The Digital Education Enhancement Project (DEEP: http://www.open.ac.uk/DEEP) from the OU RITES* group is investigating ways in which new technologies can improve the teaching of literacy, numeracy and science in primary schools in Egypt and South Africa. Primary teachers have been carrying out a sequence of classroom-focused professional development activities, using a range of new technologies. In particular, every teacher has been provided with a hand held computer and pocket camera for use throughout the project. This paper reports specifically on the use made of these devices by teachers and pupils over a two- year period, including two in-depth case studies of teachers in the different settings. The findings of the study indicate that use of the hand held computers has varied in relation to context, particularly with respect to: teacher access to adjacent technologies; geographical location; local educational and cultural practices; home language. More general implications of the project for teacher education on the global south are also presented.