Author: Kaluka wanjala

Leading fintech companies from the dynamic Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA) technology startup community have made it to the finals of Visa’s Everywhere Initiative, a global innovation program that tasks start-ups to solve commerce challenges of tomorrow, further enhance their own product propositions and provide visionary solutions for Visa’s vast network of partners. Among the 12 chosen, from the 238 total entries, Kenyan startups M-Changa, Mookh, WayaWaya and LipaPlus will compete against innovators from across Sub Sahara Africa for a chance to secure funding of up to US$50,000 to develop their ideas when the initiative concludes in Johannesburg on July 24. Fintechs…

In this latest episode of 24 Bit, we discuss the recent Twitter purge and what it means. Found out more on the video below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGT0X1ROlKU

The Infinix Note 5 has just got a minor update that will see the addition of portrait mode to the back camera. Given the price of the Infinix Note 5, some people were not happy that it did not have portrait mode. We see a number of smartphones within this price range come with a dual camera setup and/or support portrait mode but the Note 5 had a single camera setup with no portrait mode until two days back. Portrait mode allows you to keep the subject in focus while blurring the background. The update adds software-based portrait mode which…

Google has announced a $25 million investment to expand its work supporting the news ecosystem’s long-term success in online video—with a special focus on YouTube. This comes just three months after the launch of the Google News Initiative (GNI) with the goal of helping journalism thrive in the digital age. The new Google News app subsequently launched in May is available in Kenya. In March, GNI committed $300 million towards three goals: to elevate and strengthen quality journalism; evolve business models to drive sustainable growth; and empower news organizations through technological innovation. “Over the past 20 years, we’ve grappled with…

Malware sophistication is increasing as adversaries begin to weaponize cloud services and evade detection through encryption, used as a tool to conceal command-and-control activity. To reduce adversaries’ time to operate, security professionals said they will increasingly leverage and spend more on tools that use AI and machine learning, reported in the 11th Cisco 2018 Annual Cybersecurity Report (ACR). While encryption is meant to enhance security, the expanded volume of encrypted web traffic (50 percent as of October 2017) — both legitimate and malicious — has created more challenges for defenders trying to identify and monitor potential threats. Cisco threat researchers…

The Huawei Y5 Prime 2018 has finally been launched in Kenya. This is the latest smartphone from the company and is available in Kenya through e-commerce platform, Jumia, and through offline retailers across the country. The recommended retail price is Ksh 9,999, very competitive and will definitely eat into Tecno’s and Infinix’s pie. The Huawei Y5 Prime 2018 is the second device in the Y series that the company has launched in the country recently, the other one was the Huawei Y7 Prime 2018 that we have already reviewed and you can read about it here. With the launch of…

If you have been following what LG has been doing this year, you may have seen the company use the word ‘ThinQ’ on some of its products from the new OLED TVs to smartphones. We saw a number of these products earlier this year at CES and we expect to see more as the year progresses and in the future. Since we are going to see the word ThinQ thrown around a lot by LG this year, it is a good idea to understand what it is and what it means for us the customers. What Is LG ThinQ According…

Earlier this year at CES, LG announced the latest version of its TV-focused “Alpha” processor, the Alpha 9 intelligent processor. This new processor replaces the Alpha 7 and the company says that it is better at handling advanced image processing, artificial intelligence and natural language requests by using the TV remote. So, the question is, what role does the Alpha 9 processor play in the new LG OLED TVs? Improved Picture Quality LG was very clear that the new Alpha 9 intelligent processor is optimized for its OLED TVs. In these TVs, viewers are guaranteed clarity with exquisite detail, vibrant…

Infinix Mobile officially unveiled its latest Note device, the Infinix Note 5, in Dubai a couple of weeks back. The phone is finally available in Kenya for as low as Ksh 17,939 through e-commerce platform, Jumia. I do have a review unit and in this post I will be sharing my first impressions on this phone before I post the full review in about two weeks. The Infinix Note 5 is surprise, surprise, the fifth addition to the company’s Note series that started as the go to series for those who wanted a device with a big screen and a…

Branch, the popular lending app, has today announced that it has received Ksh 350 million capital investment based on a commercial paper issuance that was arranged by Barium Capital, a Centum-owned capital-raising advisory firm. The company says this capital investment will help it expand its financial services and lending products in Kenya. This is the second time the company has issued commercial paper in the Kenyan market. Last year, the company raised Ksh 200 million through another commercial paper issuance. Branch is one of the most popular lending apps in Kenya issuing instant loans from as low as Ksh 250…