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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2020 Jun 1.
Published in final edited form as: AIDS Care. 2018 Dec 31;31(6):723–729. doi: 10.1080/09540121.2018.1563283

Table 2.

Illustrative quotes relating to familiarity with smartphone apps and internet connectivity

a. Preferred smartphone application and method to communicate

  1. “I only like WhatsApp…there is no other thing besides WhatsApp.” [Yellow, FGD 2]

  2. “Say we are going to do an event…maybe have a group…we organize through our WhatsApp.” [Blue, FGD 3]

b. Use of voice calls

  1. “I connect by WhatsApp, because WhatsApp is cheaper than phoning, but when I phone my father, my father doesn’t have WhatsApp. I phone him, and other people who don’t have smartphones, I SMS.” [Red, FGD 1]

  2. “I like to use phone calls because mostly I like to call elderly people who don’t understand WhatsApp.” [Gold, FGD 1]

c. Preferred method to connect to the internet

  1. “Airtime does not last at all, so it is better to use data bundles.” [Maroon, FGD 6]

  2. “I cannot survive without data bundles.” [Black, FGD 6]

  3. “I buy bundles but when I am at work I use Wi-Fi.” [Black, FGD 4]

  4. “If I go to the mall I will locate the Wi-Fi hot spots, such as KFC, and sit for two hours.” [Black, FGD 6]

  5. “I use data or airtime and then when I am in the area with free Wi-Fi, I close my data and use Wi-Fi.” [Yellow, FGD 5]

  6. “I use data bundles because Wi-Fi is difficult to find unless you got it in your house or workplace.” [Maroon, FGD 6]

d. Perceived benefits of using data bundles

  1. “When you have data and don’t have airtime, you can make a call on WhatsApp.” [Black, FGD 1]

  2. “For WhatsApp, I buy R8.50 worth of data for a month…If I was using airtime, I would have to buy more airtime than that.” [White, FGD 2]

e. Limitations to connectivity

  • “In my case, if I don’t have data and don’t have airtime, I borrow a phone from someone who has data at home and do what I want to do.” [Orange, FGD 1]

  1. “We are staying at [informal settlement] with no electricity. To have electricity, you charge in other areas with electricity sometimes.” [Red, FGD 5]