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The 4$ smartphone
- donbox 11y agoIt costs 251 INR to be exact. That's 3.654 USD as per today's exchange rate. Specifications at a glance: -- Android Lollipop 5.1 -- 4 inch qHD display -- 1.3 Ghz Quadcore processor -- 1 GB RAM -- 8 GB internal memory, expandable to 32 GB -- 1450 mAh battery -- 3.2 MP AF Rear camera, .3 MP Front
- pedalpete 11y agoIt's also only 3g, but if you're not into photography and mostly use wifi, it could be a good little device.
- creshal 11y ago3G is already faster than "broadband" in most parts of the world. It's good enough.
- ju-st 11y agoWhen I'm at home and my 3G phone loads everything faster than expected I know that Wifi isn't enabled...
- creshal 11y agoSame here. When I recently had to upload a 3 GB file, I split it in 3 and uploaded one part with each of my (3G) phones… 45 minutes instead of the 4 hours it would have taken me with my ADSL line.
- bduerst 11y agoFound my fellow Comcast customer :/
- ggoss 11y agoJust as bad here with AT&T (Uverse)
- ck2 11y ago3G has a wide range of specs - at its lowest it is only twice dialup speed. Developers should actually test their websites at 3G speeds and latency.
- creshal 11y ago144 Kbit/s is legally considered "broadband" in Austria. Although ISPs are usually generous enough to offer 384k minimum.
- AstralStorm 11y agoSpecs not mentioned are all PET construction. It won't be durable.
- EliRivers 11y agoAt that price, I don't need it to be. I could imagine having a box of these and as I destroy each one, recovering only the SIM. Which I then swallow.
- pestaa 11y agoSounds like you already have a particular use case in mind.
- arikrak 11y agoDon't swallow the SIM or the government will be able to track you forever...
- oneeyedpigeon 11y agoWell, for a day or two ...
- aryamaan 11y agoI never say this but dont swallow.
- fgtx 11y agoMr. Pool, is that you?
- dheera 11y agoHumor aside, non-durable construction creates more electronic waste. For a place with 1 billion+ people I'd think twice before creating something that won't last.
- 11y ago
- nitin_flanker 11y agoThe specs are great but, what actually 4inch qHD means? Quad HD or is it some sort of marketing slang?
- duskwuff 11y agoqHD is a standard display resolution: 960x540. Not to be confused with QHD (2560x1440).
- nitin_flanker 11y agoThanks, I just figured out that it's for Quater HD, not Quad HD.
- tracker1 11y agoI can't see fine detail that small/close anyway. My OPO is set to max fonts, and I still tend to zoom sometimes in browser.
- agumonkey 11y ago> qHD What a beautiful acronym. I only see the HD part.
- tkinom 11y agoNot only it is HD, it is q too. :-)
- hanniabu 11y agoI'm not up to date on leading edge hardware, but this seems impressive especially for that price. Is there some sort of catch? This would be great to root and mess around with.
- tachyonbeam 11y agoSeems there must be. I'm assuming this is with some kind of plan or contract. The price is below the cost of the components it seems to me. The quad core 1.3GHz ARM processor alone is probably worth more than $4. The display panel and flash probably are also each worth $4 or more. If these cellphones can really be bought for $4, then I want to buy 100 and network them into a cluster.
- byteofprash 11y agoForget the whole "smart" features in the phone. I am extremely happy if I am able to make calls with this phone, message peeps through Whatsapp, update status on Facebook. As a power user, I'm sure most of us wouldn't want this phone, but imagine the power this could give to the poor people in India. With just Rs.251, communication is just one touch away. This is going to make the farmer, fishermen, plumber, merchants far more connected, productive and simply get onto to the internet and explore the taste of connectivity. I'm definitely thrilled to see the outcome of this. My only fear is the subsidies that the government has poured into this. Rs.251 is what I spend for a tasty dinner. If someone could have a phone for that cost, why the hell not.
- pmontra 11y ago$4 should be much less than the cost of the components. How do they stay in business?
- nitin_flanker 11y agoAlso, patent licensing and taxes. I think they aren't earning anything at this cost.
- b169118 11y agocrapware (see preinstalled apps)
- agumonkey 11y agoHow long until it's rooted ?
- janjongboom 11y agoFor one, advertised components are not always in the actual phone. Two, licensing fees are probably not paid, given that they are ~7$ for a 3G handset. Still, $4 is undoable. Cheapest Spreadtrum 2G SOC with WiFi/BT/Sim holder/camera will go over that amount.
- slaxman 11y agoWow! I am extremely surprised to see this. If this device actually works, it will do a lot to push internet connectivity in India.
- hathym 11y agosmells like a scam
- Yaggo 11y agoThe $4 cannot be the cost of the phone but the government-subsized end-user price tag.
- goldenkey 11y agoThe government might want to subsidize some programs to fix the issue with the Indian people shitting in the street first. "Indians like to shit on streets -- no doubt. They would rather spend monies on Iphones that get themselves a toilet." [1] http://theplanetd.com/india-is-filthy/ http://theplanetd.com/india-is-filthy/ [2] http://veritas-lux.blogspot.com/2013/11/indians-and-their-shit-looking-at.html http://veritas-lux.blogspot.com/2013/11/indians-and-their-sh...
- mychaelangelo 11y agothe link seems to be dead, here's the cache for those who can't view the website http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:eD-BK_bP25cJ:www.freedom251.com/+&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:eD-BK_b...
- geoah 11y agoSocial media links might be of use. https://www.facebook.com/RingingB/ https://www.facebook.com/RingingB/ https://twitter.com/RingingB https://twitter.com/RingingB https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6BBJhi7x8eD1QKJsLG6OiQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6BBJhi7x8eD1QKJsLG6OiQ
- dotdi 11y agoEDIT: I was unaware of the issues of the Nexus 7. Seeing that they are not related to the phone's specs, my previous statements no longer hold. Also, this has very similar specs to the 2012 Nexus 7 which is basically unusable with Android 5.1 Unusable meaning up to 20 seconds delay between a tap and the expected app opening up or the keyboard showing. Random hangs with the question if you want to kill the offending app. I don't expect a $4 phone to be fast but unless there are some major differences, I think you'd just get $4 worth of frustration.
- milankragujevic 11y agoInterestingly, I have a $99 smartphone with quadcore 1.3GHz cpu, 1GB of RAM and a 720p 5" screen, and it works marvelously. No lag, keyboard works as it should, can play 1080p video without any issues, 2100mAh battery lasts for a day. I don't think that 2012 phones are the same as 2015/16 phones. As a x86 dual core 1.6GHz cpu from today and 4 years ago is not the same. edit: cpu 1.6 to 1.3 ghz
- trymas 11y agoCan you share what exactly smartphone do you have?
- milankragujevic 11y agoVery no-name-ish, but Prestigio Muze C3. I was wrong about the CPU, it's QC 1.3 GHz
- hudo 11y agoI had Moto G 2nd gen which is similar specs. Said I had, because it was so slow I couldn't use it at all. So slow that calls would drop because phone app took 10sec to open.
- avian 11y agoJust to give a counter-anecdote: I still use a 1st gen Moto G. I previously had a mid-range HTC and a low-end Samsung phone. The Moto G is without doubt the best Android phone I owned so far.
- userbinator 11y agoHere's what's in a $34 smartphone (completely un-subsidised, actual purchase cost): https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9568004 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9568004 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9558854 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9558854 It's around a year ago, but I don't think technology has gotten cheap enough in that span of time for even a $4 dumb phone now. This one is pretty close though: http://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/?page_id=3107 http://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/?page_id=3107 Edit: why does it look so iPhone-ish?
- amelius 11y ago> I don't think technology has gotten cheap enough in that span of time for even a $4 dumb phone now. This one is pretty close though But it has a color display, bluetooth, is capable of playing mp3. What if they removed that?
- teekert 11y agoNo money is spent on people to come up with an original design so you emulate what is already successful.
- kamaal 11y ago>>I don't think technology has gotten cheap enough in that span of time for even a $4 dumb phone now. You underestimate how far we have come, here is $30 phone : http://www.walmart.com/ip/44465710 http://www.walmart.com/ip/44465710 You won't be getting this for $4 next year. The margin of profit is already so small, no body is going build phones and sell them for profits of a chewing gum. But you can bet a $100 phone will be available for $30 very soon.
- dangerpowpow 11y agoHow is it so cheap? A good haircut is 4 dollars. Is the Indian Govt subsidizing it? Shady tbh
- edent 11y agoThis sounds like Datawind's "$35 Tablet" all over again - https://asiancorrespondent.com/2012/02/aakash-brings-a-daily-dose-of-embarrassment/ https://asiancorrespondent.com/2012/02/aakash-brings-a-daily... A company over-promises, the Government over-funds, and the product under-delivers.
- vidyesh 11y agoUnlike Datawind, this doesn't seem to have announced any Government affiliation. If government has subsided any of its costs then government is in a lot of trouble as transparency is the key to democracy and nothing about such a project was ever announced.
- IkmoIkmo 11y agoOn the contrary, it seems it's doing what the article suggested. i.e. instead of trying to be the next Samsung, doing R&D and manufacturing of your own new smartphone tech and reinventing the wheel, they're just importing low-cost (maybe ± $40) existing phones from China and subsidising them to be dirt cheap ($4). Exactly like the article you linked to suggests: > To bridge the digital divide — an avowed goal — it could have simply contracted a company in Taiwan and imported the tablets and sold it at subsidized rates to students. The cost would have been nominal — after all, the Indian government is subsidizing the cost of Aakash 1, which costs $50 to produce — and the tablets would have reached students sooner.
- duran12 11y agoIt is probably a loss leader to create a splash. It does not seem to be supported by the Govt. Likely, only a few will be in stock at that price. Later the price will increase or the model will be discontinued.
- satyajeet23 11y agowow that's shady!
- moron4hire 11y agoI wonder how good the IMU is? If it's any good at all, this might make an excellent device for pairing with my VR rig and using as an input device.
- cgtyoder 11y agoCan someone fix the typo in the headline?
- vain 11y agoThis would have been great with free basics. But thanks to post colonial Indian white suspicion, that's not about to happen.
- rogersmith 11y agoAs if one needs to be Indian to be suspicious of Mark "They trust me. Dumb fucks." Zuckerberg.
- mcphage 11y agoYeah. Too bad Facebook's self-interest was so blatant; if their technology offering had matched their rhetoric it really could have been something amazing.
- pitchups 11y agoClearly, $4 is far below the cost of the components listed. Assuming this is a legit offer - how are they doing it? One possible explanation - maybe it is supported by ads. They are counting on revenues generated by ads within the various applications - inlcuding search. If you notice the Search screen does not show a Google logo - it looks like a reskinned version of Google's home page. So presumably it could generate revenue via Adsense. Not sure if this is allowed as per Android Licensing terms for OEMs though but it could be an explanation.
- ck2 11y agoIt's government subsidized, not carrier subsidized.
- digi_owl 11y agoAnd not their first attempt. The nation has a severe problem of inequality. You have villages that are bordering on pre-industrial, at the same time as you have near scifi highrises in the cities. I recall one project that basically equipped young ladies with a bicycle and a laptop loaded with textbooks on everything from agriculture to medicine. The ladies would then cycle between villages and help improve crop yields and diagnose illnesses.
- vinaybn 11y agoThis isn't their latest attempt though. It's not subsidized.
- vinaybn 11y agoIt's not subsidized.
- ck2 11y agoI have a box of $5 smartphones from last Black Friday but some would argue they are subsidized. In fact they are almost exactly the same specs as the freedom one.
- AstralStorm 11y agoThose aren't subsidized, they are loss leaders instead. You're supposed to buy more of something else or they're dumping ancient hardware nobody wants for low prices.
- nashashmi 11y agoThese phones need to start becoming recyclable, not just electronics recyclable, but plastic lot recyclable. Screens are difficult to be made of plastic right now, but someone is working on a replacement to LED lights that uses plastic instead. So there is promise here. That leaves the battery. I cannot think of a recyclable material (plastic or aluminum metal) to replace the battery. When that happens, I think such $4 smartphones will not be damaging to the environment.
- jimrandomh 11y agoWhy? Phones are very small, so the amount of material in them is small, too. Compared to most other things one could do for the environment, this seems like it would be a waste of effort.
- lossolo 11y agoIt's subsidized phone for India market. India nation's defense minister will be at the launch event.
- AstralStorm 11y agoSo it probably won't be available at the super low price elsewhere. I bet Indian customs will have a lot of work on their hands...
- wishinghand 11y agoI see the specs are better, but I wonder how it measures up in real world usage to the $35 Intex phone.
- skbohra123 11y agoHands on review - http://www.bgr.in/photo-gallery/freedom-251-first-impressions-the-worlds-cheapest-smartphone-is-a-rebadged-chinese-phone-sold-at-loss/freedom-251-hands-on-13--392558/ http://www.bgr.in/photo-gallery/freedom-251-first-impression...
- deleted 11y ago[deleted]
- anotheryou 11y agoIt's a rebranded "Adcom Ikon 4" some say https://gadgets360.com/shop/adcom-ikon-4-gold-8-gb-3738342d31323631 https://gadgets360.com/shop/adcom-ikon-4-gold-8-gb-3738342d3...
- slantaclaus 11y agoI can't believe no one has mentioned this yet, but that looks like a violation of some of apple's design and utility patents.
- akhilcacharya 11y agoAre we sure this isn't a typo? If it were 2510 INR it would make more sense.
- techthumb 11y agoTrying to order it, but their site is erroring with a 503
- droithomme 11y agoI bought a pretty great Android cellphone, brand new, contract free, with a SIM card for $10 only 3 months ago with free shipping. It was discussed on Hacker News and other tech news sites at the time. In various threads people and even some tech journalists claimed it was a scam, would end up costing more, wasn't really $10, would not work just as a wifi device if you didn't activate it, or that developer tools would somehow be disabled. Some of the articles got hostile with anyone that reported it actually worked fine and really did cost only $10. Well here it is several months later and not only is my total investment still $10, but I've got it set up with free texting, a free telephone plan, and I am using it to target for Android development with no problems. And it works very well as a nice mp3 player with high quality sound, internet browser, voice recorder, and bluetooth robot controller as well. What it doesn't have is a good camera, the camera is OK outdoors and very poor indoors. But good optics cost money so that is not surprising. I'm done arguing with people though, especially the tech journalists that didn't know what they were talking about, arguing and making accusations against those who were reporting actual first hand experience. Crazy stuff.
- frogpelt 11y agoWhere did you get free text and voice?
- seek 11y agoReasons why I think it is shady. https://medium.com/@seekshiva/reasons-why-i-think-freedom-251-is-a-scam-48573a67a167#.gq85mjbe6 https://medium.com/@seekshiva/reasons-why-i-think-freedom-25...