fringsters listen up, I have great news for you!

Vodacom has just finished upgrading a huge section of their network (more than 3300 towers across South Africa) to support 14.4 Mbps Internet speeds. As for the rest of the network you guys will have to make due with the speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps on 3G. The great news is that with speeds of between 7.2 and 14.4 Mbps fring calling and video stream quality on the Vodacom network will be vastly better than on other local networks

A little birdy tells me that Vodacom is also testing 21.1 Mbps HSPA services on their network but this will only go live laters. So it looks like there are only good things to come. Watch this space for progress.

Vodacom 14.4 Mbps internet goes live on 1 May 2010

Crowdfunding, the first crowd funded Angel investment agency of it’s kind in South Africa made history last week by raising just over R1 million in Angle VC within only a few days, Proving yet again that South Africa is alive with possibilities.

The money pledged by 229 investors will be used to fund 10-20 small techno startups in South Africa. This is the chance of a lifetime for many local startups wishing to prove to the world that their idea is The Next BIG Thing!

The fund which continues to grow is currently standing on R1,035,000 from 315 investors. Apparently the first 1000 investors to pledge will be accepted. So if you havn’t jumped on the bandwagon yet there is still chance of getting in before it’s to late.

Your local fring blogger, yeah thats still me, has already submitted 4 idea’s for funding and I will keep you guys posted on developments on this front. I am happy to say that the Crowdfund has once again brought hope to many small garage startups in South Africa who have been suffering to scrape together funds to keep their dreams alive.

I am excited to announce that very shortly a few of these startups will have the priviledge, no the honour, to take their dreams to new hights. May the best fringing team be granted funding and guys when you make it to the big time, never forget to help those dreamers still trying in a garage or backroom near you.

We are proud to announce fring’s recent win at the GSMA’s Mobile Innovation Grand Prix- Israel Tournament.

The GSMA Global Mobile Awards is the premier international showcase of product, service and creative excellence for the mobile industry. Awards include a wide range of categories relevant for players of all sizes in the mobile value chain. In 2009, Innovation takes center stage at the with the introduction of Mobile Innovation ‘Grand Prix’ showcasing promising entrepreneurs, small and medium sized companies developing and introducing innovative products and services.

fring’s win of this award symbolizes the acceptance of mobile rich-communication technology by both operators and manufacturers, representing the mobile industry’s mainstream.

We would like to thank the organizers, judges and sponsors for this great honor.

fring will continue on as a finalist at the GSMA Global Mobile Awards – Mobile Innovation Grand Prix Finals, one of the mobile industry’s most prestigious awards, to be held during the GSMA’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 2010.

Breaking news from South Africa:

“From Wednesday, anyone buying a pre-paid SIM card in South Africa must provide proof of address and identification, according to a new law.”

“The compulsory registration of all SIM cards in use, in terms of the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication-Related Information Act (RICA) will come into effect from 1 July 2009.”

Existing Vodacom, MTN and CellC contract customers will have 18months to register “subscribers that fail to comply with RICA within the specified time period will be deactivated”.

The new law also only allows for in person registration and no telephonic registrations will be allowed. You will also need to have the following with you when registering.

*Cellphone number
*Full names and surname
*ID number or passport number.
*Physical address.

Note: Not sure how this will affect tourists purchasing pre-paid simcards during the 2010 world cup soccer but I think you would be able to use your passport and accommodation info when purchasing.

“Cell C customers can register at all Cell C franchise stores or at stores where they see a RICA sign. Alternatively, they contact Cell C’s contact centre on 140 (free of charge) from a Cell C cellphone or 084 140 from any other phone for more information on RICA.

MTN customers can register at all MTN’s services centres across the country and in the event customer need guidance and clarity the MTN customer care number is 173, free from an MTN cellphone or 083 173 from any other phone, for prepaid subscribers.

Vodacom customers can register their SIM cards at any Vodacom outlets or they can contact their Customer Care Centre on 111, free from a Vodacom cellphone, or 082 111 from any other phone to find the nearest RICA agent where they can register their SIM card.” Mybroadband.co.za

fringsters here’s some of good news from MTN South Africa.

MTN will later today introduce “bandwidth rollover“, this means that you can now purchase a data bundle and not worry about it expiring at the end of 30days. MTN is the first local cellphone network to introduce this service and I am sure this move will win MTN many new customers.

Sadly though MTN’s data bundle prices will for the moment remain unchanged.

“More good news for broadband consumers is that MTN is planning another announcement regarding data bundles in around two month’s time. MTN remains tight lipped about what this announcement will involve, but it may entail giving the consumer even more bang for their buck. “

Google was recently the talk of the town after rolling out some shiny new street maps in South Africa. At first everyone thought it was only updates to the Johannesburg Street Maps however trusting Google to go BIG or go home it has come to my attention that they have updated almost all of the street maps in South Africa, well at least on my Mobile Maps symbian S60 3rd Edition. WOW thats a huge jump, thanks guys.

There are still a few glitches in the update and the screenshots below highlight just one such bug.

Lets take a look at the updated Google Mobile Maps for South Africa. For the screenshots above I used the small but friendly village of Natures Valley. When viewing Natures Valley in “map view” you will see that there are no maps, in fact you wouldn’t even know there was a village, sorry dudes your village is to small for Google, well thats at least what I thought. Switching to “Satellite view” though, changes everything and you will be presently surprised to see the entire little village and all street names market out.

With the fifa 2010 world cup soccer just around the corner, things are sure shaping up in South Africa and it’s great to see that more and more firms are updating their applications to make them user friendly in South Africa. Good work Google - Now lets see streetview South Africa already

Ps. The screenshots above are powered by: Best screensnap symbain S60 5th edition a cool new free application for the Nokia 5800 Xpress Music.