Possible MTN subsidiary Afrihost has never been one to shy away from branching out into uncharted avenues and opportunities to get new customers to use the data products it offers. Whether it was offering its own branded ADSL modems to get users to start using it as an ISP or offering mobile data and along with the 3G and LTE hardware used to access it, Afrihost has been rather innovative in its approach as a data peddler.
The latest deal from Afrihost will, for the first time, give its existing customers the opportunity to buy an Android smartphone, in the form of the Zest T1, for R1 999 from the ISP on the 18th of June with the rest of the country getting the chance a day later on the 19th. After a survey conducted last month to test the waters as to how many people would consider buying the Zest T1 smartphone and how much they would be willing to pay for one (the average was R3 573.11 just by the way) led Afrihost to begin offering the smartphone.
The Zest T1 is powered by an as-yet-unnamed 1.3GHz quad core processor with 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage running the latest version of Google’s Android software, version 4.4.2 along with a rather modest 1 600mAh battery. The display packs a decidedly 2011 qHD resolution of 540×800 which results in a pixel density of around 245 pixels per inch, hardly cutting edge by today’s standards although the 8 megapixel camera on the back is better than we would expect from a device with these specs.
Where the Zest T1 stands out from the crowd is in the fact that it has the ability to use two SIM cards simultaneously, giving users the chance to use their current SIM cards and cellphone numbers while using he included Afrihost data SIM in the second slot. Afrihost is of course offering data with the Zest T1 smartphone giving a 1GB allowance per month for the first twelve months after activation with data expiring at the end of each month.
Afrihost has said that there are only 1 000 Zest T1s available but we’re not inclined to trust the number after the ISP used an artificially created scarcity to sell it’s branded portable WiFi devices when they first launched last year.
We’ll be patiently waiting to get our mits on the Zest T1 to find out just how good it is come the 18th of June, will you?
