'First African-designed' smartphone and tablet launched
Johannesburg, 30 Dec - (ANA) - A smartphone and tablet said to be the first designed by an African company have beenlaunched. The products, designed by Congolese entrepreneur Verone Mankou, are manufactured in China. His company VMK's devices run Google's Android software. They will retail at $170 (£105) for the smartphone and $300 (£185) for the tablet. "Only Africans can know what Africa needs," said Mr Mankou at the Tech4Africa conference in Johannesburg. "Apple is huge in the US, Samsung is huge in Asia, and we want VMK to be huge in Africa." Technology blog Smartplanet reports that the tablet offers wi-fi connectivity and four gigabytes of internal storage. Its name, Way-C, means "the light of the stars" in the local Lingala language.  The smartphone has rear and forward facing cameras and a 3.5in (8.9cm) screen.  There are plans to sell the devices across 10 other West African countries as well as Belgium, France and India. Mr Mankou said he hoped to launch a cheaper tablet for students next year.(ANA)
FA/ANA/30 December 2012---------