There’s been much hubbub on the net off-late, surrounding the launch of the cheapest smartphone in India, and indeed the world, the Freedom 251. Launched today by Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar at an event in New Delhi, the new smartphone from recently formed Ringing Bells Pvt Ltd was touted to absolutely wreck the industry on release. And that’s when more details started trickling in.

First and foremost, the phone, and the company behind it. While the initial announcement made was that the phone would cost Rs 500, subsequent clarifications revealed it would instead be priced at Rs 251. Sounds too good to be true? Well, that might be because it is.

The numbers are worrisome

You see, the Freedom 251 is clearly a loss-making endeavour. Selling a phone at that kind of cutthroat price does not benefit the company at all. Even using the cheapest components possible, a phone with the Freedom 251’s specifications should cost at least Rs 1,000 (more likely above) to manufacture, and that doesn’t include advertising and distribution. So who’s forking over the dough for the remaining expenses? Of course, Ringing Bells founder and director Mohit Kumar Goel does say Prime Minister Modi’s make in India campaign was an inspiration for the product, but there’s not been any word of a subsidy or collaborative effort between the two.

Another financing option would be through telecom partners, like with the iPhone in the US. Consumers buy a smartphone at a reduced price, but are then locked into a calling/data plan with one particular telecom operator for a fixed period of time. Again, there’s been no mention of a tie up with any major telecom players, but it IS possible that’s an announcement we’ll hear at launch. Of course, then comes the issue of the target audience. The Freedom 251 is the most basic of smartphones, unsuitable for a majority of middle class buyers. Coupled with the fact that the phone will come preloaded with apps like “Fisherman”, “Farmer”, and “Medical”, indicates this device is geared towards lower income users who would prefer to spend less and purchase a no-frills smartphone. If that’s the case, then does a locked-in data plan force these users to adopt an expensive postpaid plan, or has the telecom operator involved done the unthinkable and provided prepaid options?

One the other hand, a little digging into Ringing Bells itself uncovers more questions than answers. The company was incorporated just a few months ago, September 16, 2015, by director Mohit Kumar Goel. Ringing Bells also brought on additional directors Sushma Devi and Rajesh Kumar on November 2 last year. The website for the company was registered earlier in August 2015, but was updated in February of this year. It IS curious though, that the portal is still under construction; the FAQ section sports an ominous “coming soon” message.

Now, Goel comes from a 30-year-strong family business of agricultural products. That possibly means he’s got a boatload of money. A Zauba listing for Ringing Bells says that it has authorized share capital (the maximum value of shares that can be opened to stakeholders) worth Rs 1,00,00,000, and it’s paid up capital (the amount of shares funded by stakeholders) sits at Rs 60,00,000. In addition, Ringin Bells’ website states they’re looking for distributors, with a few caveats. They want priority stores to have a minimum area of 500 sq ft, situated in market areas or malls, and with five dedicated attendants for Ringing Bells products, whose salaries will be paid by Bells. Yes, the company does have 4 other devices available on its website, but it’s unlikely to assume they believe the profits from those can offset losses incurred by the Freedom 251’s manufacture and distribution. Yet, they say “15 percent return of investment is expected (for distributors) and break even period is 2-3 years with proper marketing and dedication towards business”.Clearly, we can’t yet see the full picture.

The device is a shameful hot mess

And then of course, we come to the phone itself. The Freedom 251 features a 1.3GHz quad-core processor with 1GB RAM, has a 4-inch qHD IPS display with a 3.2MP rear cam and a 0.3MP front cam. It’s powered by a 1450mAh battery and has 8GB internal storage (expandable up to 32GB). But what the ads and promotional material don’t tell you is what the phone is actually like in your hand. And, unfortunately, reports coming in paint a foreboding picture.

Hindustan Times published the first review we saw today, which indicates the device is a jumbled mishmash of other existing phones. The screenshots of the Freedom 251’s UI clearly show ripoffs of icons from iOS. Apple’s Photos, Safari, and Email icons are sitting pretty beside standard Android Lollipop fare. That’s a copyright infringement lawsuit in the making. In addition, HT claims the trial device they were sent by the company actually featured branding of an entirely different company, Adcom. Even more bizarre, the brand name was whitened out. Adcom is an IT product importer from Delhi, and they say they have nothing to do with Ringing Bells. So what exactly is going on then? No one can be sure, but just take a look at this.

Here’s an official photo of the Freedom 251, where the phone looks suspiciously like Ringing Bell’s own Smart 101

Here’s the ad they printed in newspapers

It’s worrying to note that the images of Freedom 251 on website and newspaper ad are completely different pic.twitter.com/zgPQy7RVhl — Raju (@rajupp) February 17, 2016

And here’s a photo from the guys at NDTV, complete with pre-whitened branding. Notice how the phone has two different looks in their ad campaign? And…..hold on a second, what’s this? Another doppelganger?

In fact, even the official Twitter handle for the Freedom 251 here features instead a profile pic with the Ringing Bells Smart 101. Want to know how I can be sure of that? It's right here on the Smart 101's product page. They didn't even bother removing the text that says "Android 5.1 Lollipop". It's so laughably and utterly stupid at this point, that I shouldn't be surprised anymore, but of course there's more to add to building pile of manure. On a third website, dedicated solely to Freedom 251 updates, the company lists the reasons one should buy the phone. And, of course, that gloriously exaggerated list is coupled with yet another picture of the Smart 101.

Of course, that's okay in this context because Ringing Bells has a disclaimer on the website.

Really, what on earth is going on?

The company is wholly unavailable for comment

Unfortunately for everyone with questions out there, the media might have had answers a few hours ago, but we were collectively denied. India Today attempted to talk to an exec in person and were turned away at the door, the guard stating the office was empty. On launch day. Additionally, he seems to believe the Ringing Bells office in Noida has been occupied for the last seven months. That’s strange because his story puts workers in the Bells office in August, a month before the company was even officially registered. In fact, no one has been able to get so much as a peep out of the entirety of the company; not Goel himself, and none of his supposed employees.

And despite all that, the launch event was delayed from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. with questions being accepted only at 10 pm. For those of you still willing to drop money on this phone, bookings for the Freedom 251 will be open at 6 am tomorrow, February 18 here.