By Fredrique Achieng
Kenya’s smartphone landscape is changing fast. With 72.6 percent of adults now using a smartphone about 37.4 million devices high-end tech is no longer the preserve of the elite. That’s great news for consumers, but it also raises important questions about what “accessibility” really means in 2025 says Fredrique Achieng.
Thanks to fiercer competition and cheaper component costs. Once-premium specifications have trickled down to handsets that cost a fraction of yesterday’s flagships. Generative-AI photo editing, 5G radios, IP68 water-resistant casings and even military-grade drop protection now appear in devices such as the OPPO A3x, A5 Pro and Reno series. These futures are also in rival lines from Samsung’s A-range, Xiaomi’s Redmi Note and Transsion’s Tecno Camon. The takeaway: consumers can finally judge phones on usefulness, not just price tags.
Buy-Now-Pay-Later is the Quiet Game-Changer
Cutting-edge hardware still isn’t cheap up front. This is where “Lipa Pole Pole” [Buy Now Pay Later, BNPL] schemes step in. FinAccess data show Kenyan BNPL use rose to 6.2 percent in 2024 from 2.1 percent in 2021. Business Wire projects a 9 percent Compound Annual Growth Rate [CAGR], pushing the market toward USD 1.86 billion by 2030. Partnerships between handset makers and providers for instance think LOOP, OnPhone Mobile and others. Let buyers stretch payments over months without resorting to high-interest loans. That keeps the upgrade cycle moving and supports wider digital inclusion.
Cheaper phones and friendlier payment plans are only half the puzzle. Ongoing network roll-outs, affordable data bundles and robust digital-literacy drives are equally vital if Kenya is to reach full smartphone penetration. Manufacturers, OPPO included deserve credit for putting high-spec devices within reach. But they must guard against feature bloat that inflates prices again. Meanwhile, regulators should monitor BNPL fees to prevent hidden debt traps. Telcos on the other end need to keep slashing data costs so that fancy silicon isn’t throttled by pricey megabytes.
Bottom line
The democratization of smartphone tech is real and accelerating, yet genuine accessibility demands a holistic approach. This translates to competitive hardware, fair financing, reliable networks and user-centric design. Its okay to celebrate the progress. But every player in the ecosystem should strive to make “technology for all” more than a marketing slogan”
