Just when we thought that Freedom 251 would be the last "cheapest" smartphone scam err scheme, here comes another. Yes, we have a competitor for the Freedom 251, dubbed as "Namotel Acche Din". We don't know why a company would use the name "NaMo" for its brand unless of course, it wants to please the government of India.
Going by the name "Acche Din", we could only think of the ruling political party's hit agenda for elections. Nevertheless, the brand is real and it has come up with a smartphone, whose launch pricing is cheaper than the Freedom 251. The Namotel Ache Din is priced at Rs. 99 as an inaugural offer. The original pricing for the device is reportedly Rs. 2,999. The booking process for the offer is not pretty clear, though. As far as we know, you would first be required to install an app "BeMyBanker" to register. It will also require your Aadhaar card details along with your photograph. Interestingly, Namotel and BeMyBanker websites were not opening at the time of filing this article. It reminds us of all the infamous events that took place in the case of Freedom 251.
Reports claim that the Namotel Acche Din smartphone comes with a 4-inch display, and is powered by 1.3GHz quad-core processor clubbed with 1GB of RAM. It runs Android 5.1 Lollipop and bears 4GB of internal storage, a 2-megapixel primary camera along with a VGA selfie camera. The device supports dual-SIM, 3G connectivity and is backed by a 1,325 mAh battery.
Another interesting fact about Namotel's website that was reported by NDTV Gadgets, is that the website showcases four other smartphones that range from Rs. 1,999 for the 4G LTE-enabled Aazadi to Rs. 1,99,999 for a VVIP luxury smartphone. In a report by PTI in Financial Express, Madhav Reddy, Namotel promoter, claimed that the Namotel Achhe Din is the "world's cheapest phone with a 4-inch display".
Until the doubts about Namotel are cleared, we smell everything fishy here! All we wonder is that why so many "cheapest" phone brands are mushrooming in India? With a shaky backing and almost nil background, these companies launch their device, which later gets followed by FIRs and PILs. Freedom 251 was a clear example of washed-up overnight success. Stay tuned with us for more developments in this curious case of Namotel.
