CARIB Publishing announced Sunday the launch of the world's first Ramadan phone, a patented technology that allows the Islamic faithful to have a rich, immersive experience during the holy month. Developed by a team of designers, programmers and content producers located in the UAE, Italy, India and United States, the Ramadan phone uses a unique technology that integrates completely with any Android phone and tablet. “We should talk about this as a ‘phone experience' rather than a simple mobile app – the difference being that it completely integrates into one's phone and is always on,” said Andreas Roell, CEO of Carib Publishing, a global digital media publishing company, which develops products and solutions for some of the largest enterprises in the world, including Rotana Media Group, Warner Bros. and Simon & Schuster. “An app on the other hand, is only a temporary experience because users have to launch it each time they want to use it, and then exit out of it when they want to use their regular phone features.” This particular phone experience creates a Ramadan-themed phone environment in a very user friendly way. During the holy month, each user has the ability to celebrate the month by immersing his phone into a Ramadan graphical environment (theme) plus receive an extensive array of Ramadan related tools and resources. According to Roell, a successful digital marketing entrepreneur who has been in the digital media industry for over 17 years, the trend of the mobile industry is moving towards personalization and customization of mobile devices. Gone are the days when consumers simply pick the best phone and plan. The Ramadan phone is an early example of where the mobile industry is moving in the next two years. “Users will get a taste on how fantastic and independent from the operators' controls they can live out their phone experiences,” he added. For the implementation of the Ramadan phone experience, Carib Publishing took advantage of a patented customization technology from a US-based company called Foneclay. Roell said with the use of this unique technology, Carib Publishing was able to create a Ramadan experience at the deepest levels of a mobile device's settings and operating system. In addition, Foneclay's object-based development technology allowed the Ramadan phone experience to be produced in less than 60 days, which is record setting time for a product of this complexity. The Ramadan phone experience is now available for download at Google Play stores worldwide by searching for “Ramadan phone”. Highlights of the Ramadan phone experience: Complete Ramadan theme experience of your entire phone Not an app, this is a full “always on” experience Daily changing Ramadan wallpapers (background images) Daily changing Ramadan lock screen images Holy messages and prayer messaging throughout the day with easy access Prayer schedule and reminders for Iftar, prayer times, fasting times and so much more based on your exact location anywhere in the world Compass to Makkah always available Continual live feed from Kaaba Full screen view of the Hijri calendar Audio recitation of Ramadan prayers Full holy Qur'an with translations, phonetics, and audio recitations Extensive selection of Ramadan songs as ringtones Important health tips to refer to during Ramadan Recommended do's and don'ts of Ramadan Send Ramadan greetings directly to your friends and family — SG
