Don't get mad, I would have said the entire third world but I do not know that much about other third world countries internet infrastructure, I could always assume that they are equivalent( give or take a few factors ) to ours but then again, ASS-U-ME, makes an ass out of you and me. enough of that.
Internet access around here has always been a bit of a dream, and lately a mirage, as it has been promised to us repeatedly but it never gets to us.
Never been that good with statistics and as such can' quite tell you what the 'official' internet penetration is but I promise to have some figures ready for you.
Anyway, from my experience, internet has been something that you cannot easily get a hold of, I live within the capital Nairobi, and as such have access to several cyber cafes at a pretty reasonable 1Shs per minute,( about 2 US cents, or more precisely, 1$ per hour ). now that rate is not all that unreasonable but for a country where most people live n less than a dollar a day, how the hell can we expect people to blow 1 days entire living expenditure on 1 hrs internet? yeah you now get my dilemma.
Anyway there are several options on how to connect to the internet but for this blog I will concentrate on the one which I found most suitable for me and also which, with a bit of tweaking I think can be applied to the majority of people within this great country of ours and by extension most of the third world. EDGE.
EDGE? yeah EDGE, that extension of GSM/GPRS technology but just before you get to 3G. Why EDGE, well because it is cheap(er) than most of what the other have to offer and it allow for several flexible options of use and payment, but best of all, Both of our mobile telephony providers here in Kenya( Safaricom and Celtel ) offer it across their entire networks. Oh did I forget to mention, Since the service is based on mobile phones, it is mobile, it does not need me to be tied down to a fixed infrastructure.
Anyway fast-forwarding to the present, I have been lucky enough to try both their offerings( and even more but thats a post for another day )
Safaricom have an offering Known as the BambaNet, consisting of a GPRS/EDGE modem and a service plan for the internet service( sic? ). ( The Celtel offering on the other hand doesnt seem to have a name ).
Price :
Safaricom : 12500/- ( inclusive of a 750MB bundle )
Celtel : 6000/- ( just the data card, and SIM card )
Pay As You Go Rate:
Safaricom : 12/60
Celtel : 10/-
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