M-Shop

Today I am going to feature an award winning application (M-Shop) whose slogan is “Market kwa mkono” and it is actually on two platforms that is Symbian on Nokia and Android. As mentioned above this app won an award in its category in last year’s Pivot East ad was also featured in AppCircus. M-Shop is a fast, easy and convenient event movie and travel tickets on your mobile phones. As simply put by the developers, “This app brings the market to the people and the people to the market.”

M-Shop changes the landscape of mobile commerce, moving it away from in-person transactions to the efficiency of mobile transactions. Through the M-Shop application consumers can order, pay for, obtain and validate tickets for events, travel, goods and services. M-Shop delivers convenience, simplicity, and commerce at any time, on your android device from any location with a mobile carrier data signal where you can complete your transactions using the available mobile money payment options such as M-Pesa, Yu Cash or Airtel money as you will see In the screen shots.

When in need of any services offered by this app the process is as easy as 1, 2, 3. I have had the application for the past one week since I stumbled upon it and I must say it’s so ingenious that the opportunities are endless. The work done on that app shows the dedication and the understanding of the need to keep things simple but efficient and you can tell that just by taking a look at the User Interface (UI). It’s not a bulky app and since I know they are working on to bringing on more and more partners on the platform like Fox Theaters and I am also hopping for the delivery services like Galitos etc. on board, I will keep it.

I have managed to interact with the app on several occasions with easy access to goods and services including tickets for airlines, buses, movies, and events; and other items like food purchases. This app definitely makes it convenient for a shopper through a quick and simple purchasing process, right on his or her mobile phone.

What I hope to see on this app is the ability to generate a mobile payment business number intelligently based on your seem number and the services requested being factored in. A diversified offering where we end up with categories such as Travel, Events, Entertainment to keep the landing page neat as I see many organizations opting for it coz I would if I had my business that had a slight need of this kind of app. Subject to what comes up next, I hope that geographic location usin google will be handy and accurate to enable auto access to the nearest service provider in a case scenario of deliveries etc. My suggetions are endless but then again those are just mine, I will have to wait for the first update to what direction this will take.

This is definitely a well done application that caters to the needs of the consumers with a lot to offer subject to the market's reception and the how handy the masses see it. As I said earlier on, this is an app that I am going to keep because it is just what I was looking for when I want to book for my bus to the coast, movies or soon order that juicy pizza. Take a look at some screen shots of the app and feel free to download it from the marketplace.

Permissions

THIS APPLICATION HAS ACCESS TO THE FOLLOWING:

·         SERVICES THAT COST YOU MONEY

DIRECTLY CALL PHONE NUMBERS

Allows the app to call phone numbers without your intervention. Malicious apps may cause unexpected calls on your phone bill.

Note that this doesn't allow the app to call emergency numbers.

·         YOUR LOCATION

COARSE (NETWORK-BASED) LOCATION

Access coarse location sources such as the cellular network database to determine an approximate tablet location, where available. Malicious apps may use this to determine approximately where you are. Access coarse location sources such as the cellular network database to determine an approximate phone location, where available. Malicious apps may use this to determine approximately where you are.

FINE (GPS) LOCATION

Access fine location sources such as the Global Positioning System on the tablet, where available. Malicious apps may use this to determine where you are, and may consume additional battery power. Access fine location sources such as the Global Positioning System on the phone, where available. Malicious apps may use this to determine where you are, and may consume additional battery power.

·         NETWORK COMMUNICATION

FULL INTERNET ACCESS

Allows the app to create network sockets.

·         SYSTEM TOOLS

MODIFY GLOBAL ANIMATION SPEED

Allows the app to change the global animation speed (faster or slower animations) at any time.