Design

Display

Hardware

Software

Camera

What we think

Noida-based Ringing Bells on Thursday amazed the domestic smartphone market by launching the world's cheapest smartphone for just Rs 251, roughly translating to less than $4. The only innovation Ringing Bells is clinging on to is the price. Which is enough to silence critics -- and for buyers to lineup.Cheap smartphones are nothing new. There are plenty of Android smartphones priced under Rs 3,000 in the market with few takers. In the past, Akash tablet-maker Datawind too grabbed eyeballs by only innovating on the price of its UbiSlate tablet and Pocket Surfer smartphone range. However, consumers soon lost interest because these cheapest devices never delivered as per expectations.While the question how is it possible to price a smartphone this cheap can be best answered best by the company’s president Ashok Chadha, what consumers should really be worried about is whether the smartphone delivers on the basics it promises.Apart from winning the cheapest smartphone trophy, can the Freedom 251 bring a smile on the faces of people for whom Rs 251 still matters a lot? After spending some time with the smartphone Freedom 251, here are our first impressions.On design front, Freedom 251 shares a close resemblance with an iPhone. It actually looks better than most low-cost smartphones from several brands. Though the device is made of plastic, the build quality appears to be good. At the back, there's an imprint of Indian flag with ‘FREEDOM 251’ written at the bottom portion giving it a unique character. Overall, the device is very compact, lightweight and fits perfectly in the hand.The Freedom 251 has a 4-inch qHD (960 x 540 pixels) IPS display. It is surprisingly bright and the viewing angles are good. The screen did not appear too glossy. Outdoor visibility is decent but expect discomfort while using the smartphone under direct sunlight. The overall display quality is pleasing and consumers wouldn't have much to complain.Freedom 251 is a dual-SIM smartphone with 3G support. Powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor with 1GB RAM and 8GB internal memory expandable up to 32GB, the Freedom 251 runs Android 5.1 Lollipop operating system. It mounts a 3.2MP auto-focus camera with LED Flash at the back along with a 0.3MP VGA resolution selfie camera. The phone is backed by a 1,450mAh battery and comes with regular connectivity features like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and others.The smartphone offers an almost stock Android 5.1 experience. Interestingly, the design of the icons is borrowed from iOS. It comes with pre-installed apps like Women Safety, Swachh Bharat, Fisherman, Farmer, Medical along with Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube and others. While it is too early to comment, the experience was pretty smooth and apps responded as expected.Don’t expect much on the camera front. It is slow and low-light images are best deleted. However, under good lighting, the rear camera seems fine for the price. It is better to ignore the front camera altogether.Ringing Bells is offering a full-fledged smartphone which includes complimentary earphones and works fine for just Rs 251. This phone can be definitely used by those who are still stuck on feature phones due to the high price of smartphones. The actual price of the device is somewhere between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000. There is no government subsidy involved but the company has done some maths to make it a mass product to make money. So, if you need a budget smartphone, there is no solid reason as to why you should miss this chance.