Vodafone has launched its new phone ‘Vodafone 150’ which is being called the cheapest phone in the world with a price tag of just $15.
The phone is mainly aiming the customers in the developing countries. The phone will be launched in India, Turkey and African countries. Experts believe that the phone will enable services like healthcare and banking.
The Vodafone 150 was launched in the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona where the latest technology in the industry is being showcased.
Africa is emerging as a major marker for the mobile phone market. About 33 percent of Africans now own a mobile phone against only 7 percent in 2004, according to the data released by the UN’s International Telecommunication Union.
The market in some countries on the continent like South Africa is already believed to be saturated. Experts say that the cheap mobile phones are already in the markets in Africa and that this new phone will mainly help the bottom of the pyramid get a mobile phone earlier.
In African cities, the mobile phone is seen as a status symbol and there are thousands of latest phones such as iPhone. Vodafone will sell customised ringtones, games and other mobile content in Africa as these services are as popular as in any other places.
Mobile phones are also enabling unique innovative services on the continent like the facility to transfer money through mobile phones to other users.
The UN agency has said that the new phone will be a good instrument in spreading services like banking and mobile health services. Other such initiatives included a radio and 100-dollar laptop aimed at the developing world.
