Telecom
Xiaomi Launches Redmi Note 8 Series in Nigeria
Xiaomi, a global technology leader has launched Redmi Note 8 Pro, Redmi Note 8, Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A in Nigeria, following release of the devices in China.
Redmi Note 8 Pro is the brand’s first-ever 64MP camera smartphone, Redmi Note 8 Pro features a quad camera setup with a powerful LiquidCool system, making it an ideal companion for photographers, gamers and anyone seeking an accessible flagship-quality experience.
Speaking at the event, Somoye Habeeb, marketing director, Xiaomi Nigeria, said that the 64MP quad camera captures dazzling ultra-high resolution pictures.
According to him, “Redmi Note 8 Pro touts not just three, but four high quality shooters, pioneering a new wave of quad camera smartphones.
“Its ultra-high resolution 64MP primary camera captures stunning photos that can print images up to 3.26 meters tall.
“It also uses 1.6μm 4-in-1 Super Pixel to capture more light for bright night shots.
“Meanwhile, an 8MP ultra-wide angle camera with a 120° field of view, a 2MP macro camera and 2MP depth sensor come together to create Redmi’s most versatile camera yet.
“Better yet, the 20MP front camera’s built-in AI technology lets users put their best face forward through detailed portrait selfies, scene detection and face unlock”.
Durable build meets elegant design
Redmi Note 8 Pro sports Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5 on its front and back to safeguard against accidental falls and general wear and tear. For enhanced durability, the device also leverages IP52 splash-proof technology, offering effective protection against rain and sweat.
Equipped with a large 6.53” FHD+ Dot Drop display and rear fingerprint sensor, the device achieves a 91.4% screen-to-body ratio. The display is also TÜV Rheinland certified, providing protection against blue light and reducing the likeliness of visual fatigue. Redmi Note 8 Pro’s glossy frame and precise G3 curvature accomodate a comfortable grip, while its three elegant color variants – Mineral Grey, Pearl White and Forest Green – are sure to suit any personality.
Optimal performance for a best-in-class gaming experience
Redmi Note 8 Pro is powered by the latest MediaTekHelio G90T processor, an octa-core CPU clocked up to 2.05GHz for extended everyday use. Meanwhile, the Arm Mali-G76 3EEMC4 GPU enables the ultimate gaming experience, with a max frequency of 800MHz and AI power up to1TMACs. The device also features LiquidCool – the Redmi Note series’ first ever LiquidCool technology – to facilitate high-speed, hassle-free gaming without overheating.
To top it off, Redmi Note 8 Pro is equipped with an additional WiFi X antenna for a more reliable internet connection, as well as 1217SLS speakers and a Smart PA for improved gaming audio.
High capacity 4500mAh battery ensures top-notch performance
Redmi Note 8 Pro packs an impressive 4500 mAh battery – the Redmi Note series highest power capacity to date. It’s also equipped with an array of features including power saving mode and intelligent brightness adjustment to help users maximize battery capacity.
Moreover, Redmi Note 8 Pro offers 18W Type-C fast charging, multifunctional NFC, an IR blaster and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Price and availability
Redmi Note 8 Pro will come in Mineral Gray, Pearl White and Forest Green. It will retail at N82, 999 for 6GB+64GB, N89, 999for 6GB+128GB.
Starting from November 4th, Redmi Note 8 Pro will be available from across the phone stores nationwide.
Redmi Note 8
Redmi Note 8 is a photography powerhouse, sporting a quad camera setup on the rear. Its 48MP ultra high-resolution primary camera features a ½-inch sensor with an f/1.79 aperture and 79.4° field of view. Meanwhile, its 8MP ultra-wide camera with 120° field of view, 2MP macro lens, and 2MP depth sensor join forces to capture stunning images at any distance.
On the front, Redmi Note 8 boasts a 13MP selfie camera with an f/2.0 aperture and built-in AI technology that helps users take a perfect selfie, every time. The front camera also includes a panorama selfie feature — a first for the Redmi Note series — that can capture group images without cropping anyone out.
Durability meets comfort
Equipped with a 6.3” Dot Drop Display with 2.5D curved glass design, Redmi Note 8 offers an incredibly immersive FHD+ visual experience that achieves an impressive 90% screen-to-bodyratio. The TÜV Rheinland-certified display offers a comfortable viewing experience by filtering out blue light and helping protect users from prolonged eye strain.
Users can expect upgraded durability as the devices also tout Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5 protection — front and back — safeguarding against accidental falls and general wear and tear. Besides, Redmi Note 8 is also covered in a special nano-coating to make the device splash-resistant.
Redmi Note 8 is available in Space Black, Neptune Blue, and Moonlight White.
Performance shines through with a powerful chipset and high-capacity battery
Redmi Note 8 runs on the powerful Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 665 chipset. The chipset enhances overall user experience through its advanced AI technology, and improvements in power-efficiency ensure peak performance that will last all day.
In addition, Redmi Note 8 boasts high-capacity 4,000mAh battery and offers up to 18W charging over USB Type-C. The unique self-cleaning speaker function also expels dust and debris throughlow-frequency sonic pulses — another testament to Xiaomi’s dedication towards providing high-quality products.
Redmi Note 8 will be available in 3GB + 32GB, 4GB + 64GB, and 4GB + 128GB starting at N57, 999.
Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A
With a 6.22-inch (15.8cm) HD+ Dot Drop display, Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A feature an aspect ratio of 19:9, promising an immersive experience and overall ergonomics. Wrapped in glass-like materials, Redmi 8 provides a premium hands-on feel with a polished and glossy surface, while Redmi 8A comes in a fine, textured matt finish with excellent grip and at the same time, reducing fingerprint residues to a minimum.
With a 5000mAh high-capacity two-day battery, both Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A come with support for 18W fast charging support on the Type-C port (10W fast charger inside the box), and Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 439 octa-core chipset as processor. Each model offers a 2+1 dual SIM slot with dedicated microSD card support that allows storage expansion up to 512GB.
Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A both feature a 12MP camera, perfect for day-to-day snapshots. Redmi 8 also comes with a secondary 2MP camera – the dual camera setup offers depth sensing better portrait photos. On the front, both devices sport an 8MP selfie camera and both the front and rear cameras are capable of taking AI Portrait mode shots.
Xiaomi’s relentless focus on quality means that Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A comes protected with Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5, while its nano-coating makes the smartphone splash resistant. These two devices also retain the popular feature which allows users to playback FM radio without the need of connecting their earphones. Redmi 8 even offers a convenient IR blaster for remote controlling compatible household electronics.
Redmi 8 and Redmi 8A will be available in Nigeriaall phone stores nationwide from November 4th.
Redmi 8 comes in Onxy Black, Ruby Red and Sapphire Blue. The 3GB+32GB variant and 4GB+64GB variant will be priced at N44,800 and N47,900 respectively.
Redmi 8A will be available in Midnight Black, Sunset Red and Ocean Blue and will be available for N36, 500.
As Africa and MENA’s startup ecosystems transition from post-correction resilience into a new phase of disciplined growth, the Africa Startup & VC Landscape Preview (ASVLP 2026) will convene leading founders, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders on January 29, 2026, for its second annual, agenda-setting virtual forum.
Following a challenging global venture cycle, 2025 marked a notable rebound across the African ecosystem, with startups raising an estimated $3.2–$3.3 billion over the full year.
The recovery was accompanied by significant structural shifts: Kenya emerged as the leading destination among Africa’s “Big Four” markets for the first time, while Nigeria recorded a year-on-year funding decline, reflecting changing investor preferences, macroeconomic pressures, and a broader recalibration toward capital efficiency and sustainability.
Sectorally, fintech remained the most funded vertical, while climate & energy, AI-enabled solutions, healthtech, and infrastructure-adjacent businesses gained increasing attention. Across Africa and MENA, development finance institutions (DFIs) and family offices played a more pronounced role in anchoring funds, deploying catalytic capital, and supporting blended-finance structures, reshaping how early-stage and growth capital is mobilized.
ASVLP 2026 is designed to translate these data points into forward-looking strategy.
The forum will bring together venture capitalists, angel investors, LPs, DFIs, family offices, founders, corporate leaders, and regulators from Africa, MENA, Europe, and North America to assess 2025 outcomes and chart priorities for 2026.
The program will feature keynotes, fireside chats, panels, and deep-dive roundtables, including discussions on:
· The 2026 Africa & MENA FinTech Landscape, focusing on security, profitability, regulation, and growth frontiers
· Emerging Fund Managers, capital formation, and LP alignment
· Talent, operator depth, and institutional capacity as constraints to scale
· Regulatory evolution and cross-border market integration
A major highlight of ASVLP 2026 will be the Final DealRoom Pitch Session, where a curated group of high-potential startups will present to an experienced panel of investors.
• Founders can apply to pitch via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Founders
• Investors seeking DealRoom access can request entry via: bit.ly/ASVLP-DR-Investors
Confirmed speakers for ASVLP 2026 include Khaled Ismail (HIMangel), Idris Ayodeji Bello (LoftyInc Capital), Zachariah George (Launch Africa), Tosin Faniro-Dada (Breega), Selma Ribica (FirstCircle Capital), Maha Mandour (COREangels MEA), Joe Kinvi (Borderless), Remi Prunier (Orange Ventures MEA), Karima El Hakim (Plug and Play Tech Center), Souheil Guessoum (President, The Confederation of Citizen Employers – Algeria (CAPC)), Remi Prunier (Partner, Orange Ventures, MEA), Maha Mandour (COREAngels MEA), Ali Hussein (President, Kenyan FinTech Association), Patrick Okebu (CIO, Interswitch Group) among other leading voices shaping capital, policy, and innovation across the region.
“The conversation has shifted,” said Uche Aniche, Convener of ASVLP. “It’s no longer about whether capital will return to Africa and MENA, but what kind of capital, deployed with what discipline, and in service of which long-term outcomes. ASVLP exists to help the ecosystem make sense of that transition.”
Participation in ASVLP 2026 is free but strictly by invitation.
Interested participants are encouraged to repost the official announcement on LinkedIn and comment #ASVLP2026 to receive a private registration link. They could also email [email protected] and request invite.
Major social media giants Meta Platforms, TikTok and Alphabet’s YouTube will face a landmark jury trial this week in Los Angeles County Superior Court over allegations that their addictive designs have fuelled a youth mental health crisis, marking the first such case to reach this stage.
Social Media
The pivotal personal injury lawsuit centres on a 19-year-old Californian woman identified as K.G.M., who claims her childhood immersion in Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and TikTok—engineered with endless scrolls, autoplay videos, notifications and algorithms—sparked severe anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts.
Dozens of similar suits have surged since 2022 from families, schools and states, accusing the firms of burying internal research on teen harms while prioritising ad revenue through youth-targeted engagement hooks, despite Section 230 protections for user content.
Plaintiffs seek damages and design overhauls, arguing platforms bypassed parents and preyed on vulnerable kids; defendants counter there’s no clinical “social media addiction” diagnosis, no proven causation—kids with issues often use less—and they’ve added safeguards like parental controls and time limits.
Echoing Australia’s under-16 bans, the trial will scrutinise thousands of internal documents, expert testimonies and K.G.M.’s story, potentially expanding tech liability amid debates where studies show complex links, not direct causation, between screen time and disorders like eating issues or self-harm.
A win could mandate warning labels, age gates or algorithm tweaks, reshaping global platforms as U.S. Surgeon General advisories and global scrutiny intensify pressure on Big Tech to prioritise child safety over profits.
Meta is gearing up to trial paid subscription services on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, aiming to diversify revenue streams beyond advertising while maintaining free core access for all users.
Meta
The subscriptions will offer enhanced tools tailored for everyday users, creators, and businesses, including advanced content creation, sharing, and workflow features distinct from the existing Meta Verified verification program. Unlike a uniform rollout, Meta plans varied testing formats per app to match diverse audiences, experimenting with feature bundles based on user feedback to refine the model.
A key element involves integrating Manus, the autonomous agent firm Meta acquired for $2 billion in December, into these apps alongside its enterprise sales. Manus enables complex task automation with minimal input, with early signs like Instagram shortcuts already spotted by reverse engineer Alessandro Paluzzi.
Video tools feature prominently: Meta’s Vibes short-form video generator in the Meta AI app shifts to freemium, where paid tiers unlock higher monthly creation limits beyond the free baseline. On Instagram, subscriptions could enable unlimited audience lists, non-follower tracking, and anonymous Story views, though specifics for Facebook and WhatsApp remain under wraps.
Drawing from Meta Verified’s 2023 launch—which provides badges, support, and protection mainly for creators—these broader plans target wider appeal amid industry shifts. Ad growth slows against TikTok competition, while Snapchat+ boasts 16 million subscribers at $3.99 monthly, proving demand for value-driven paid perks despite subscription fatigue risks from streaming and storage fees.
Meta will phase tests gradually, prioritizing feedback to shape long-term viability without alienating free users.
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