Believe it or not: Ringing Bells launched India’s cheapest smartphone at Rs 251!

The smartphone revolution is here, ladies and gentlemen.

Piggybanking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make in India initiative, a Noida based startup, Ringing Bells is launching India’s most affordable smartphone today.

Called the ‘Freedom 251,’ the phone is priced at Rs 251 and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar is expected to grace the occasion.

Bookings for the Freedom 251 will start from Thursday 18 February from 6.00 am in the morning and will close on 21 February at 8.00 pm. This is a dual-SIM 3G capable phone.



Other features include a 4-inch WVGA resolution display, features a 1.3 Ghz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, 8GB total storage space and a 3.2 megapixel camera on the back. It also has a 0.3 megapixel camera on the front and has a 1450 mAh battery.

The company also claimed the device comes with touchless technology which it believes is ideal for selfies. There is a 3G radio as well. Not surprisingly, the phone also comes pre-installed with apps such as Swachh Bharat, Women Safety, Fisherman, Farmer, Medical, Google Play, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter among others.

The vision is to “Empower citizens, even in the remotest rural and semi-urban 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 opportunity – In short, innovative solutions for a brighter tomorrow,” Ringing Bells further added.

Started last year, Ringing Bells consists of a little over 20 employees and is a new entrant in the Indian mobile phone market, Recently, it had launched one of India’s cheapest 4G smartphone at Rs 2,999, apart from launching two other feature phones in the market.

Granted that the launched of a smartphone way under Rs 500 is evidence of the boom in the Indian smartphone market, but it also raises quite a lot of questions with regards to the possibility of it triggering a price war, long-terms plans of the company and basic logistics.

At present, the cheapest smartphone available in the market is is the Firefox OS-based Alcatel Fire C, priced at Rs.1,729, as the smartphone announced by Data Wind, the makers of Aakash tablets, and telecom operator Reliance Communications based on the Linux OS for Rs.999 hasn’t rolled out yet. The question remains, will it be able to stand the test of time?

According to a media invite sent by the firm, the launch stands as a true testimony of success of the latest initiatives taken by the Government of India.

Image credit: Indiatimes