Freedom 251: World's cheapest 'made in India' smartphone launched

New Delhi Taking the everyone by surprise a little known Noidabased startup on Wednesday launched theworlds cheapest smartphoneat Rs251 less than 4 Made in India smartphone that if it works well will be a game changerIn what could be termed as a fillip to Prime Minister Narendra Modis Make in India and Digital India initiatives Freedom 251 from Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd will be available for preorder on the company website from 6 am on February 18 till 8 pm on February 21The smartphone was unveiled at Nehru Park here by veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader Murli Manohar JoshiIt is a great news for people like fishermen farmers and women from rural areas who can use this technology to empower their lives I hope the smartphone will soon have some apps for the differentlyabled too Joshi told the gatheringAlthough there are still some apprehensions about its final appearance and performance if the Indians masses accept the smartphone then it will be a winner in a country that is one of the fastest growing smartphone markets globally and is poised to overtake the US as the secondlargest market in next few yearsAccording to the company Freedom 251 smartphone has been developed with immense support from the governmentFreedom 251 heralds a new era in the mobile handset and telecom industry from the end consumer perspective in India Farmers would have access to real time weather forecast and soil conditions which will help them enhance their productivity and income Ringing Bells president Ashok Chadha said in a statementWomen would have easy access to police apps and senior citizens would have access to medical facilities he addedFreedom 251 has a Android 51 operating system a 4inch qHD IPS display a 32megapixel primary and a 03megapixel front cameraThe device has 3G connectivity and has a 13GHz quadcore processor 1GB RAM and 8GB internal memory and supports external memory cards of up to 32GBTo power Freedom 251 the company has put a 1450mAh battery and claims to have a service network of 650 centres across IndiaThe smartphone comes with preinstalled apps like Swachh Bharat Women Safety WhatsApp Facebook and Twitter among othersThe deliveries for Indias most affordable smartphone will be completed by June 30 the company said in a statementAccording to the phones official website the company aims to empower citizens even in the remotest rural and semiurban centres of India with the latest in digital technology at incredible affordable prices and cascade knowledge news and current issues so that all experience the confidence of inclusive growth and equal opportunityRinging Bells recently launched one of Indias cheapest 4G smartphone at Rs2999 It has launched two other feature phones for the Indian consumersAccording to International Data Corporations IDC Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker 256 million smartphones were shipped in India in the fourth quarter of 2015 up 154 percent from 222 million units for the same period last year