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Buy Freedom 251 Online: Where To Find The $4 Smartphone, And A Warning About A Potential Scam

Published on: February 20, 2016 at 10:26 AM ET
Nathan Francis
Written By Nathan Francis
News Writer

Do you want to buy Freedom 251 online? You can find all the information here on how to pre-order the latest entry in the smartphone field, but there are plenty of warnings about exactly what you might end up getting.

The so-called revolutionary $4 smartphone was introduced this week, leading to a massive rush for pre-orders that reportedly “broke the Internet,” but now questions are being raised about the seemingly too-good-to-be-true phone.

The phone was introduced this week by the Indian company Ringing Bells, which Mashable notes has only been around for a few months. The idea was hailed as game-changing, making smartphones available for everyone regardless of economic status.

But, those looking to buy the Freedom 251 online may take the forewarning that it is indeed too good to be true. There have been many questions raised about the phone’s pricing, with Indian telecommunication minister Ravi Shankar Prasad questioning how it could be sold for Rs 251, well below the the Rs 3,500 it likely costs to make the phone.

Others have raised the same question.

“For your kind information, the bill of material value for a product like this when sourced from the cheapest supply chain cost approximately Rs 2,700 ($40). And this, when translated into retail price after addition of applicable duties, taxes and with distribution and retail margins would be at least Rs 4,100 ($60) while the product is being sold at Rs 251,” ICA national president Pankaj Mohindroo wrote . Many people who tried to buy the Freedom 251 online also found difficulties, with the company’s website crashing in the day after the announcement as a huge rush of people went online to make pre-orders.There could be other major problems with Freedom 251 as well. The site Android Authority found that the phone is actually a low-level Chinese smarthphone in disguise.

The report noted that this raises questions about the origin and pricing of Freedom 251, as the phone it is apparently copying (or being disguised as) sells for $54.

“Now that people are actually getting their hands on the device, however, the whole thing is looking pretty d**n sketchy. Right out of the box, you know something’s not right when your new phone has a blob of Wite-Out cleverly concealing the name of the device’s actual manufacturer.

“That’s right: the Freedom 251 is actually the Adcom Ikon 4, an entry-level Chinese smartphone. Not only is this a scam, but it’s one where the scam artist isn’t even trying! What’s more, the device looks nothing like the smartphone advertised on Ringing Bells’ website.”

But, despite the difficulties, the phone remains popular and many people are still lining up to buy the Freedom 251 online. It seems the appeal of a $4 smartphone is enough for some to ignore the red flags that have arisen.

For those willing to look past these issues, NDTV has instructions on how to buy the Freedom 251 online.

  1. Head to the official website freedom251.com.
  2. Click on the “Buy Now” button.
  3. Note that the Ringing Bells is charging Rs. 40 for shipping Freedom 251 to your home so the total you will need to pay is Rs. 291.
  4. Enter your shipping address, accept the terms and conditions and click on Pay Now to proceed to the payment page.

There are some caveats for anyone trying to buy the Freedom 251 phone online. First, it is not available for shipping outside of India, so those across the globe hoping to see the phone will be out of luck. Also, the website has been hit with delays and buyers have reported that it takes a lot of patience to complete the buying process. There are also new restrictions to buying the Freedom 251 online, with the manufacturer now limiting customers to one phone per order.

[Image via Freedom251.com]

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