T-Mobile CEO John Legere formally announces partnership with Google for Project Fi
For those who haven’t heard the news, Google has officially unveiled Project Fi – the company’s foray into the U.S. wireless industry. Offering its users a cheap and simple alternative to the other mobile carriers out there, Project Fi will be able to switch between Sprint and T-Mobile’s networks and Wi-Fi connections around the nation, automatically connecting your Nexus 6 to the network with the strongest signal at that time.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere has just formally announced the company’s partnership with Google to help create Project Fi, offering up a few insights on the companies’ collaboration:
Project Fi is going to make people think differently about wireless—and I love that. Anything that shakes up the industry status quo is a good thing—for both US wireless customers and T-Mobile.
Google has well established their brand as a technology innovator that has benefited customers in a ton of fantastic ways. So, when our friends in Mountain View approached us with their ideas for changing up wireless, it was a no-brainer to team up with them again.
T-Mobile and Google’s partnership goes way back to the early days of Android. The carrier launched the first ever Android smartphone, the T-Mobile G1, and has since held close ties with Google. In classic Legere fashion, here are a few other tidbits the CEO had to say:
Disruption is what the Un-carrier does. Our mission is to change the wireless industry for the better on behalf of all wireless consumers and business customers…. So if you’re looking for a partner who lives and breathes innovation − and has a network built for today’s data-centric world and data-hungry customers − it’s easy! You’re going to want to come to the Un-carrier. And we’re glad Google did just that.
He also comments that while Project Fi doesn’t offer all of the same features that T-Mobile does like HD Voice or Wi-Fi Calling, he’s still confident that Project Fi will be a great value to many users around the States.
To read Legere’s full announcement, check out the source link below. Otherwise, you can head here to learn more about Google’s Project Fi service.
Google’s Project Fi service turns multiple phone networks into one
Got a Nexus 6? Itching to dump your traditional wireless service provider for something a bit more ambitious? Google’s got you covered. After months of speculation and a not-so-subtle nod from Sundar Pichai at Mobile World Congress, the search giant’s new mobile phone service — Project Fi — is finally official. We’re still sifting through the details, but the company’s plan is both as savvy and as unorthodox as we’d expect: Instead of trying to build out and maintain its own nationwide network of cell towers and repeaters, Google’s instead combining Sprint and T-Mobile’s coverage footprints with millions of pre-vetted WiFi hotspots to provide users with the fastest, most seamless mobile experience it can in real-time.
Well, that’s the plan anyway. You’re probably just clamoring for the invite link at this point (here you go), but it’s important to note that Google created Fi to fill in the gaps that already exist in our more-mobile-by-the-day lives.
Google says that if you initiate a phone call while you’re connected to WiFi, for instance, the service will automatically hand it off to whichever cellular network is strongest where you are. Speaking of WiFi, that secure connection feature spotted in a new build of Android is indeed part of the mix here too, with Google acting as a gatekeeper for your device’s data when it’s connected to one of those verified hotspots. Naturally, most Android phones out there won’t play nice with that sort extensive, prolonged network hopping, which means only Nexus 6 owners with a special Fi SIM card can join in on the fun for the time beingGoogle Hangouts can be used to check your voicemail and fire off your daily load of banal text messages too; it’s almost like a fully realized version of Google Voice, itself a grand experiment in mobile that eventually grew outdated and devalued as the companies priorities shifted.
Hopefully, Google stays committed this time. So, what’ll Fi cost you? To answer that question, we’ve got to dig into the basics of the Fi plan first. Everyone who signs up for the service gets the same core features — unlimited domestic calls, unlimited US and international texting, WiFi tethering and free data coverage in over 120 countries — for a base price of $20. From there, all you’re really adding are data costs, and each gigabyte of high-speed access will set you back an additional $10. Yep, that means you can get started on Google’s own mobile network (or “network of networks,” as it’s calling it) for as little as $30 a month if you can skate by on 1GB of LTE data. Oh, and the icing on the cake: You’ll get a refund each month for whatever data you haven’t burned through. Given Google’s general distaste for selling things with contracts, it shouldn’t shock you to hear that you won’t be inking any multi-year deals to use Fi either.
It’s a little too early to call Project Fi a “game-changer,” but I don’t think it’s quite fair for Google to keep likening it to the long-running Nexus device program. For the most part, Nexus phones and tablets aren’t designed to be adored by the masses — they’re meant to be proofs of concept, heralds for what Android could and should be. Fi arguably falls into that mold too as a semi-Utopian network concept that pairs two bitter rivals like Sprint and T-Mobile under a single umbrella of seamlessness, but everything else? The dead simple pricing and the monthly refunds and consumer-first network hopping? That just might be enough to get people thinking about what their carriers should be doing for them.
Filed under: Mobile
Source: Project Fi
Google becomes a wireless carrier with Project Fi
Today, Google announced that it would become a wireless carrier with the introduction of Project Fi. Rather than going through the very expensive and exhausting process of building a network, Google opted to utilize two existing networks. Project Fi takes advantage of service provided by T-Mobile and Sprint whenever a WiFi connection is not available. Project Fi also supports calls and texts over a WiFi connection in the absence of LTE service.
The focus, though, is for Project Fi customers to connect to Google’s more than one million free WiFi hotspots. Project Fi customers can travel about and connect to these WiFi hotspots automatically. Data remains secured through encryption despite automatically connecting to these WiFi hotspots without notice.
Having a WiFi connection will greatly benefit Project Fi customers as Google will credit them for unused data. The base price of $20 per month covers talk, text, WiFi tethering, and international coverage. For access to T-Mobile and Sprint networks, customers pay $10 for each gigabyte that they feel is needed. Google then returns funds to the customer if there is any unused data. For example, using 1.4GB on a 3GB plan credits the customer with $16. Project Fi customers only pay for exactly what they use.
Project Fi, as expected, starts with the Nexus 6 being the only device supported through its Early Access Program.
You can request an invite for Project Fi by clicking here.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Source: Google
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Google launches Project Fi, its no-contract MVNO
As expected, the service piggybacks off T-Mobile and Sprint
Google on Wednesday announced its latest mobile endeavor, Project Fi. The mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) launches with a number of options for customers.
The plans are no-contract and start as low as $20 per month for unlimited calling, texting, and WiFi tethering. Additionally, customers receive low-cost international calling and service in 120+ countries. Ideally, you can start a call on WiFi and hop to a network seamlessly.
Should you want data for your plan (really, who doesn’t?), you’ll be able to add it in for $10 per gigabyte per month. Need 5GB of data? Your total plan comes to $70 per month. Should you not use all of the data that you anticipated, you’ll be refunded for the unused amount. Yes, you can change usage from month to month and not have to pay stupid overage fees.
As for the coverage, the Fi service will piggyback off Sprint and T-Mobile and switch to whoever has the best coverage in the area.
To get started with Fi you’ll have to request an invitation first. Also, you will need a Nexus 6 smartphone as it’s the first and only device capable of handling the Fi seamless network switching.
The post Google launches Project Fi, its no-contract MVNO appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Google launches Project Fi, its no-contract MVNO
As expected, the service piggybacks off T-Mobile and Sprint
Google on Wednesday announced its latest mobile endeavor, Project Fi. The mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) launches with a number of options for customers.
The plans are no-contract and start as low as $20 per month for unlimited calling, texting, and WiFi tethering. Additionally, customers receive low-cost international calling and service in 120+ countries. Ideally, you can start a call on WiFi and hop to a network seamlessly.
Should you want data for your plan (really, who doesn’t?), you’ll be able to add it in for $10 per gigabyte per month. Need 5GB of data? Your total plan comes to $70 per month. Should you not use all of the data that you anticipated, you’ll be refunded for the unused amount. Yes, you can change usage from month to month and not have to pay stupid overage fees.
As for the coverage, the Fi service will piggyback off Sprint and T-Mobile and switch to whoever has the best coverage in the area.
To get started with Fi you’ll have to request an invitation first. Also, you will need a Nexus 6 smartphone as it’s the first and only device capable of handling the Fi seamless network switching.
The post Google launches Project Fi, its no-contract MVNO appeared first on AndroidGuys.
New trademark filed by Google could transform your walls into giant screens
Google has been awarded a new patent by the USPTO which could finally allow for your walls to project images and content at will. This is straight from a futuristic movie and works exactly like it sounds.
The patent mentions that the walls have to be equipped with photo-reactive paint. There will also be a projector which would emit light onto the walls. And when the laser from the projector hits the walls (known as the “Theme”), the color of the wall will change into something similar to that of a desktop wallpaper.
The wall works exactly like an e-ink display in that it won’t change the picture until the projector emits a new image. It is being said that even videos can be projected on these walls.
We have to reiterate that this is still a patent and Google isn’t close to bringing this idea to fruition, but it’s good to know that the company is thinking about getting something like this to the market.
Do you like the idea of a wall which could transform into a TV? Let us know below.
Via: Quartz
Come comment on this article: New trademark filed by Google could transform your walls into giant screens
Google wireless MVNO service could be announced as soon as today
We’ve reported earlier that Google’s MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) codename “Nova” has been in the planning stages for awhile. As some might recall an application was discovered, essentially detailing how the network was going to operate. In short, customers may be charged only for data they consume, and the possibility of refunds issued for unused data had been discussed.
According to new reports from the Wall Street Journal the long awaited Google Wireless network may be announced as early as today, April 22. Reportedly, Google is in final preparation for an announcement.
It’s alleged that the network will use coverage from both Sprint and T-Mobile, depending on which one has the best signal at the moment. Reports also indicated that at the beginning of operations, the Nexus 6 will be the only phone to operate on the new network.
It’s worth noting that Google isn’t looking to come out and disrupt the entire industry. At least not at first. If they can apply pressure to other carriers to follow suit, then that’s good for us consumers. Think of how they’ve handled Google Fiber and pushed others to react accordingly.
If this WSJ report is accurate, the next few days could be exciting.
Source: Wall Street Journal
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Google’s doodle for Earth Day 2015 asks ‘which animal are you?’
You probably already know that today is Earth Day, 2015 edition, don’t you? The day that we are supposed to show our support for environmental protection and hopefully become more sensitive to the earth’s problems and needs. In case you forgot, Google’s doodle for the day is naturally Earth Day themed and leads to an interactive quiz that wants to know which animal you are.
After answering a few multiple choice questions, the quiz then determines which animal you are. For some reason, I am apparently a Honey Badger whose true friends know that they can always call on me to scare away lions or fight a king cobra (snake). I truly hope that my so-called true friends would never ever expect anything of the sort from me, but who knows? Let us know which animal you are and why, either by Twitter, Google Plus or in the comments below.
Source: Google Doodles
Come comment on this article: Google’s doodle for Earth Day 2015 asks ‘which animal are you?’
Android Wear update is coming soon, bringing always-on apps, Wi-Fi support, and gestures
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The Android Wear family is growing with every passing month and with so many new faces, Google has seen fit to announce that a Android Wear update is on its way. The update will bring three main areas of improvement for Android Wear users, including support for always-on apps, Wi-Fi, and gestures to control your wearable and how you interact with it.
First up, always-on app support will allow apps to stay on screen, meaning you will be able to see them on your watch display even after the screen has dimmed. This is not dissimilar to the option which allows your watch face to remain visible after dimming. This will definitely be an important feature once Android Wear apps start to get better and more useful, but we’ll have to see if battery life incurs any kind of penalty with this new feature.
Next on the list is Wi-Fi support. Unbeknownst to many people (including me), most of the Android Wear smartwatches out there support Wi-Fi, which means they can independently connect to a Wi-Fi connection. What this means is that after this Android Wear update drops, as long as your phone has a data connection and your smartwatch is connected to Wi-Fi, you will be able to get notifications.
Gestures looks to be one of the more interesting parts of this Android Wear update. The first gesture feature will allow you to scroll through notification items just by flicking your wrist. Google is also finally adding some easier phone capabilities into Android Wear, adding an apps list and contacts list once you tap the screen.
The last gesture feature Google elaborated on is emoji support, which will allow you to reply to messages simply by drawing an emoji with your finger and your smartwatch will figure out what emoji you meant.
All-in-all, this Android Wear update looks like it’s going to introduce a lot of neat features that are going to make your Android Wear experience just that much better. What do you think about these updates? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Source: Google
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WSJ: Google will unveil its wireless service as early as tomorrow
We’ve certainly heard a slew of rumors regarding Google’s wireless service lately, and it looks like we may get a lot more information from the company sometime soon. Google will reportedly begin to roll out its U.S. wireless service as early as Wednesday, April 22nd, according to a new report out of The Wall Street Journal.
Rumors of the wireless service have been circulating around the web, stating that the service will only work on Sprint and T-Mobile’s networks, and will switch between the two depending on which mobile carrier has the strongest network signal at that time. There have also been a few rumors explaining that the service will only work with the company’s Nexus 6 handset, at least at the beginning.
Perhaps the most interesting bit of this whole report is that customers will only need to pay for the amount of mobile data they use each month – a business method that makes perfect sense, yet no carrier has adopted this method thus far. Also, the new MVNO will be able to route calls and data through Wi-Fi networks, which could greatly reduce customers’ monthly bills.
We’ve heard the majority of these rumors in the past, but this is the first time we’re hearing anything regarding the release date of the mobile service. And other than the information presented above, no other details have been outed quite yet. One thing is for certain, though. Google isn’t creating its own wireless service to directly compete with other carriers – it’s doing it to prove something. Odds are, whenever this service is announced, it will bring something to the table that could potentially influence the way other carriers work.
We need to remember that for now, this is just a rumor. But if this report has any validity to it, we may know a lot more about Google’s wireless service very soon.
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