How smartphone technology is shaping humanity

NAIROBI, KENYA: Humans have come a long way since the cave-dwelling days of their ancestors. It is a fascinating journey back in time - to a prehistoric beginning when the mode of communication was through the use of instruments such as horns, drums, letters or even smoke.

The current world is pigeonholed by technological ideology, innovation, and digital migration. Technology has played an imperative role in making society a better place. Our personal life is highly dependent on the technological excellence that has turned the world into a global village.

The Mobile Phone is one invention that has changed the world and opened a wide world of communication. According to the World Bank, three-quarters of people on Earth have access to a mobile phone. Global mobile internet traffic as of the fourth quarter of 2018 stood at 52.2 per cent which was an improvement of 2017 which stood at 51.12 per cent of global web traffic originating from smartphones. Cell Phones are changing the World in spectacular ways.

Statistics from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) indicate that mobile phone penetration in Kenya currently stands at 46.6 million subscriptions. This makes the country a global leader in share of internet traffic among its peers. High adoption of smartphone pushed Kenya’s internet penetration ahead of its peers across the globe.

Smartphones in Kenya are largely used to access games, music, news and social media sites. However, they are an increasingly essential tool to access financial products and a huge variety of useful services.

A market place report by an online shop, Jumia Mobile Report – 2019, shows that high mobile penetration in the country has been driven by the entry of aggressive firms who have reduced the average phone prices thus encouraging innovations and technological growth in the country.

Mobile communications offer major opportunities that spur human and economic development – from making cash payments to providing basic access to health information, spurring job creation, and inspiring citizen participation in democratic processes.

Businesses continue to benefit from innovative functionalities that come with smartphones making transactions and connecting with customers easier. The further advancement of smartphones has helped to make a global economy possible. Without the ability to communicate with each other instantly, it would be much more difficult to conduct business with countries on the other side of the world.

Mobile technology has had a huge impact on the world economy and society. Most businesses based around mobile apps hold enormous employment and economic potential supporting the networking and incubation of entrepreneurs. The creation of the "app economy" has been a major explosion for the economy at large. The ridesharing apps like Little, Uber, and bolt are taking the country by storm and severely disrupting the taxi industry. They allow anyone with a car to use it to be paid for giving other people rides. The companies, with their smartphone app, are able to manage drivers and riders very effectively. Car owners are able to utilize their vehicles that would otherwise just sit idle.

The use of the internet as an educational tool has also increased many folds globally. Online tutorials and e-books are the emerging trends among learners. The high-speed internet access on smart phones has opened several new avenues for learning. Millions of documents, journals and books are now available to students on their handset devices. An e-book can either be conveniently purchased online or downloaded free on smart devices and hence be used immediately.

The Internet has opened numerous opportunities for communication and transformed the way businesses operate. It has made it possible for investors to be located anywhere in the world. Employees may work locally or they may telecommute from home. In many ways, the Internet is expanding and changing communication.

Additionally, consumers are today more knowledgeable, researching products and services and making informed purchasing decisions on the global social networks, all from their smartphones. There are many e-commerce platforms to choose from, with more platforms getting into the market.

The world of communications will continue to evolve and businesses will need to continue to adapt to the changes. A successful business will be able to adapt to the changes and find ways to use the increased communication to benefit their business.

Mobile phones have made all the difference in how we perceive time and efficiency, especially in high-tech industries where internet is the foundation of business. Technological advancement has simplified the way we do things, it saves time, it increases production, it simplifies communication, it has improved health care and it has also improved our educational environment. It is a wonder to behold.