambia jumped from #9 to #6. Mozambique, Namibia, Ghana and Gabon are new to the spotlight.
• Growth rates continue to soar in Africa–especially in Libya, with 4,155% user growth since April 2008, and in Nigeria, with 2,353% user growth since April 2008.
• Kenya leads the top 12 countries in page views, with each user browsing 372 pages on average each month.

Operator data trends

• Customers of U.S. operators view more data-intensive pages than subscribers in any other country. The average page viewed over U.S. operator networks is approximately 32 KB compressed or almost 320 KB uncompressed.
• Operators in the Ukraine were the big winners. Their customers view 582 pages per month, on average. Ukraine operators also sport the highest data transfer per user at more than 10 MB per month compressed. This is as much as 100 MB of mobile data per user uncompressed.

“Opera Mini has helped create and define the mobile Web experience for consumers around the world,” said Jon von Tetzchner, CEO, Opera. “Our relentless focus on delivering the best possible mobile Web experience helps drive adoption of mobile data plans. We believe that Opera Mini is the perfect win-win solution for both operators and consumers alike.”

About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software ASA has redefined Web browsing for PCs, mobile phones and other networked devices. Opera’s cross-platform Web browser technology is renowned for its performance, standards compliance and small size, while giving users a faster, safer and more dynamic online experience. Opera Software is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices around the world. The company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPERA.