Ethiopian-made smartphone goes on sale in July
It will be the first smartphone to be completely assembled in the East African region.
The smartphone runs on Google’s Android 2.3 operating system and features the Amharic language and GPS and supports SMS, email and other information transferring systems.
Tecno Telecom Ltd came to Ethiopia in September 2011, with an investment of over $1 million as part of its plan to increase its presence in the African market.
Tecno already has several models in the Ethiopian market which support Amharic, Oromiffa, and Tigrigna languages. The new phone, Tecno T3, will however support only Amharic.
The Amharic soft keyboard and messaging application feature was developed by an Ethiopian firm called Information Technology Transfer Services (ITTS). The Amharic language software can work on all Android operating systems.
Tecno has over 300 employees in its 500sqm office on Gabon Street in Ethiopia and is planning to move to its 1,500sqm new factory located in Gofa Sefer, Nefas Silk Lafto District. According to the company, one production assembly line requires 35 people at a time.
Established in July 2006 in Hong Kong, Tecno Telecom Limited is a comprehensive mobile phone manufacturer. It is one of the major mobile phone suppliers in the world and one of the largest mobile phone manufacturers in China.
Since 2008, Tecno decided to focus on Africa as its key market and has become one of the most popular mobile phone brands in many countries in Africa with branches in countries like Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana.
Originally By Dinfin Mulupi, ITWebAfrica
