One of the dilemma of changing ISPs here is that you are not so sure if the new guys you are considering cover your present location, and if service there is reliable.

When I first wrote my article, Mobile Data: Bridging The Internet Divide In Africa, back in 2005 (also re-published here on Mobility in 2008), one of the factors that I considered in making some of the forecasts that I did is the flexibility attached to GSM-based mobile services.

Permit me to explain how that plays out in this scenario.

You want to subscribe to a new service that is CDMA-based. There is no way to determine availability and/or reliability in your area. For the most part, the ISP themselves do not have accurate information on this either.

If you do not have a neighbour who uses that service in the same vicinity, you are effectively at the mercy of fate.

If you were considering a GSM-based service, however, you could simply purchase a SIM for N150, register it, put it in any internet-enabled phone lying around, load just N1,000 and activate a 100MB data plan and use that to test the service.

If you are not satisfied, simply repeat the process with another service provider. If/when satisfied, you can then splurge out more cash on a modem or mifi device for PC use. Of course, if your phone has a built-in modem or Wi-Fi hotspot, you can retain the SIM in your phone.

This sort of flexibility, alongside other factors, make GSM-based internet connectivity very appealing for a wide range of users.

Telkom bought 75% into multilinks for $280million in 2007 and paid up the balance of $130 million in 2009. The South African firm was unable to turn the fortunes of Multilinks around, and put it up for sale.

The Helios charge has ended Visafone’s move to acquire the ailing pioneer CDMA operator in Nigeria.

Source

This acquisition brings Visafone’s total active subscriber base to 4.2million.

Multi-links Telkom had in November 2010 announced plans to wind up from the Nigerian telecommunications market in phases.

Although selling their CDMA technology business in Nigeria, Telkom South Africa Limited are keeping their fibre-optic division in anticipation that it would soon blossom with the landing of various submarine cables and internet broadband penetration in the country.

• iZAP 1GB plan: 1GB with 30 days validity – N3,500
• iZAP 2GB plan: 2GB with 30 days validity – N4,500

The data plans can be subscribed to via SMS, but details of the codes are not presently available. Mobile data just got more convenient on the Starcomms network.

Sounds impressive.

Specifications:
Size: 122 x 66 x 13 mm
Display: 4.3-inch, 480 x 800 pixels, TFT Capacitive
Processor: 1GHz Snapdragon
Network: CDMA / 1xEV-DO rev.A; 4G WiMAX; 802.16e: 2500MMz
Integrated 4G radio with hotspot capability to share with up to eight devices
OS: Android 2.1 with New HTC Sense user interface
Camera: 8 megapixel Dual LED Autofocus camera with Digital zoom
Video Capture: 1280×720 (720p HD)
Navigation: A-GPS
3.5mm audio jack

The in-thing now seems to be monster-sized smartphones. A few years back, everyone was trying to miniaturise phones, but the touchscreen craze seems to have reversed that trend. Now, it seems, the bigger and meaner-looking, the better.

Thanks to the heads-up from Johnny.

Related News:
From Gizmodo
From PhoneArena

Thankfully, things have changed. The coming of GSM technology has introduced a new level of awareness, competitionand services in the Nigerian mobile landscape – much like what the superb user interface of the iPhone did to the global mobile phone industry.

Pay as you browse internet services tend to be popular among casual internet users – those who do not want to shell out a huge payment every month but need access to the internet for light browsing and basic email. Usually, GSM networks charge for data transferred, regardless of how long a user stays connected. CDMA networks, however charge per minute.

On CDMA networks, this used to be very expensive business, with some networks charging as much as N7.50 per minute back then, though some are still close now. Translated, a subscriber would be burning N450 for staying connected continously for one hour. Xpensive!

Lower Tariffs
The tariffs for pay as you browse services have since dropped and become more pocket-friendly. Here are the options that you have on three of the most vibrant CDMA networks available now:

• Starcomms: N3.00 per minute
• Visafone: N2.50 per minute
• ZOOMmobile: N6.00 per minute peak; N4.80 per minute off-peak; N3.90 per minute midnight

We have no information on Multilinks’ tariff at the moment, as we could find no such information on this operator’s website.

The Visafone tariff of N2.50 per minute is the most pocket-friendly at the moment, closely followed by Starcomms at N3.00 per minute. Of course, you also have to pay attention to coverage and other factors in choosing a service provider, so do your research.

Do you use any of these pay as you browse services from CDMA operators? Would you like to share your experiences?

• Treo Centro (Palm OS): N11,999.00
• Motorola Q9c (Windows Mobile): N11,999.00
• Samsung 830W (Windows Mobile; Dual Technology: GSM + CDMA): N11,999.00
• Motorola Q (Windows Mobile): N9,999.00
• Treo 755P (Palm OS): N11,999.00
• Tech 101 (Dual Technology: GSM + CDMA): N7,999.00

Unfortunately, the ZoomMobile website is outdated in terms of information. You won’t find this information there.

However, should you be interested in any of the above, dash down to the nearest Zoom centre to pick your copy up. Hurry! Promo may end anytime (christmas is over!).

Note that both the Treos and Motorolas are EVDO-compliant, so high-speed mobile internet is in view with those devices, but you need to subscribe to the ZMBlast internet plan in order to have EVDO access.

Update:
For the benefit of those interested, we are publishing the various mobile internet plans from ZOOM below.

ZOOMmobile Internet Plans

1x Service Plans

• Easy Time (24 hours for 30 days): N10,000
• Busy Time (24 hours for 14 days): N5,000
• Business Time (Day Time for 30 days): N7,000
• Relax Time (6pm – 11pm for 30 days): N5,000
• Rest Time (11pm – 7am for 30 days): N5,000
• Cool Time (8am Fri – 10pm Sunday for 30 days): N5,000

EVDO/Broadband Service Plan

• ZMBlast (24 hours for 30 days): N15,000

Pay As You Browse (Pay B) Options

• Pay B 1,000 (10 hours across 5 days): N1,000
• Pay B 3,000 (40 hours across 18 days): N3,000
• Pay B 5,000 (100 hours across 30 days): N5,000
• Pay B 10,000 (300 hours across 60 days): N10,000

Interested subscribers will need to purchase a Motorola Q9 for use with this. Visafone quotes the Q9 as being available for N59,999 only. Here is a quick specification sheet of the Motorola Q9:

• Push and Pull Email
• CDMA 800, 1900 Mhz, 1X and EVDO
• Windows Mobile Standard 6.0
• 2.4 inch (320 x 240 pixels) QVGA 65,536 color display
• Opera Browser
• 1.3 megapixel camera
• MMS, SMS
• Streaming audio and video
• Supports MP3,WMA, MPEG4
• USB, Bluetooth Connectivity
• miniSD slot
• A-GPS
• Li – Ion, 1170 mAh Battery

Visa Mobile Office attracts a monthly access charge of N4, 000, and this includes unlimited data access on the Visa 1x 24/7 plan for both email and web browsing. Visa 1x 24/7 plan allows you to browse the Internet anytime anywhere within the Visafone coverage area at speeds of up to 153kbps on a shared basis.

The 1x plan does not give access to the faster EVDO platform though the Motorola Q9 is EVDO-enabled. Still, at N4,000 monthly for unlimited access, it is a good deal, especially considering that you can use the phone as a modem for internet access on a computer.

It looks to us that this about the best deal for mobile road warriors on any of the available CDMA networks.

Visit the official Visa Mobile Office page.

Visafone coverage map

From the 82 unique visitors and 1,127 page views registered in that month, MobilityNigeria has grown in leaps and bounds to register 9,610 unique visitors and 16,874 page views in December 2009.

In addition, WebTrends Nigeria, a site that monitors and ranks Nigerian websites currently ranks Mobility Nigeria as number 31 in the country.

Other statistics of this website are available on our Contact page.

To be honest, the traffic between June and December 2008 was not quite encouraging, but we remember that Yomi and Dayo just kept going.

The entire team at the office sincerely thank our regulars here for helping to make this site the vibrant place that it has become. Can we also ask for your suggestions on how to make Mobility Nigeria a better resource for you? Please use the comments box to submit your suggestions.

Powered by CDMA?

Incidentally, while the majority of articles on this site have been focused on the GSM side of mobile technology in Nigeria, it is interesting to note that the very first article refered to earlier was Yomi’s escapade with browsing on a CDMA smartphone, the Treo P700 on the Reltel (now ZOOMmobile) network.

We are agreed that there is a need to tip the scales back a bit and put up more information about CDMA-based mobile technology. Expect to see more news, features and reviews from that side of the divide from now. And no; we will not be neglecting GSM in any way at all.

Advertisers, Sponsors, Phone & Manufacturers & Retailers

It takes a lot to keep a website like this going. We have to purchase or trade-in phones (whether we really need them or not) in order to have reviews. We spend huge amounts on purchasing mobile internet access and airtime from time to time in order to stay current with what is happening on various networks. Then, of course, there are web services expenses to take care of.

This is an invitation to advertisers. MobilityNigeria will give your business websites good exposure. You can even decide to sponsor the site. In this case, only your ads will feature on the site and the entire site branded completely to your corporate colours.

We invite phone manufacturers (Samsung, Nokia, and LG – you guys have a presence here in Nigeria) and retailers (even networks too) to step up and provide loan units for reviews. Two or three weeks and we’ll have the loan units returned to you in tip-top shape. Our reviews are good publicity for your products, services and/or shops.

Go ahead, you know we make business sense: email us!

Palm pulled a miracle with WebOS and the Pre, but where they blew it was releasing a CDMA version first. In effect, they fixed their attention on one tiny chunk of the mobile market – the very small US market.

Palm is the only manufacturer of WebOS phones. Palm has only two such phones in the market. Those two phones are primarilly CDMA devices. Those two phones are available on a single US operator. Those two phones have a limited release on overseas carriers. Sounds like a not-so-winning formula, especially with the limitations that taking the CDMA route imposes.

A GSM version released first and followed later by a CDMA version, in my opinion, would have done much better. Think of the huge and vibrant Nigerian market. Think of South Africa, Europe and Asia – all drooling for WebOS and the Pre.

Availability to a wider market will also create a demand for more applications. Why would any developers want to invest so much in creating apps for a device or platform that has such limited availability and circulation? It is no wonder that the WebOS application catalogue is still very lean.

While Apple took a similar route with the iPhone, pushing a GSM device gave it an edge. before we knew it, iPhones were all over the place (officially or unofficially). And believe me when I say that the unofficial market is a strong one. Of course, because of network locks, the iPhone is still a bit limited. Now consider that the Pre has been largely CDMA (bad enough) and locked to a network too (double bad), and you get the picture, surely.

Palm relegated the major mobile markets to second class status. Absurd. In my opinion, Palm does not seem set to hit it big – unless they execute another u-turn. Want a wider mobile reach? Push GSM. Africa, Europe, and Asia are where mobile phones are selling like hot cake – and on these continents, GSM rules.

Related Item: Can Palm and WebOS make it through 2010?