MTN Nigeria partnered with Lumos, a market-leading provider of high-quality solar home systems with a safe and clean power solution designed to offer Nigerians sustainable and affordable electricity. The partnership is a welcome development following the elliptic power supply in the country.
The Lumos solar electricity came into play between 2016/2017, I was among the first people that grabbed the system and am still using it till date. I have been using it for years now and I can answer most of the questions you might have about the MTN mobile solar system.
However, I have already published a couple of articles about MTN Lumos to guide other users, I also explain everything about the solar system like how to get it, how it works and everything you might wish to know about the Yellow box as most people call it.
Questions and Answers about MTN Lumos Solar (Yellow Box)
I decided to provide answers to some common questions people ask about MTN Lumos solar system because I normally receive calls daily from people asking a different kind of questions about the solar system. The questions and answers that I will provide will reflect the questions people asked me about MTN Lumos solar.
1. How much is the MTN Lumos Solar system?
In 2017 when I went for mine, I spent 40k plus, the initial payment was 26,000 Naira then, I paid for 3 months subscription about 12,000+ and paid 2,000 for installation. I got ming straight from MTN office back then but things are no longer the same now.
From what I can see it seems that MTN is no longer in partnership with Lumos, earlier this year Lumos started marketing and distributing their solar system themselves without involving MTN. However, they have even made their solar system affordable to those who don’t welcome pay as go monthly subscription but wish to pay for it outrightly.
On February this year (2020), I published an article introducing Lumos ECO system and Prime Solar Home System (No subscription required).. The popular MTN yellow box is the one called Lumos ECO system while the Prime Solar system is an upgrade with more capacity.
I saw the Lumos ECO solar system going for N163,800 while the Prime solar system goes for N220,100 If you can afford any of the solar systems then you will overcome the monthly subscription fees because you have paid outrightly. However, Lumos also offers to pay as you go for those who can not afford to buy the solar system but prefers instalment payment.
The Lumos solar system is now available in Jumia Nigeria at an affordable price.
Interestingly, whether you pay in full or choose pay as you go, you will enjoy 4 Years of free repair service for 4 years, which means that when your solar system suddenly developed a fault Lumos will fix it for you free of charge for 4 years.
2. How and where to get MTN Lumos solar system
As I said early I got mine from MTN but Lumos is now handling the selling and distribution of their solar system on their own, moreover, you might still be able to get it from MTN. However, Lumos solar system is now available online, your can order it from Jumia Nigeria or from Lumos official website.
3. How much is MTN Lumos monthly Subscription
You can either get the Lumos solar system from MTN or directly from Lumos themselves, however, their plans differ from each other. Lumos offers 4 years instalment payment for their solar system while MTN as offers 5 years.
Below are the Lumos Initial deposit and subscription plans for their Prime and Eco solar system (4 years Instalment payment before it become yours).
| PLANS | LUMOS PRIME | LUMOS ECO |
| Initial Deposit | N25,000 | N20,000 |
| 1 month | N7,300 | N5,500 |
| 2 months | N14,150 | N10,650 |
| 3 months | N20,800 | N15,650 |
| 6 months | N38,500 | N29,000 |
| 12 months | N71,800 | N54,100 |
Note
* Prices are subject to change
* Free repair service for 4 years when you get Lumos solar system directly from them while you have 5 years when you get it from MTN
* Installation fee not included (Pay directly to installer starting from N2,000 depending on location)
I got mine from MTN office in 2017 and below are the current subscription price for everyone who got his or her own Lumos solar system from MTN. Moreover, MTN does not offer Lumos prime with more capacity at the time I got mine.
Current Subscription plans and prices for MTN Lumos (Instalment payment for 5 years before it becomes yours)
| PLANS | MTN LUMOS ECO |
| Initial Deposit | N25,000 |
| 1 Day | N235.48 |
| 5 Days | N1,126.19 |
| 10 Days | N2,047.62 |
| 20 Days | N3,890.48 |
| 30 Days | N4,965.48 |
| 60 Days | N9,214.29 |
| 90 Days | N12,900.00 |
| 180 Days | N23,957.14 |
| 365 (1 Year) | N47,832.38 |
To subscribe to any of the plans you only need to create an SMS using the number you registered the MTN Lumos solar with, send your chosen subscription plan to 317.
Example: send 90 as an SMS to 317 if you are subscribing for 90 days plan or 30 to 317 if you are going for 30 days plan. Remember paying for longer plans will help you save some extra cost.
4. Can MTN Lumos carry fridges and Tv’s
Someone called me a few days ago asking me whether the MTN Lumos can be able to carry his her fridge but the answer to that question is NO. The solar system is not designed for heavy appliances like fridges, Air conditioners or washing machines. However, it can handle most of the LED TVs low voltage fans, decoders and more.
In my case I have 32 inches LG LED TV which works great with the solar, I power it together with my strong decoder, and two 5 watts LED bulbs. However, for this to work you need to off everything then plug-in the Tv together with your cable decoder/receiver and switch On your socket after 2 minutes you can On your light.
5. What happens if I can’t pay for my subscription
If you can’t afford to pay for the subscription regularly then you shouldn’t go for it because you are required to at least pay for 20 days each month till 5 years for those who got theirs from MTN and 4 years for those who got it directly from Lumos.
MTN and Lumos have the right to retrieve the solar system from you if you failed to play by the rules, so don’t go for it if you can’t pay for it.
If you have the money and don’t like the idea of pay as you go, then get Lumos ECO solar system going for N163,800 while the Prime solar system goes for N220,100
6. What is the difference between Lumos ECO and Prime solar system
I have explained everything you need to know about the 2 solar system here, however, the Lumos Prime is the real deal when you are looking for the one with more power and capacity to carry more electrical appliances but as well more expensive compared to Lumos Eco solar system.
Check out the features of the 2 solar system (Lumos Prime VS Lumos ECO)
| FEATURES | LUMOS ECO | LUMOS PRIME |
| Battery Capacity | 200 Watt-hours | 330 Watt-hours |
| Solar Panel | 1 Single Panel 80W | 2 Panels 80W each |
| DC-AC Converter | Yes | Yes |
| Charging Cable | Yes | Yes |
| LED Bulbs | 2 Bulbs | 4 Bulbs |
| Weight (kg) | 5 KG | 5 KG |
| USB Charging ports | 2 X 5V USB Ports | 2 X 5V USB Ports |
| Cigarette lighter sockets | 2 X Cigarette lighter sockets | 1 X Cigarette lighter socket |
| DC outlet | 4 X 12V DC outlet | 4 X 12V DC outlet |
| Price | ₦ 163,800 (Promo price) | ₦ 220,100 (Promo price) |
6. How to hack MTN Lumos solar and avoid monthly subscription
I have seen so many people asking and looking for a way to hack the MTN Lumos solar to avoid monthly subscription. I have equally seen some platform claiming to offer such services for a certain amount of money.
The truth is that I don’t know much about it and am not as well looking for a way to hack the MTN Lumos because that’s illegal even if it’s possible but come to think of it. MTN knows your location, they even know when the solar system is active or not and if you finally find a way to hack the system they will know when the system is active without a subscription.
Every solar system from MTN has a unique number and they even monitor the wattage your system is consuming at any giving time, am saying this from experience. Don’t waste your time trying to get the MTN Lumos with the hope of hacking it later.
7. How long will the solar system last when I plug my TV or other appliances
I have two friends who asked me this question ” How long my solar system last when in use”. The truth is, there is no accurate answer to this question because the electrical appliances am using might differ from yours. The type of Television that am using might be different from yours and, that’s what determines how long the solar system can last.
To answer the question using my experience, when there is sunshine between 10, Am to 4, Pm I can plug my TV and strong receiver and watch my desired movies or programs. For other low voltage appliances, you won’t notice that you plugged something because the solar charging input will be greater than the output. In the night, my solar can take me from 9 PM to 12 PM (TV + cable decoder).
8.How can i contact MTN Lumos customer care
If you encounter any problem with your MTN Lumos solar system or just wish to enquire about anything you can reach Lumos via phone and email. In this post, I shared ideas on how to contact MTN Lumos customer care support MTN Lumos Mobile Electricity Contact Phone number and Email
9. Can I return the solar system if I don’t want it anymore
In a situation where you no longer need the solar system or unable to pay the subscription fees as agreed you are free to ask MTN or Lumos to come and take their solar system but don’t expect a refund.
10. How long does it take to fix the solar system when it develops faults
I will say between 2 to 7 days depending on the issue you are having with your solar system though, you will contribute to pay for transportation of the technician that will come to fix the solar system.
I hope I have answered most of the questions you have about MTN Lumos solar system?. If you still need more clarifications about the system don’t hesitate to use the comment reply option below.
