'Cannot compare Aakash tablets with Freedom 251'

It is unfair to compare Datawind's Aakash tablet with Ringing Bells' Freedom 251, Datawind's President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Suneet Singh Tulli said, questioning the authenticity of the latter's cheapest smartphone in the world. 

Datawind, a company run by Tulli came up with the world's cheapest tablet priced at $49.98 per piece in 2011 -- Rs 2,276 per tablet at the time; a second, upgraded model Aakash 2 was later launched at Rs 2,263.

"Aakash was a brand owned by the Indian government and the product was real," he said. Talking about Freedom 251, which has raked up quite a storm in the Indian technology sector recently, Tulli said, even if the company were to buy 10 lakh units of 1GB RAM memory chips, they would get it at a discount of 5-6%. A 1GB RAM memory chip costs about Rs 370, he said. 

"When the memory chip promised in the phone (Freedom 251) costs more than the price being offered then there is no way the phone can be made for Rs 251 apiece. It is just a donation," he added.

Speaking about Freedom 251 as a potential competitor to Datawind, Tulli said, nearly two crore mobile smartphones are sold in India every month. Even if, as Ringing Bells' claims, it received 25 lakh bookings or over a crore inquiries, it will not be enough to dent Datawind's market share in the long run.