![]() ![]() While Freedom Phone’s founder has failed to include basic details about its device, he did line up a massive ad campaign among conservative influencers. But during a livestream video promoting the phone, right-wing activist Anna Khait was confused by her fans’ basic questions about the phone. For example, the Freedom Phone’s “Freedom OS” operating system is based on Google’s Android operating system, according to Finman. The vagaries of Freedom Phone’s actual specifications has produced some awkwardness among the Freedom Phone’s legions of conservative influencers. Even if the apps were ultimately banned from Google’s store in the future, users could still install them on non-Freedom Phone Android phones through a process called “sideloading.” It’s not clear why a handful of free apps, all of which are currently available in the Google Play app store for other Android devices, would justify the price increase over the Umidigi. ![]() Popular battle royale shooter Fortnite is also preinstalled on the Freedom Phone - a fact that confused more than one conservative influencer who promoted the product. The Freedom Phone also comes preloaded with an array of free apps for social media networks Parler and MeWe, would-be YouTube competitor Rumble, and media networks One America News and Newsmax. Umidigi didn’t respond to a request for comment. “Nothing’s manufactured itself in mainland China,” Finman said.Īccording to Umidigi’s website, the tech manufacturer’s headquarters is located in Shenzhen, a mainland Chinese city near Hong Kong. In an interview, Finman claimed that the Freedom Phone is manufactured in Hong Kong. As of Thursday afternoon, however, no technical specifications had been provided to The Daily Beast or added to the Freedom Phone’s website. He committed Wednesday to publishing the phone’s technical specifications - basic details any company selling a phone should be able to provide. That phone is available on Chinese retail giant AliExpress for $120 - less than one quarter of the price of a Freedom Phone.Īsked to justify the Freedom Phone’s notable price increase over the Umidigi model, Finman claimed vaguely that the Freedom Phone features customized hardware and improved memory. The Freedom Phone’s $500 price tag would represent a substantial markup on the Umidigi A9 Pro. In an interview with The Daily Beast, Finman confirmed that the Freedom Phone was manufactured by Umidigi, but couldn’t say immediately which Umidigi phone it was based on. In fact, Freedom Phone appears to be a simple rebranding of a budget phone called the “Umidigi A9 Pro,” made by the Chinese tech company Umidigi. Finman declares in the promotional video that the Freedom Phone is “comparable to the best smartphones on the market” and “truly is the best phone in the world.” 6 riot.įreedom Phone’s website is nearly totally devoid of technical information about the device. The Freedom Phone was created by Erik Finman, the self-proclaimed “youngest bitcoin millionaire” and one of Time Magazine’s “Most Influential Teens of 2014.” In a video announcing the phone, Finman said he was inspired to create the phone after the tech giants’ crackdown on both Donald Trump and conservative social media app Parler in the wake of the Jan. That’s because the Freedom Phone appears to be merely a more expensive rebranding of a budget Chinese phone available elsewhere for a fraction of the Freedom Phone’s price. “We made the switch immediately.”ĭespite being lauded by some of the right-wing media’s leading figures, though, the Freedom Phone’s buyers could be getting less than they expect for its $500 price tag. ![]() “I’m holding a freaking phone that is not controlled by Apple or Google,” conservative personality Candace Owens told her fans in an Instagram video. 6 rally organizer Ali Alexander, and pundit Dinesh D’Souza. The American flag-branded phone was immediately promoted by a wide range of right-wing figures, including former Trump adviser Roger Stone, Jan. The pro-Trump internet went wild on Wednesday for the Freedom Phone, a $500 smartphone that comes stocked with conservative apps and promises to liberate anyone else who buys it from Silicon Valley censorship. ![]()
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