TelOne has joined in on the feature phone game by announcing that it will be offering an MLS Easy TS 4G Smart feature phone that will go head to head with Econet’s Smart 4G Kambudzi.
Introducing the New MLS Easy TS 4G Smart Feature Phone from TelOne. Access WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for less!#BringingYouTogether #smartphone #innovate pic.twitter.com/NcwgaEBXEa
— Tel·One (@TelOneZW) July 19, 2021
The device is manufactured by a company called MLS Innovative Inc and will retail for US$99.99. The Easy TS 4G feature phone comes with a 1,800 mAh battery which gives about 15 hours of talk time and 120 hours on standby. It runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow with 8 GB internal memory (expandable up to 32 GB), a 1GHz processor, 1GB of RAM and Dual Sim capability.
So how does the TelOne MLS Easy TS 4G stack up against Econet’s Vida K242 Smart Kambudzi?
| TelOne MLS 4G | Econet 4G Smart Kambudzi | |
| Battery | 1,800 mAh | 1,500 mAh |
| Sim Card Slots | 2 | 2 |
| Internal Storage | 8 GB (expandable up to 32 GB) | 4GB (expandable up to 8GB) |
| RAM | 1 GB | 512 MB |
| Operating System | Android 6.0 Marshmallow | KaiOS 2.5.3 |
| Screen Size | 2.8 inches (touch) | 2.4 inches |
| Camera | 8MP Rear + 3.2 MP Front | 0.3 MP Rear + 0.3 MP Front |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 4.0, Wi-Fi, 4G | Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 4G |
| FM Radio | Yes | Yes |
| Price | US$99.99 | US$58.00 (ZWL$4,877.00) |
Design choices reflect the price difference
The TelOne MLS 4G is a little ahead of the Smart Kambudzi in some key areas like RAM, camera, touchscreen and battery size. The former looks closer to a smartphone than the latter and that is the biggest influence on the price gap.
On that note, you can use your Econet, NetOne or Telecel (and TelOne) sim card with the TelOne feature phone. I was hoping that this announcement would be paired with the return of TelOne’s LTE Blaze sim cards but unfortunately, we will have to wait a little longer.
You should also read
- Is TelOne’s US$99.99 feature phone value for money?
- Smart KaMbudzi phones can now make WhatsApp voice calls
- TelOne’s revenue grew by 147% in 2020 backed by increased demand for broadband services
- Econet launches ZWL$4K MiFi KaMbudzi which comes with 6GB of free data
- Why are TelOne and ZOL sim cards geolocked?
6 comments
With the Itel devices around i doubt if it gives them much because at $50 US you can purchase an Itel phone you can use as a good backup phone and a good Hotspot
At that price +$90 you can purchase a good lte line and a Mifi around and in addition a Data bouquet to test if it is worthy it
Soo all in all that was a waste to Telone
Haha $99.00 is too much for such a device. At around $95.00 I can purchase a Huawei Psmart 2018 which is far much better than that kambudzi.
Haaaa its too much $99.99 i can buy my itel and put the change in the pocket aaaa its too much guyz
ngavaite mushe the Telone Guys!!!! Seriously 99 bucks for such specs phone!!!
at least they should have accompanied it with some incentives of DATA FREE PACKAGE ….Maybe it was gonna make sense.
99 uwesi would make sense if they wr selling it with LTE line plus one month internet subscription
KaMbudzi kaMbudzi chete. You can’t have kaMbudzi going for USD100. Tell me its a joke. How can we seriously revive State enterprises if we have such poor marketing strategist who do not see that they are competing with well established enterprises like Econet. With TelOne eyeing the GSM market I think all they need is to entice subscribers with cheap network locked gadgets that can be unlocked after a period of time. Its simple. Its happening elsewhere and it has proven to be a successful strategy.