Emma Okonji
Concerned about data consumer complaints on fast depletion of data bundles on mobile devices, caused by too many unwanted background apps that are running on mobile devices, Google has said that the newly introduced app for emerging markets, called Datally, would help data users in Nigeria to monitor and control their data usage.
Announcing the launch of Datally in Lagos recently, Google Nigeria Country Director, Juliet Ehimuan-Chiazor, said the new app, which was specifically designed for data users in emerging markets like Nigeria, would help Android users understand and control their mobile data to get the most out of their data plans.
According to her, “For the last few years, our Next Billion Users team has been doing a lot of research on the ground in fast growing internet countries like Nigeria, We have found that data is a major constraint for the next billion users. Introducing Datally into the Nigerian smartphone market will help users understand how to control their mobile data better.
“Google tested Datally in the Philippines for most of 2017, and the insights from the product tests there, shaped the final app. The user research showed that people testing the app saved up to 30 per cent of their mobile data, depending on the way they used Datally.”
Datally works on all smartphones running Android 5.0 and higher, and is available for download on the Google Play Store globally.
Datally was developed to help solve one of the biggest concerns of smartphone users around the world, and especially in Nigeria, where worries about data usage is on the increase.
During extensive user research around the world, we found that many smartphone users worry about running out of data, especially the new generation of internet users known as the ‘Next Billion Users.’ Not only are they constantly thinking about data balances, but they do not understand where their data is going, nor do they feel like they can control allocating data to the apps they really care about. The app will empower users to manage their data more effectively on their smartphones through four key features, Ehimuan-Chiazor said.
She listed the key features to include: Data Saver; Data Saver bubble; Personalised alerts; and Wi-Fi finder.
For Data Saver, she explained that it would address apps that frequently use up data in the background for updating content and information. Datally’s Data Saver feature lets users control data on an app-by-app basis, so that data only goes to apps they care about. For the Data Saver bubble, she said once Data Saver is turned on, Datally’s Data Saver bubble will appear when a user goes into an app. Whenever that app uses data, the Data Saver bubble will show the current rate of data usage, and users can easily choose to block that app’s data use if things start to get out of control. The Data Saver bubble is like a speedometer for mobile data.
For Personalized alerts, Datally alerts users when apps start consuming a lot of data, and it allows them to see how much data they have used on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.
For the Wi-Fi finder, she said there could be times when users want to use more data than they have on their mobile plans, such as when they want to watch HD videos. Public Wi-Fi is an important access point for high-bandwidth connectivity. Datally’s Find Wi-Fi feature reveals the networks nearby, rated by the Datally community. Once connected, users can rate the Wi-Fi networks based on their own experience.
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