Smart Teams Up with Starmobile to Encourage TNT Subscribers to Upgrade to LTE

Wazzup Pilipinas!

New LTE smartphones for the price of a feature phone

PLDT wireless unit Smart Communications (Smart) is partnering with Starmobile to offer affordable LTE smartphones for TNT subscribers and first-time mobile data users.

Under this partnership, Smart and Starmobile are presenting the PLAY Click LTE bundle for TNT subscribers at a very affordable price to encourage more users to upgrade to LTE.

Present at the signing ceremonies were PLDT-Smart Head of Consumer Business for Customer Development Alex O. Caeg, PLDT-Smart FVP and Consumer Marketing Head Andrew L. Santos, Smart Vice President for Prepaid Marketing Carlo Endaya, Starmobile President Ulyssis Lao, Starmobile Chief Operating Officer Michael Chen and Starmobile Sales and Marketing Head Ardie Balderrama.

“True to TNT’s promise of affordable fun, together with Starmobile, we want to bring one of the most affordable LTE smartphones to the market so that every Filipino will have the chance to have data access and experience a digital life with LTE,” Santos said.

“We’re offering one of the most affordable LTE handsets in the market right now, which could encourage feature phone users to upgrade to LTE-ready handsets without breaking the bank. By doing this, we can let everyone enjoy the fastest LTE network from Smart and TNT,” said Chen.

Starmobile’s PLAY Click LTE will be available for P2,988, discounted from its original price of P3,490 while supplies last. This LTE smartphone is powered by Android™ 8.1 Oreo™ Go Edition, which gives new and existing TNT subscribers an easy, affordable and fun experience when they stream videos, play mobile games or browse the internet.

The PLAY Click LTE smartphone automatically comes with a free TNT SIM with 15 days of free access to Facebook, Instagram, Clash of Clans or Wattpad (up to 200MB per day). Mobile users would just need to text UROWN to 4545 using the TNT SIM included in the bundle to access the freebies.

This affordable device also provides free internet access through the pre-installed freenet app. The LTE-ready smartphone is also ready to do next-generation calling technologies like Voice Over LTE (VoLTE) and Voice Over WiFi (VoWiFi).

Level Up To LTE

Smart is accelerating its LTE migration campaign as the number of LTE-ready phones in the Smart network has risen by 75% in the first half of 2018.

We continue to aggressively do our LTE rollout so we will provide high-speed mobile intertnet to over 90% of the country’s municipalities by the end of this year. Moreover, both Ookla® and OpenSignal, which are independent third-party research firms, have recognized Smart LTE as the fastest mobile data network in the country today,” added Santos.

Smart, TNT and Sun subscribers who are still using non-LTE SIMs can enjoy the benefits of the better network by getting an LTE Upgrade SIM at Smart Stores, Sun Shops, and sari-sari stores across the Philippines. They can check if their SIMs are LTE-ready by texting SIMCHECK to 5832 for free. They can also check if their location is LTE ready by visitingwww.smart.com.ph/LTE.

“To fully experience Smart and TNT LTE, customers must have an LTE SIM, be in a place with LTE coverage, and an LTE-capable device like the Starmobile PLAY Click LTE smartphone. Our subscribers can now avail of this affordable device at Starmobile stores, kiosks and authorized distributors nationwide,” Santos said.

Cover Photo: Left to Right: Carlo Endaya (Smart Vice President for Prepaid Marketing), Andrew L. Santos (PLDT-Smart FVP and Consumer Marketing Head), Alex O. Caeg (PLDT-Smart Head of Consumer Business for Customer Development), Ulyssis Lao (Starmobile President), Michael Chen (Starmobile COO) and Ardie Balderrama (Starmobile Sales and Marketing Head)

MediXserve Builds Unified Medical Records System via Blockchain

Wazzup Pilipinas!

MediXserve, a healthtech startup, is rolling out a unified blockchain-based electronic medical record (EMR) system to make patients’ medical histories trackable “from womb to tomb.”

The system, which MediXserve said is a first for the Philippines, will be a centralized database of medical records accessible — upon the patient’s approval — to anyone and anywhere.

“The technology will allow you to access all your medical records from all the doctors that you’ve been to, to all the hospitals you were confined since the day you were born,” Jorge C. Azurin, founder and CEO of MediXserve said.

“Now, people will say technology is already available. Actually, hindi (no)… it’s really difficult because you have one hospital using a different system, another hospital using a different system, so the inter-operability is difficult, so blockchain fixes it,” Mr. Azurin explained.

The Philippine-based health care services company has acquired several existing businesses with existing revenues and branded products, namely ShineOS+, Medixhome Care, Lifedata Systems Inc., and MyCareBuddy. Combined sales of these products has reached $5 million,

MediXserve said. The price of its software ranges from just $50,000 to $1.1 million.
“We take patient medical history and we provide permanent, trackable, streamlined framework for the storage of that data. We provide it in a centralized manner, so it becomes more cost effective because…it becomes a paperless transaction. On the network, it becomes faster and more efficient as well as accurate in aid of decision support and diagnostic,” said Oliver V. Chato, MediXserve head for Blockchain Applications and System Integration.

The company said an offline version will be provided for areas where internet connection is limited. Users will input the data even with no internet connection, save it in a flash drive and upload it later when there is a connection.

Mr. Azurin said the data in the platform will be secure since blockchain is “unhackable,” with any attempt to change data in the system likely to be detected and rejected immediately as they are stored in chronologically — and linearly-connected blocks.

The company mainly targets developing countries, with health care expenditures in these economies seen to rise to $4 trillion by 2020. In the Philippines, health spending is seen growing to P1.2 trillion by 2022.

“Ang target market namin (Our target market) is the Philippines and selected countries like Nigeria, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Egypt, even Europe… We already have team members operating there. It is a Philippine company that’s going for global operations,” Mr. Azurin said.

He said the company is raising up to $20 million from foreign investors to boost its operations.

“Most of the investors are in Southeast Asia, a lot are based in Singapore mostly in the health and blockchain industry.”

3 Tips to Enjoy Dessert without Feeling Guilty

Wazzup Pilipinas!

We understand how hard it is to resist temptation, especially now that the holiday season is fast approaching and you need to save room for the extra calories you’ll be consuming during the festivities. But what if there was a lighter version of our favorite cold treat.

At Red Mango, they serve all-natural frozen yogurt – the perfect treat that’s delightful and good for you. They combine their refreshingly tangy frozen yogurt with fresh and delectable toppings that can easily satisfy you and your sweet cravings. With no preservatives, artificial flavors or coloring, this go-to yogurt place in Eastwood is aimed towards the more health-conscious customers.

Here are tips on how you can still enjoy dessert and not feel guilty about it afterward:

The serving sizes at Red Mango come in 4 different sizes – Small, Medium, Large, and Family. But if you really want to stick to your goal, get the smaller size to keep your portions within the healthy range. Unless you’ll be sharing an order, it’s best you stick to the minimum.

One of the best thing about Red Mango is that you get to customize your order. Opt for more nutritious toppings like their fresh fruits to add extra sweetness without the extra guilt.

You might think you could get away with the fudge brownies or chocolate chips because you’re eating yogurt anyway. Keep in mind that every additional topping counts. If you must have it, though, limit yourself to just one.

Red Mango also serves other treats such as Froyo Parfaits, Froyo Sundaes, Fruit Bowl, Sandwiches, and Waffles. Refreshments available include Fruit Smoothies, Sparkling Juice, Coffee and Tea.  Visit them at 4/F Eastwood Mall, Libis, Quezon City.
For more info visit their website: https://megaworld-lifestylemalls.com/