India's $4 smartphone declared a Ponzi scam

Mark Frauenfelder 9:25 am Fri Feb 26, 2016

By Syed0145 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Freedom 251 is a 3G Android handset with a 4-inch display, a Qualcomm 1.3-GHz quad-core processor and 1 GB RAM. It was introduced a couple of weeks ago in India for the low, low price of 251 rupees (US$3.67). It sounds like a great deal for millions of people who couldn't otherwise afford a smart phone.

But India MP Kirit Somaiya says he's looked into the little-known company that makes the phone and says they're Ponzi schemers.

“This is a huge scam, that is why I went through all the papers of the company. The government has informed Uttar Pradesh government to check the bonafide of the promoter. This is a Ponzi bogus company scam,” Somaiya told ANI. [Indian Express]

On Twitter, @Joydas posted photos of the Freedom 251, calling it a "Chinese Smartphone. Whitener used to Hide Name. Sold in garb of Narendra Modi's "Make in India" campaign."

#Freedom251 Chinese Smartphone. Whitener used to Hide Name. Sold in garb of Narendra Modi's "Make in India" campaign pic.twitter.com/BLAZPSBJWk

— Joy (@Joydas) February 18, 2016

The manufacturer, Ringing Bells Pvt. Ltd., announced on its website that it is not taking new orders for the phone:

Screen Shot 2016-02-26 at 9.21.03 AM

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