Kytabu

Kytabu Company Ltd

Kytabu is a textbook subscription app built to provide low-cost access to digitalized versions of all Kenyan textbooks from Standard 1 to Form 4.

Snapshot
Manufacturing & delivery
Performance & use
Research & standards
Feedback

Product description Brand name and product description

Kytabu is a textbook subscription app built to provide low-cost access to digitalized versions of all Kenyan textbooks from Standard 1 to Form 4. The app allows users from low and middle-income families to rent a page, chapter, or full book for time periods varying between 1 hour and 1 year.

The app is accessible on any android smartphones and tablets and allows students to access many books at the fraction of the cost that they would pay when buying physical books. It also contains Formulas, Practice, Tests & Exams.

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Kenya

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

Kytabu Company Limited

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

~0.054 USD per week

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

Competitors include Dawati, Darasa Online, and M-Shule.

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 4: Quality education

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

School going children in Kenya.

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

N/A

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

Trademarked

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Users can download the app from the Play Store.

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

As of 2018, there were 4,500 users of this app.

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Telecommunication service required

Mobile Internet, SMS, voice, Fixed Internet, Wi-Fi, etc

Mobile internet, WiFi

Level of connection service needed

2G, 3G, 4G, LTE, broadband, dial-up, other [specify]

Device(s) required

Smartphone, feature phone, computer, tablet, other [specify]

Smartphone, tablet

Additional features required

bluetooth, Wifi, camera, IVR, GPS, Accelerometers/Motion sensors, physiologic biosensors, biometric identifiers, SIM, Memory card (e.g microSD), other [specify]

Mobile Money

Permanent network connectivity required (Y/N[specify],Other [specify])

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work. Some apps/services can work offline.

Two way communication (Y/N)

he product/service able to receive and send back information to the user?

Yes

Usage rate (%)

Unknown

Literacy support (Y (specify) /N)

Support according to the literacy level required from the user. If no, the user is intended to be literate.

Languages available (list)

English

Operating system and version

Android, IOs, Windows, or other [specify]

Android Version 4.0.3 and up

Power requirements

Uninterrupted power supply (UPS), ocassional power supply [minimum time required], other

N/A

eEducation application

education equipment, educational behavior change, human resource management, decision support, data collection & analytics, electronic education records, education provider, stock management, special education surveillance and reporting

Education equipment

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

Kytabu is a mobile application that provides books and other learning materials in Kenya. Students can find textbooks, interactive KCPE & KCSE exams, formulas, and test materials for all the grades in the Kenyan education curriculum in the app.

The learning materials consist of digital copies of textbooks, audiobooks, and animated material. It contains books from Longhorn Publishers, Moran Publishers, KLB, Oxford, WordAlive, and hundreds of other content creators. Students pay a subscription of between one hour and one year to have access to books, specific chapters, or even pages.

Digitized textbooks are stored in a microSD card, which is ‘latched’ to a SIM card and distributed as a single product as a tablet or dongle. This non-device-dependent product allows users to share different devices and continue using the content wherever they are.

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

Not available

Technical support Technical support provided by

Provided by the developers.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

N/A

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

N/A

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

Kytabu aims to make textbooks more quickly accessible and affordable. This app is meant to be collaborative, fun, interactive, and accessible on mobile.

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

Unknown

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

Unknown

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

No known safety hazards are related to this product.

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

Kytabu also offers a school management system that helps in human resource management, fee payment, online exams, online library, accounting, school attendance, and teacher support.

Kytabu also plans to partner with publishers and independent content creators to have their books or content available on Kytabu sometime in 2020.

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

None

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

Kytabu is compliant with the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development requirements.

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Unknown

Other information

Fundraising information
YouTube channel.

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

Snapshot

Product description Brand name and product description

Target region(s) Target region for distribution/implementation (listed by country if specified)

Kenya

Distributors/implementing organizations Organization(s) distributing/deploying this product directly to communities/individuals?"

Kytabu Company Limited

Market suggested retail price Price per unit or service price per usage/terms (USD). Subsidies noted.

~0.054 USD per week

Competitive landscape Similar products available on the market. May not be a comprehensive listing.

Competitors include Dawati, Darasa Online, and M-Shule.

SDG targeted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) targeted with this product/application/service

Goal 4: Quality education

Target user(s) Target user/consumer base (country, income segment)

School going children in Kenya.

Manufacturing & delivery

Manufacturing/building method(s) Detail regarding solution production or construction method (instructions, mass production capacity, custom made,etc...)

N/A

Product Intellectual Property Open source/IP protected (note patent)/trade secret/other?

Trademarked

User Provision Model Where can the product be purchased/acquired by end users?

Users can download the app from the Play Store.

Distribution to date Number of units that have been deployed, downloads or users to date

As of 2018, there were 4,500 users of this app.

Performance & use

Fields marked are sourced values that have been evaluated by the manufacturer or a third party, all others are design specifications.

Telecommunication service required

Mobile Internet, SMS, voice, Fixed Internet, Wi-Fi, etc

Mobile internet, WiFi

Level of connection service needed

2G, 3G, 4G, LTE, broadband, dial-up, other [specify]

Device(s) required

Smartphone, feature phone, computer, tablet, other [specify]

Smartphone, tablet

Additional features required

bluetooth, Wifi, camera, IVR, GPS, Accelerometers/Motion sensors, physiologic biosensors, biometric identifiers, SIM, Memory card (e.g microSD), other [specify]

Mobile Money

Permanent network connectivity required (Y/N[specify],Other [specify])

Connectivity requirement for the product/service to work. Some apps/services can work offline.

Two way communication (Y/N)

he product/service able to receive and send back information to the user?

Yes

Usage rate (%)

Unknown

Literacy support (Y (specify) /N)

Support according to the literacy level required from the user. If no, the user is intended to be literate.

Languages available (list)

English

Operating system and version

Android, IOs, Windows, or other [specify]

Android Version 4.0.3 and up

Power requirements

Uninterrupted power supply (UPS), ocassional power supply [minimum time required], other

N/A

eEducation application

Education equipment

Design specifications Component and Operation overview including power, portability, facility requirements, preventative maintenance and user training requirements

Product schematics Design and assembly illustrations

Not available

Technical support Technical support provided by

Provided by the developers.

Replacement components Availability of replacement components (in-country, by order,...)

N/A

Lifecycle Disposal and warranty

N/A

Manufacturer specified performance targets Designer / Manufacturer specified targets

Kytabu aims to make textbooks more quickly accessible and affordable. This app is meant to be collaborative, fun, interactive, and accessible on mobile.

Vetted performance Findings of manufacturer evaluations or independent testing centers

Unknown

Testing organizations Independent lab, academic research centers, etc.

Unknown

Safety Potential hazards / risks related to operation of this product

No known safety hazards are related to this product.

Complementary technical systems Performance of this product is improved with another technology (eg. Cookstoves and Wind-blocking skirts)

Kytabu also offers a school management system that helps in human resource management, fee payment, online exams, online library, accounting, school attendance, and teacher support.

Kytabu also plans to partner with publishers and independent content creators to have their books or content available on Kytabu sometime in 2020.

Research & standards

Academic research Academic research related to the product (e.g. published papers in peer-reviewed journals)

None

Compliance with regulations Product certifications and standards referenced by designer/manufacturer

Kytabu is compliant with the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development requirements.

Evaluation methods Evaluation methods/protocols/guidelines referenced by designer or manufacturer.

Unknown

Other information

Fundraising information
YouTube channel.

Feedback

In context photographs (0)

You can use the form below to contribute a photo of this product.

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors

Please let us know your experience in using this product through comments below.

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In context photographs (0)

In context files & documents (0)

Feedback from users, customers & distributors