World’s cheapest smartphone to cost $4

Named Freedom 251from its rather modest 251-rupee price tag, which equates to about $4, the device features the kind of technical specification that many people would be quite be content with: A 4-inch screen, 1.3 GHz quadcore processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, 3.2-megapixel rear camera, 0.3-megapixel front camera and a 1,450mAh battery and an Android Lollipop 5.1 operating system. No doubt, Freedom 251’s arrival is likely to change the trade dynamics in one of the world’s fastest growing smartphone market.
The phone is manufactured by Ringing Bells, a new Indian company set up to provide affordable smartphones. It’s already been selling a 4G-ready handset for 3,000 rupees—about £30—according to Hindustan Times.
The phone goes on sale in India on Thursday February 18th, when it will undoubtedly be snapped up by locals keen for a smartphone on a budget. Currently, India’s cheapest smartphone is the Alcatel Fire C, which uses the Firefox OS and is priced at Rs1,729. And prices at the low-end of the smartphone market in Asia’s third-largest economy vary between Rs2,000 and Rs3,000 with homegrown mobile phone-makers such as Micromax and Karbonn dominating the segment.