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Ringing Bells' India-Only Android Phone To Run About $4 (freedom251.com)

Posted by timothy on from the but-don't-let-facebook-give-free-internet dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Freedom 251 is the name of a new affordable Android smartphone which is going on sale in India. It features an 4-core 1.3 Ghz Processor, with 1GB RAM and 8GB internal memory, and runs an Android Lollipop 5.1 distribution complete with civilian and government applications for Indian citizens. It is being heavily subsidized to make up for the benefits that it will bring to the people who could never afford a smartphone before. Ars Technica notes that the phone is apparently not carrier-subsidized, but as Pocket Now points out, "[t]he nation's defence minister will be at the launch event, a sign that the government has heavily subsidized the project in line with its developmental prerogatives."

2 of 72 comments (clear)

  1. Apples and Samsungs are safe. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 5, Interesting

    India is a very class conscious society. When I visit India I use a cheap Nokia-the-indestructable phone for calls when not connected to wi-fi. My nephews and nieces call it "servant-maid's phone" and would not be seen dead using it. They would rather buy a cheap unreliable knock off that has an apple logo on it, rather than a reliable Nokia. This 251Rs phone will be instantly marked as the servant-maid, rickshaw-puller, veggie-hawker, coster-monger phone and most of middle class will eschew it. That is actually good. The government subsidy will actually reach the poor. If the manufacturer delivers a half decent product at that price after taking all the govt funds.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
    1. Re:Apples and Samsungs are safe. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Same story everywhere. Whites are racist towards any other skin color. Although a short while ago, the list also included Jews, Italians, Irish, etc. And ironically, Italians are super racist too - take a look at the racist stuff that happens in soccer matches targeted at black players. Browns are racist towards blacks. Blacks are racist towards other blacks of different tribes.

      Chinese consider any one who is not mainland Chinese sub-human and uncultured. Japanese, probably worse. Arabs will treat whites very well, but will treat other browns and Filipinos like absolute filth.

      And don't even get me started on prejudice and bigotry based on religion.

      Everyone is in the same stinking boat, and drinking the same shitty koolade.