Technology

Psitek designs and develops telecommunications solutions for the global market. Psitek's two most popular products are the Adondo and Jembi GSM supervised payphones.

Adondo GSM Supervised Payphone is a 'Business in a Box' that can be set up in semi-formal environments like market stalls and containers for retailing voice, fax or Internet calls, and can also be used for value added services such as the sale of pre-paid vouchers. It comprises a master operating unit, a remote display unit, power cables, an external GSM antenna, mounting brackets and comprehensive user manuals.

Jembi GSM Supervised Payphone is a mobile business tool that can be used for the resale of voice calls and SMS, and can also be used for value added services such as the sale of pre-paid vouchers. The Jembi is suitable for informal settings such as kerb sides, street corners and for mobile operations utilising bicycles or taxis. The product includes a large LCD screen, internal battery offering more than seven hours talk time, and easy business expansion via ClickArt technology.

SharedPhone is a technology that allows any user to operate their GSM phone as a private line and a mobile payphone. The SharedPhone user enters the amount of money that has been received from the customer into the application; the call is then cut when the set limit has been reached. The calculation includes the SharedPhone user's (adjustable) profit margin. This allows the user to sell calls and make money wherever he/she goes.

The GSMA believes that, in most markets, a full suite of shared access solutions can be deployed in a complementary manner. This portfolio approach will maximise service coverage and hence job creation. The following products have all been developed for the Shared Access to Voice market.

Better Energy Systems designs and manufactures Solio, the universal 'hybrid' charger. Solio works by absorbing power from the sun, storing this energy within Solio's own internal battery. The Development Fund has used Solio in the disease surveillance pilots, and plans to use it in future Shared Access to Voice projects for areas off the electricity grid.

Freeplay has produced the FreeCharge 12V which enables users to make and receive calls at any time, even with a flat battery. It interfaces to the handset through a cigarette lighter socket. The charging protocols are matched to the individual handsets by plugging in a cigarette lighter charger specific to each phone. The FreeCharge will adapt its output to match the requirements of the recipient device via the cigarette charger.

Off-Grid Systems Ltd. has introduced a low-cost and extremely robust solar mobile phone charger for emerging markets in response to the GSMA's EMH initiative: the Sunbag LC1. Made of flexible panels, the solar cells are guaranteed to function for 18 years, do not use additional charge controllers or batteries and are specifically designed to charge mobile handsets. The Sunbag LC1 has been deployed in Uganda and in Nigeria with MTN.