Search: “kuwait”

I recently found out the price of Ozempic in the US and it’s over 8x more expensive than Kuwait which is crazy. So I decided to check the prices around the world and Kuwait seems to be pretty good when compared to places like the US or the UAE. Oddly, I think Kuwait is the only country where you don’t need a prescription for it.

Here is a list comparing the price of Ozempic in Kuwait vs other countries:

Australia: KD 26
Bahrain: KD 33
Canada: KD 45
Denmark: KD 37
Egypt: KD 76
France: KD 25
Germany: KD 32
Japan: KD 52
Kuwait: KD 35
Netherlands: KD 32
Qatar: KD 67
Saudi Arabia: KD 31
Sweden: KD 30
Switzerland: KD 44
UAE: KD 95
UK: KD 28
USA: KD 295 (yup, not a typo)

Yesterday the Ministry of Interior announced they’ll be installing new intelligent AI-powered traffic cameras. The new cameras are meant to automatically detect seat belt violations, and drivers using their phones while driving. This isn’t the first time the MOI announced automated monitoring. Back in January 2023, the MOI announced they were installing new smart cameras that could detect both those violations, but that never materialized for some reason.

Although not much information was shared yesterday regarding the new cameras, based on some research I did there are a couple of companies that provide these traffic cameras, including Acusensus and VITRONIC. VITRONIC recently installed AI cameras in the UAE and have a Middle East office so it’s very probable those are the ones we are getting.

No matter which brand we are getting, they all work similarly:

• The traffic cameras capture high-resolution images of approaching vehicles.

• Artificial intelligence (AI) software filters the images to detect possible mobile phone use, or failure to wear a seatbelt by the driver and front seat passenger.

• If AI does not see a potential violation, it will reject the image.

• If AI detects a driver who may be using a phone or not wearing their seatbelt, it flags the image for further review.

• Images which are flagged for potential violations are then checked and verified by an officer.

So AI won’t be issuing tickets automatically, violations will still be double checked by a real person which is good news. These new AI cameras are also really effective. In Australia they trialed a similar AI traffic camera and in the first month alone, 1,500 drivers and 225 passengers were caught not wearing seatbelts, and almost 1,200 drivers were caught using their mobile phones.

Not sure how bad seatbelt violations are, but I’m really hoping this will stop people using their phones while driving since they’re the most annoying drivers.

I’m a huge fan of the way the Cybertruck looks. There is at least one in Kuwait since I’ve seen it park next to my office but there’s now another one and it’s for sale.

The local car dealer AlSarraf Motors has a Cybertruck in stock with 0 mileage available and it’s priced at KD62,000. In comparison, back in July a Cybertruck with just 500miles sold for around KD36,600 on bringatrailer.com. Add around 600KD for shipping plus 5% for customs and it would obviously be cheaper to get one directly from the states. But, if money is no object and you want a Cybertruck right now, this is your only option.

I just found Nando’s on Talabat. Not sure when they started since they don’t seem to have mentioned it on their instagram account but that’s pretty cool.

I have a Nando’s near me in Salmiya so I usually just pop over, but now I can just order to my place when I’m feeling lazy.

Below are the official prices for the new iPhones in Kuwait. These are the prices all authorized Apple resellers in Kuwait will be following:

iPhone 16

iPhone 16 128GB KD299.9
iPhone 16 256GB KD329.9
iPhone 16 512GB KD399.9

iPhone 16 Plus

iPhone 16 Plus 128GB KD329.9
iPhone 16 Plus 256GB KD364.9
iPhone 16 Plus 512GB KD439.9

iPhone 16 Pro

iPhone 16 Pro 128GB KD374.9
iPhone 16 Pro 256GB KD409.9
iPhone 16 Pro 512GB KD480.9
iPhone 16 Pro 1TB KD554.9

iPhone 16 Pro Max

iPhone 16 Pro Max 256GB KD444.9
iPhone 16 Pro Max 512GB KD519.9
iPhone 16 Pro Max 1TB KD589.9

Some of the prices are slightly higher than last year, for example when you compare the 15 Pro with the 16 Pro, this year its KD2 higher:
iPhone 15 Pro 128GB: KD372.9
iPhone 16 Pro 128GB: KD374.9

If you purchase the iPhone 16 Pro 128GB online from the US Apple Store and shipped it to Kuwait, even with taxes and shipping it would still be cheaper, costing around KD345. This is because the US has the lowest iPhone prices. Compared to the rest of the world though, Kuwait’s prices are somewhere in the middle.

Here’s a price comparison for the same phone in different parts of the world, in case you’re planning to pick one up on your next trip:

iPhone 16 Pro 128GB

Australia: KD367
Canada: KD326
Denmark: KD432
France: KD415
Germany: KD404
Hong Kong: KD337
India: KD436
Italy: KD419
Kuwait: KD375
Netherlands: KD415
Spain: KD412
Switzerland: KD378
Thailand: KD362
UAE: KD358
USA: KD305
UK: KD400

If you’re interested in purchasing it locally, pre-orders in Kuwait will be starting tomorrow (Friday) at official Apple resellers.

Apple recently announced the new iPhone 16 and 16 Pro, and I was just informed by @gaitkuwait that the new phones will be officially launched in Kuwait on Friday, September 20th.

Pre-orders will open on September 13th at 3 PM.

I have the iPhone 15 Pro, and the difference between it and the new 16 Pro seems fairly minor. However, the higher resolution sensor on the wide-angle lens is enticing since I use that lens frequently for my blog. Plus, the new 16 Pro also has the 5x lens, which last year’s model lacked unless you had the larger Max version.

Tomorrow, IKEA will be launching their new concept in Kuwait called ‘IKEA for Business’. I got a sneak peek of the store, and I left impressed.

The new store felt like a movie set because they built various shops with shop fronts inside a large warehouse-like building. The idea is that they wanted customers to see in person how you could fit out an entire shop or office with just IKEA furniture and accessories.

When I first walked into the IKEA store, I stepped into the offices of a recycling company called RRR—complete with cubicles, private offices, a waiting room, and everything you’d expect from a real office. The next area had a more casual office vibe, which turned out to belong to a make-believe marketing agency called Mirage. It was more colorful and less serious looking, completely different to the previous corporate looking offices.

After leaving the office area, I found myself on a street lined with a nail salon, flower shop, and café. None of them were real, of course, but they looked and felt convincing, complete with working faucets and functional equipment. To the left of the nail salon were stairs that led me up to a women’s hair salon. I walked through it and emerged out the other side onto a rooftop restaurant.

Exploring the store was surprisingly fun, like a KidZania for adults since they had hotel rooms, a kids nursery, a company board room, and various offices all for customers to interact with and explore.

The coolest thing wasn’t even what was on display—it was that IKEA now functions like a design studio with a contractor. Previously, they’d help design a room or bathroom, but they wouldn’t handle finding a painter or taking care of plumbing for example. With IKEA for Business, that’s changed. They now can manage everything from design to execution, so you don’t have to deal with anyone else. Super convenient.

If you want to check out the new IKEA store, it’s located in Shuwaikh where their first original store used to be, right next to the new Spark gym (Google Maps). Opening hours will be 10 to 10 and they open to the public from tomorrow.

Last night Kuwaiti athlete Faisal Sorour (@f9olsroor8) won the Gold medal for Kuwait in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Faisal came first in the Men’s Shot Put – F63 event by scoring 15.31m. This is Faisal’s second medal at the Paralympic Games, he previously secured a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Games.

The F63 category is for athletes with a moderate impairment in one leg or the absence of legs above the knee.

Kuwait’s medal tally is now two after the bronze medal secured by Faisal Al-Rajehi last week in the men’s 5000m race. You can follow the Kuwait Paralympic Committee @kuwaitparalympic

According to a contact of mine, Alshaya are bringing Primark, the popular multinational fashion retailer to Kuwait and the Middle East GCC.

Primark is known for offering affordable, fast fashion and a wide range of clothing, accessories, and home goods. The brand is particularly popular for its trendy styles at low prices, appealing to budget-conscious shoppers.

I don’t have any idea on when they’re planning to open their first location, but I’d imagine they would need at the very least a year. I’ll update this post if I discover more.

<strong>Update: It’s now official.

Kuwaiti musicians Ghazi Al-Mulaifi and Amin Abdal have both been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Latin Jazz Album category. Ghazi and Amin played a key part on the album Virtual Birdland by Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra.

That album was nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album at the 64th Grammy Awards which took place back in 2022, but Amin and Ghazi only recently found out that they were also nominated because of their role. Ghazi was a composer and performing artist on the album as Boom Diwan, while Amin was the recording engineer for the band.

This makes them the first Kuwaitis to be nominated for a Grammy, and the first from the Arabian Gulf.

Boom Diwan is a band that blends Kuwaiti bahar music with jazz and you can follow them @boom.diwan. You can also follow Ghazi and Amin at @ghazimusic and @xxmrfarixx.

The new Nissan Patrol got released yesterday and the Kuwait prices are already available. The price of the entry level Patrol starts at KD 19,399 while the top of the line model is priced at KD 30,499. Here are the prices:

Patrol 3.8L, V6 (310HP)
XE: KD 19,399
SE T2: KD 20,950
SE Titan: KD 23,499
SE Platinum City: KD 26,099

Patrol 3.5L, V6 Twin Turbo (425HP)
LE-T1: KD 23,499
LE-T2: KD 24,999
LE-Titanium: KD 26,950
LE-Titanium+: KD 27,950
LE-Platinum City: KD 30,499

Nissan Kuwait already have the car up on their website along with the details on what every version of the car has in terms of equipment so if you want more details, click here.

Starting September 1st, Wizz Air has suspended flights to Kuwait. Although I’ve never flown with them, they did have some really great prices and from what I read, it really wasn’t that bad of an experience flying with them.

It’s not clear yet if this is a permanent or just temporary suspension, but right now you can no longer book any Wizz Air flights from Kuwait for the foreseeable future. source

There is a German car dealer that has a 1963 Alfa Romeo 2600 Spider for sale that was originally sold in Kuwait back in 1963.

According to confirmation from the Alfa Romeo archives, the Spider they’re selling was delivered to Kuwait on 1 April 1963. The car later went to South Africa and then a few years ago was sent to Germany where its now on sale again.

I actually have a copy of the ad above that I had taken from a 1962 issue of the Kuwait Times that showcases the Spider. The dealer for Alfa Romeo back in the early 60s was Kazima Trading Co.

It’s a beautiful car and I kinda feel someone needs to buy it and bring it back to Kuwait. I would have, but at over 40,000KD it’s not really an impulse buy. Link

The Paris 2024 Paralympics started a few days ago and yesterday, Kuwaiti wheelchair racer Faisal Al-Rajhi (@faisal.alrajhi98) won a bronze medal in the T54 5,000m race. The T54 category is for wheelchair athletes with no leg function, but near full arm function.

Faisal is one of three Kuwaiti athletes taking part at the Paralympics with the other two being:

Dhari Buti – Men’s Shot Put – F37
Faisal Sorour – Men’s Shot Put – F42

The F37 category is for athletes competing with co-ordination impairments (hypertonia, ataxia and athetosis).

The F42 category is for athletes competing without prosthesis affected by limb deficiency, leg length difference, impaired muscle power or impaired passive range of movement.

The Paris 2024 Paralympics is taking place from 28 August to 8 September 2024 and the official account of the Kuwait Paralympic Commitee is @kuwaitparalympic

Yesterday CITRA launched new mobile network frequencies in Kuwait which will be used for the upcoming 5G Advanced network (also called 5GA or 5.5G). 5G Advanced has a number of benefits over regular 5G with the main ones being:

• Faster Speeds
• Enhanced Coverage
• Increased Reliability
• Lower Power Consumption
• More accurate device positioning

From my understanding (someone correct me if I’m wrong), 5G and 5G Advanced have the same max speed, but 5G Advanced has the ability to achieve +20% faster speeds more often (for example during peak hours or network congestion).

According to CITRA, 5G Advanced should be available in Kuwait by maximum June 2025. If you want to try it out they have a demo display for the next couple of days at Al Hamra Tower.