BEDAH MENGONAIROBI – At a mobile phone shop along Moi Avenue in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, dozens of customers queue patiently at the counter waiting to be served.
Most of them want to buy a mobile phone.
Among the various kinds of mobile phones displayed here, China’s Huawei is quite popular with customers, according to the shop.
“With your US$220, you can buy a Huawei Honor T1 or Huawei Ascend G628,” says an attendant at the shop.
Huawei’s mobile phones sell for between US$66 and US$680 in Kenya.
The mobile phones are eye-catching, sporting a six- inches wide screen, camera and other features, says the attendant.
Huawei’s mobile phones have been a hit with Kenyans ever since they were introduced into the East African nation in 2010.
In 2011, over 100 000 Huawei IDEOS were sold at US$100 apiece within a few months, according to figures from Safaricom, a leading mobile network operator in Kenya.
In addition, Huawei provides services in nearly 20 countries in the Sub-Sahara African region while ZTE, another Chinese telecom service supplier, provides at least 25 countries in the region with such services.
Servives provided by the two companies take up half of the total market in some countries in the region, according to statistics from the two suppliers.
The phones have become popular because they are affordable for most Kenyans and provide premium features including touch screen, big storage capacity and the function of a 3G Wi-Fi hotspot that can connect up to eight devices.
“I once used mobile phones of some other brands, but now I’ve fallen in love with my Huawei,” said Mercy Otieno, a communication assistant in a local NGO.
Otieno owns the Huawei Ascend G628 that she bought at US$274 about two years ago.
One of the things she likes about it is that the phone functions as her internet.
“I can easily connect and share the internet on other devices including other mobile phones. Furthermore, Huawei’s screen is tactile compared to others, and it does not break easily. The battery lasts for long. And you can clearly see what’s displayed on the screen, even in the sun,” said Otieno.
The NGO worker uses the phone to do many things including taking photos and posting them on social media sites.
“My mobile phone has a storage capacity of 8 gigabytes (GB). That is huge compared with some other brands I know which have up to 4 GB. With 8 GB, I save as many things as I wish without fearing the memory would fill up,” she says.
According to Huawei, the company is dedicated to take care of the needs of its customers, and it seems the Kenyan love affair with it will even go stronger.
– Nampa-Xinhua
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