Freedom 251: Ringing Bells' Rs 251 smartphone to start shipping this week

Remember, the all-hyped Freedom 251 which made heads turn with its Rs 251 smartphone. Well, the actual device is ready to be shipped by 30 June. This is a big deal as the company Ringing Bells and its smartphone was being termed as a ‘scam’. From ED directing payment gateway to not releasing the money, to Adcom suing Ringing Bells, the device and its founders have been mired by controversies ever since the grand event launch event. Founder and CEO Mohit Goel said, “We are ready with nearly two lakh ‘Freedom 251’ handsets. We will start delivery from June 30.” This is the first phase of delivery and he then plans to open registration again for those who wish to buy the handset. [caption id=“attachment_300367” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Image: The Mobile Indian[/caption] A previous report that said the delivery date has been shifted from May to June had revealed that CEO of Noida-based firm Ringing Bells Pvt. Ltd. will begin shipping “Freedom 251” from June 28 in cash-on-delivery (COD) mode to those who had pre-booked the device. This means customers will pay for the unit, only once it has been shipped. Soon after announcing the phone in February, Mohit Goel, Managing Director of the Noida-based company had claimed that the money of all 30,000 customers has been refunded and the company will now accept cash on delivery only. With two lakh units ready to be shipped, it is to be seen who will receive the device. It should be noted that the company claimed 5 crore registrations . The Freedom 251 is priced around Rs 250, which means it could get them a cut of estimated Rs 500 on the Rs 2,500 bill of materials. However, selling Rs 2,500 device at Rs 251 would still incur losses in crores , and how does the company plan to tackle that. Somehow, it appears there’s more that needs to be explained. But, the CEO reportedly said that after initial losses, he expects the tables to turn with larger volumes. Take a look at our first impressions of the Freedom 251. The company is also planning to launch a 32-inch high-definition LED television in the first week of July.