tech news
Jumia to Expand Food Delivery Service in Africa
Jumia is set to expand its eCommerce offering to include food delivery. According to the company’s co-CEO, Sacha Poignonnec, 20% of all transactions across the Jumia platform is already made up of food and this is growing quickly. He also revealed that the service will expand to Egypt following the exit of Uber Eats. TechCentral writes [Poignonnec’s] comments come “after a year where demand for delivered meals and groceries has exploded worldwide as restrictions to contain the coronavirus kept people indoors”. And while countries in Africa have taken longer than others around the world to adopt this trend – due to limited access to affordable Internet solutions – Jumia is making waves to expand before other eCommerce goliaths – like Amazon – do. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_bce.td-a-rec-im...
Luno Reaches 7 Million Users Milestone
South African-founded Luno has officially recorded seven million customers (wallets) – just seven weeks after reaching the milestone of six million customers. The business believes this growth is due to the simplicity of its online and mobile platforms, offering education, bank-grade security and self-regulation. It is actively working with regulators and banks to safely increase access to cryptocurrencies. Luno was ranked in the top six cryptocurrency exchanges worldwide in the latest CryptoCompare Exchange Benchmark and also received the top tier AA rating. South Africa is one of Luno’s strongest markets and the appetite for cryptocurrency trades continues to grow. Reaching seven million wallets demonstrates the growing adoption of cryptocurrencies across the globe. /* custom css */...
Telkom to Support Community-Led Coding Programme in South Africa
Telkom has partnered with the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies to hand over a community lab as well as a community-led coding programme to the Alice community in Eastern Cape, South Africa. As part of the Digital Skills Development Programme, Telkom has identified 25 unemployed youth aged between 18-35 with IT background from the community to partake in a month-long coding programme. The youth will be provided with laptops and software. The company has also donated a fully fitted computer lab and a comprehensive educational content platform to enhance digital skills and online learning at Healdtown High School in Fort Beaufort. “The Telkom Foundation’s mission is rooted in meaningful and sustainable community upliftment and development,” says Sarah Mthintso, Head of Te...
4 Ways to Use Your Smartphone Better
Sourced from Getty Images. Smartphones are glued to the palm of our hands for most of the day, perhaps to keep up with the latest social media updates or to keep in contact with family, friends and even clients. Whatever the reason may be, smartphones are here and, let’s be honest, we probably wouldn’t survive a day without them. With this in mind, here are four ways to make the most of your screen time: 1. Record important information When it comes to remembering things, it often goes in one ear and out the other – despite our best efforts. To make sure that you remember important dates, meetings, or other events, use your phone’s calendar. Most of them will allow you to sync with your email calendar, which means that there’s no excuse for forgetting. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_7c6.td-a...
Telegram Introduces Auto-Delete and Expiring Invite Features
Image sourced from The Independent Telegram has released a new update that includes an auto-delete timer for messages in any chat, as well as new flexible invite links. Auto-Delete Messages Telegram users can now enable an auto-delete timer in all chats, which will automatically erase messages for all participants either 24 hours or 7 days after sending. Auto-delete only applies to messages sent after the timer is set, earlier messages will stay in the chat history. Unlike in Secret Chats, the countdown starts when messages are sent, not read. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_130.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_130.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } To enable the timer on Android, tap ⋮ > Clear History then choose a duration. On iOS, press and hold a message, tap Select > Clear C...
Twitter Considers Charging Users for Exclusive Content
Image sourced from Mission Statement Academy Twitter is exploring a subscription-based model – called “super follows” – where users can charge followers for access to exclusive content. “Exploring audience funding opportunities like Super Follows will allow creators and publishers to be directly supported by their audience and will incentivise them to continue creating content that their audience loves,” reveals a Twitter spokesperson. The social platform’s Head of Product, Kayvon Beykpour says that the exclusive content could include anything from tweets and direct messages to audio conversations and newsletters. “We also think that an audience-funded model, where subscribers can directly fund the content that they value most, is a durable incentive model that aligns the interest of creat...
Haller Farmers: Restoring African Land for Over 50 Years
The Haller Farmers app is taking advantage of Africa’s increasing mobile penetration by equipping the next generation of farmers with knowledge, information and education through technology. The app — which was developed for farmers by farmers — takes its unique name from UNEP Global 500 Laureate, Dr Rene Haller, who has spent the last 50 years experimenting with nature to restore life to degraded landscapes. Since the 1970s, Dr Haller has used science and careful observation to allow barren quarried landscapes to be transformed into abundant and diverse forest ecosystems, sanctuaries for endangered species, and resources for local African communities. An example of this is Haller Park, a former limestone quarry that is now a flourishing hub of biodiversity. The 7km² landscape is curr...
Digital Advertising Ready to Take-Off in South Africa
Advertising is big business. Ever since the first banner ad way back in 1994, we’ve been consuming this digital content on almost every major platform we use, seeing countless images and videos throughout the average workday. It’s also worth noting that digital advertising spend is on the up constantly, too. The global Mobile Advertising market size is projected to reach $5.13 billion by 2026, growing from $4.16 billion over 2020 – working out at a CAGR of an astonishing 21.6% over the next five years. The U.S. mobile advertising market alone is expected to grow by a fifth, reaching approximately $70 billion in spending – an overwhelming 75% of all digital advertising spend. It’s the same in Europe – in 2021, £16.21 billion was spent in the UK. In a couple of years, calculations have estim...
Vodacom and Google Give Smartphones to Rural Communities in South Africa
Vodacom has partnered with Google to give away hundreds of Android-powered smartphones to communities across Limpopo, South Africa. This move forms part of the companies continued efforts to “reduce the digital divide” and offer many who reside in deep rural communities “access to the internet for the first time”. “At Vodacom we are optimistic about how technology and connectivity can enhance the future and improve people’s lives. Through our business, we aim to build a digital society that transforms communities, embraces everyone, leaving no one behind. Our purpose is to ‘connect for a better future’, improving the lives of the next 100 million customers by 2025,” says Imran Khan, Managing Executive for Vodacom Limpopo. “In our pursuit to build an inclusive and sustainable digital societ...
6 Reasons to Sponsor IoTFA 2021
The Internet of Things Forum Africa is set to lead the conversation on the latest IoT challenges, opportunities and innovations. Taking place on 25 – 26 March 2021, this free virtual summit will see hundreds of executives, entrepreneurs and solution providers equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to plan and implement successful connected projects. This year’s virtual Internet of Things Forum Africa is themed ‘Envisioning The Role of IoT in a Post COVID-19 World’- with a key focus on how the digital enterprise of the future will be shaped by our current pandemic experiences. Join us on the 25th and 26th of March 2021 and find out about the growing influence of IoT in business transformation, and how focused attention on data regulation, cloud and cybersecurity will become cruc...
Lenovo Unveils the ThinkPad X13 and X13 Yoga
Lenovo has introduced the latest additions to its ovo including completely redesigned X13 and X13 Yoga. The devices come with 16:10 aspect ratio displays and updated T and L series. The new ThinkPad laptops offer customer the choice to select the most appropriate configuration for their needs. Select models are available in black or storm grey with options including 11th Gen Intel Core vPro processors or the latest AMD Ryzen 5000 Series Mobile Processors. ThinkPad X13 and X13 Yoga maximize performance and portability. Whether home-based or negotiating hybrid working, the lightweight laptops, featuring new 16:10 aspect ratio displays, can offer always-on always-connected technology to stay on top of daily workloads. ThinkPad X series portfolio include ThinkPad X13 i and X13 Yoga powered by ...
Rain Suffers Private Data Breach
Image sourced from MyBroadband Rain has confirmed that hit by a security breach. The South African telco revealed in an email to subscribers that its security team discovered unauthorised access to the group’s invoice storage system. According to BusinessTech, the vulnerability has been “identified and remedied”. However, some historical invoices “may have been accessed”, with the information limited to customers name and postal addresses. “Firstly, we want to assure you that your sensitive information is secure, and no action is required from you at all. We can confirm that there has been no unauthorised access to any systems that store information such as login details, ID numbers, banking or card details. This information was never at risk,” says the company. “We would like to assu...
