Ronald

Last month at the Mobile Web Africa conference, Brett Loubser (Samsung Electronics SA product technical and support manager) did a presentation entitled: “Mobile Internet - The African Status. Device availability and Technology Considerations.”

In it he spoke about Open Mobile operating systems - such as Android and LiMo (Linux Mobile) as being key drivers for growth and innovation in Africa.

I spoke to Brett after his talk to find out more about Samsung’s plans locally for Android handsets and he very kindly agreed to a text interview where he also shares some exciting news about the Spica (Android) handset launching soon in South Africa:

RB: The phrase “Android in Africa” is being heard more and more. What makes Android suited for Africa and why do you anticipate it becoming more popular in the future?

BL: Android as an Open Source OS makes a lot of sense for Africa. Apart from the OS being free for OEM development, it seems well suited to a wide variety of implementations. This can be seen in the diversity of devices it is already being deployed on. As hardware costs fall, and Android becomes more accessible, this should spur the development community on. It makes commercial sense to develop for the biggest audience possible. A wide diversity of applications, a low cost OS and falling technology costs will be the driving force for the growth of Android in Africa.

RB: Is there a target demographic/profile Samsung are targeting their Android phones at?

BL: In the short term, the target audience for any new technology is typically the early adopter. The techno savvy segment are the demographic that are willing to experiment with new technologies, and are generally the people that introduce the rest of the market to the benefit and power of new technologies. As we start to grow our Android device and user base, our target demographic is certainly the early adopter, but we expect the benefit and flexibility of the platform to draw users from other demographics soon.

RB: Samsung are already well established on Symbian and Windows Mobile. Where do you see Android (and LiMo) fitting in going forward and will we see some platforms ultimately falling away as a result of these newer platforms?

BL: Our history with multiple Operating Systems ensures that our R&D teams are able to move swiftly to integrate with whatever Mobile Operating System that makes sense. Android and LiMo seem well positioned for the next generation of Smart devices, so I believe they will prove to be of great importance to Samsung going forward. We still have current Symbian, Windows Mobile and Samsung Proprietary OS devices in our portfolio, so we will continue to support them as fully as possible until it does not make sense to do so any longer. We have also been investing in our proprietary OS significantly of late. Our current flagship is the first of many new devices that supports this OS, and the OS now supports full multitasking, has ActiveSync capability built in, and is extremely power efficient. I believe we will continue this trend with the Samsung OS and will see some exciting developments in this OS in the near future.

News24 on the Samsung Spica

RB: Samsung is making a strong Android push with the launch of the Galaxy Spica, and more devices lined up in the next 6-12 months. What will make Samsung Android phones different to Android devices released by other manufacturers?

BL: We believe that the Spica is the perfect entry point for Samsung and Android into the local market. We plan to price it really aggressively specifically to reach as large a target audience as possible. As you mention, we have other Android plans over the next 6-12 months and plan to release a number of devices that will leverage the strength of Samsung’s hardware expertise and integrate it with the power of the Android platform. Samsung currently are the world market leaders in Touch phones, and are also world leaders from a technology perspective. This experience combined with the Android platform will bring us market leadership in this arena we believe.

RB: The original Galaxy (i7500) comes with a 3.2-inch AMOLED full touch screen. What will appeal to a prospective buyer about the Galaxy Spica (i5700) handset?

BL: We have chosen the Spica specifically because its more price accessible, but also because it has our new 800MHz application processor embedded which we believe enhances the user experience dramatically.

RB: The Spica is being launched to coincide with the arrival of Google maps in SA. Can we expect some unique local mapping and navigation features to be available on the Galaxy?

BL: We are launching the Spica right now, shortly after the Google maps launch. We are very proud to have the association with Google in this regard. The launch allowed us to showcase the incredible power of Google maps on a mobile device (we did live demos on the Galaxy Spica at the launch). The Galaxy Spica will support the full range of features provided by Google.

RB: What would you say is the Spica’s key differentiating feature?

The Galaxy Spica is differentiated by its 800 MHz application processor which speeds up the user experience on the device, while enhancing the multitasking capability of the Android platform. As mentioned previously, we believe the Galaxy Spica will compete aggressively based on price, and this again is a key success factor for the adoption of the Android platform in our market. The Spica has a 3.2 inch capacitive touch screen for a responsive user experience. It also has a 1500 mAh high capacity battery, and we supply a car charger in the box to suit the needs of the typical power user that will be using this device.

RB: Currently the Samsung Application Store is only available in the UK, France and Italy. Will we see a local app store in South Africa similar to Leaf’s Open Market?

BL: We are currently in the strategic planning stages for the launch of a localised Application store. Watch this space!

RB: What is Samsung doing to encourage local development of Samsung apps and widgets?

BL: We are directly engaged with our HQ R&D team, as well as local partners (Operators and content partners) in order to develop a range of widgets, so this is in process. In terms of Apps, I believe we will have some more focused activity with local development once our plans for an Application store become clearer.

RB: Paid apps in the Android Market still aren’t available to South Africans. What are the reasons behind this and do you expect this to change anytime soon?

This is entirely a Google decision. Samsung managed to gain the rights to have the free Android Market made available for South Africa, and we are working closely with Google to ensure that we are ready when they decide to launch the Android Market officially. Paid for apps will become available on the Android Market only once Google officially launch it for our region.