Huawei has today launched the first of its 4Afrika Windows Phone devices in South Africa, though it won’t be confined strictly to the southern tip of the continent.
The 4Afrika Windows Phone, a modified version of the Huawei Ascend W1, will see release in South Africa some time before the end of March this year, as well as Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Angola, Morocco, and the Ivory Coast.
The designed-for-Africa smartphone features a 4″ 480 x 800 IPS LCD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8230 dual-core 1.2 GHz CPU, Adreno 305 GPU, and the Windows Phone 8 OS. A 5 megapixel rear and VGA front camera also form part of the device, which is powered by a 1730 mAh Li-Polymer battery.
Ali Faramawy, Huawei’s corporate vice president for Microsoft Middle East and Africa, said in a statement “The Huawei 4Afrika phone is a fantastic addition to our Windows Phone product line, and we’re particularly proud to be introducing it as an exclusive offer for the African Continent today as part of the launch of the Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative”
“We believe strongly that improved access to affordable and high quality smartphones in Africa can have a strong impact on the continent’s overall economic development and competitiveness, and we are confident the Huawei 4Afrika phone will help deliver on this.”