Google Fi: What is Google Project Fi?
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- čas přidán 19. 08. 2024
- Video explaining the merging between Sprint and T-Mobile and why the data plans in the US are expensive: • TMobile Sprint Merger:...
Google Fi video review here: • Google Fi Review 2019:...
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Google Fi is a telecommunications service developed by Google, well that was obvious. So Google Fi provides phone calls, SMS, and mobile internet.
It’s like a carrier, except that Google Fi is not a carrier. That’s what Google says.
Google describes its service as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator, an MVNO, which is a telecommunication system that does not own or administrate any wireless network infrastructure, like electrical wiring or cellphone towers.
Instead, they reach business agreements with mobile network operators to obtain bulk access to that infrastructure at wholesale rates, then sets retail prices independently. That industry burst in the 90s when European telecom saw market liberalization and 2G network technology improved.
Google Fi has agreements with the US-based companies Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and the Hong Kong-based Three for the usage of their infrastructure.
The system switches between those three services depending on the signal strength and speed, also, with the idea to save consuming data, it connects to Wi-Fi hotspots using a VPN generated by automatic encryption system too tricky to explain it here.
But it was done in that way for your safety and happens without you noticing. All data traffic is encrypted.
Google Fi works with a special SIM Card and software installed in your cellphone, you need to have an unlocked phone and sign up into Google Fi online, then Google will send you the SIM card to put into your smartphone, and tadaaaa! You’re a Google Fi user now.
The service works in more than 170 countries without any change in the service. But the speed depends on the territory you're in and the roaming partners of that service.
The service also has Rich Communication System; it’s an improved SMS version that supports high-quality photos, video calls, geolocation info, file transfer, group chats, and more. It’s like Google’s version of Whatsapp, although the RCS was developed by other people and is not a third-party app.
With Google Fi, you can make calls and send messages from any device using Google Hangouts. Also, you can forward calls from your Fi number to any phone number you want, as well as voicemails.
During its beta version, the system had the name of Project Fi, and it was launched for the Nexus 6, by invitation only in 2015. Then in 2016 Google expanded the system to more smartphones and opened it to the public. In November 2018, Google rebranded as Google Fi, and added support to more smartphones, iPhones included.
But in case you want a first-class experience, you can take these HTC/LG models which were designed for the service and brought an electronic SIM pre-programmed for Google Fi, so you won’t need to get the physical SIM, leaving the SIM slot of your cellphone free.
Google Fi works with a monthly flat-fee based plan, which you pay $20 at the beginning of every month with unlimited calls and messaging, and customizable data allowance costing $10 per 1 GB. The money of unused data is credited back to your account (not sure). Each additional gigabyte for data costs $10.
Outside the US, phone calls cost $0.20 per minute.
If you reach the 6GB data cap, which costs $60, then you don’t pay anything more, regardless of how much data you use. This is called Billed Protection: an unlimited tier plan for Google Fi where you continue getting data service and never pay more than $80 ($60 + $20).
If you go over 15GB in a month, however, then your speed is slowed to 256kbps, I mean, nothing.
Google Fi also has the Group Plan, where six people can share the same account and billing source, and it has the same features of the individual plan. Each account has a manager who can add members per $15 each.
The group names a manager who can handle the billing and limit the use of any member, add monthly allowances and buy more data. Group Plan features the Group Repay method, which Google Fi calculates each of the members' shares of the bill and the features they used, then the group can decide if they want to share the payment and how they will do it.
Google Fi has gotten positive reviews in the last weeks. Some people have complained about the plane-price not being fully convenient if you’re away from WiFi networks most of the day; and the fact that is not supported by ALL smartphones in the market.
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Here at Explainosphere, we like explaining things. As curious and eccentric as they may seem, we believe there is always someone, somewhere, trying to figure out how things work.
If we answered your question about Google Fi, please leave us a message in the comments.
I'm the perfect Fi customer profile. Primarily use wifi. Switched from an AT&T microcell (which is now apparently defunct) to Fi and now I get service at home AND all around town in a rural area where I used to get zero bars outside of my microcell zone. I'm so very happy. Activation took minutes on my Pixel 2 XL.
I have used T mobile cheapest plan for a while as a back up, but have not been able to start it back up since this COVID thing. I would consider this a good upgrade with all bells and whistles I have lived without for just a little bit more!
Terimakasih bro , sudah menjelaskan apa itu Google FI . Saya pengguna google pixel 3
They almost had me convinced until I saw they agreed to work with with T-Mobile. If they are working with T-Mobile I want nothing to do with them.
Google Fi is the _only_ provider that can switch between multiple carriers in real time, just like handing off a call between cell sites on a regular carrier. This makes Fi the most resilient phone service that you can get for a single device. Having this level of reliable is a must-have for first responders, doctors and anyone else who needs service that can't fail. No, it's not for people in 3rd world countries, or for teenagers who are looking for a cheap way to bypass the home Wi-Fi that their parents have blocked porn on. Most Fi users will be on Wi-Fi most of the time, at home, at work and traveling. People who don't consider $20 to be a lot of money.
I've been on Fi just over a year now. The fact that I'm saving $140 a month is just gravy. What's far more important to me is that I can use one phone and phone number instead of three where service is marginal. Not a replacement for a satphone where there's no service, but it does save those satphone minutes.
Did you know with the Google fi service that if you were outside the US you need to be back to the US within the three month period to be reconnected to the cell towers here in the US. Meant if you go to overseas like France for instance you cannot stay longer than 3 months unless you are and then you have to request for an extension.
Going to try it from your explanation, thank you!!🙏🙏
Say I had an iPhone and used google fi for my carrier would I still be able to use iMessage and FaceTime or would I have to use googles texting and video apps?
You would still be able to use imessage and facetime, I just got an s20 and it has the stock apps without requiring a change over to Google's apps.
considering switching to google fi from tmo for pixel 4a (5g) and more economical billing. I ap just over $100. Living in South FL, USA do you think the coverage is going to be reliable when driving around the state on the phone?
Check your address on the site
This sounds like a very useful phone plan .
I am thinking of switching to googel fi I like to know how is there service customer support things like that
I want to get google fi for a three week international trip to Europe .. will I be able to use maps to find locations and to use a ride share app. or do you recommend just getting a local sim in Europe?
I was just curious. I'm kind of stuck on t-mobile for now. As soon as I find a better service I'm switching. It's not perfect. I'm paying $50/month and if I can get a second person we'll both be paying $35/month. That's unlimited. To be honest is not always great. I spend most of time on wifi but there have been times when the service has gotten lousy. When I first switched to t-mobile it was fast but after 4 months it became like Boost mobile. Sometimes I get upset because t-mobile is supposed to have 5g now. The company keeps growing but the service is really not that good.
Can i receive SMS (short Code) outside the country ?
what are some of the limitations if you use as Iphone xr with google fi?
Does googfi has hotspot?
Does Google Fi work in any country?
So what is not stated in this video for Google Fi is the following; 1) service may be great when you first sign up but it eventually gets worse in the sense of actual service (being able to make calls). 2) If you have an issue with the service Google Fi will not credit you for your not being able to use your phone on anything other than wifi until they can resolve the issue (which is an issue in itself since they buy their service from other carriers and do not actually maintain any of those cellular services and towers). 3) They do not tell you in this video that you must have purchased a phone from Google for it to work the way they explain it, an unlocked phone from another carrier cannot use all their carriers to maintain the best service, it can only use T-Mobiles towers, so you have to have a phone purchased from Google otherwise you pay more for a service you cannot receive than if you just went with another no-contract carrier. 4) Finally, if you cancel your service due to lack of service they (Google Fi) will absolutely not credit for services not received and will give you the option to restart your service so they can figure out the issue and then credit you (which means you pay to keep the phone on for it not to work while they do pretty much nothing). I started having issues two months into starting service and watched my bill escalate even while using wifi (which they fixed), but not being able to make calls, constant poor signal, dropped calls, not being able to receive calls, not being able to make calls even with 2 bars of service and all this went on for a month and a half. I was patient I called, I chatted with them and they want you to wait for an email to get your issue and they will email you within 72 hours to let you know what they have come up with. Not the way to handle your customers and it makes it at best a slightly less than average service. I spoke to T-Mobile about the issue and they stated that Google Fi does not purchase a dedicated band for its carriers and that is reserved for actual T-Mobile customers and guess what? I switch to T-Mobile with the very same phone I was using for Google Fi and the service on T-Mobile is much better. I will never recommend Google Fi to anyone, not even those who are home all day and have access to wifi in their home simply because of the fact that if you leave the wifi area your phone is not guaranteed to have reliable service.
To auto switch between carriers, go to your app store and purchase an app called fi switch. You can manually tell it to switch between carriers. It can also be done automatically. However it also depends what type of phone you have.
If you go to the Google fi homepage you can see the different phones that are supported.
$20 line fee (see Verizon BS)
$10/GIG?
What year was this? 2014?
Lollipop 🍭 Android os.
2014 OS 5.0
We're at 13 in 2022.
Google fi, much like FreedomPop uses or used to use a hopscotching approach to different hotspots.
Too bad it’s not in Canada
In India, 20$ means unlimited data and calls 😂
Way too pricey for me
trash company with invisible higher support. Spend your rest of life hoping and praying their support responds to you in email for your issues because thats the only communication they use for higher support
Its a rip off
Overpriced, overated. 💩
excellent vid...clean, very descriptive, and to the point!....Subed!
Even in Bangladesh we have 1 gb for only about 20 cents !
Yeah its fucking too expensive. With 30tk you get 1gb for 7days with 1mbps speed. Here you use 5500tk to get 15gb for 30 days. Wtf!!!
@@SouvikDas-nk4zh what's a tk?...... And what's it's conversation rates?
1 United States Dollar equals
84.46 Bangladeshi Taka.
and a current offer from telenor, 4G speed of about roughly 1mbps [2GB 44 Tk 3 days]
@@zardian
@@SouvikDas-nk4zh ooh.... Thanks that's great
@Noctis Lucis Sora It's currently only in US.
I am currently in Croatia and it works wonderful!!!!
I had a 2nd line on fi
Worked great
Now I switched from Sprint only to Google fi as my main number
I like being able to switch between phones on the fly
I currently use the Google pixel and Nexus 6
Have been watching project fi. I switched over to the system two months ago. I have never looked back. I have been pleasantly surprised with the service. I have cut my cost for a wireless by 80%.
clean video as always, but maybe you should consider doing longer videos that dive deeper into subjects. Just a suggestion. (p.s. submitting videos on sundays is always tough, I get very few views across all of my videos these days, so maybe try to launch videos during the week)
My Google Fi bill changes every month; great because I never pay for unused data! I frequently see bills in the $42 range for a month of smartphone service.
I travel a lot to the Caribbean for work have a step daughter in Canada, while also traveling to rv parks around the US. Finding good data plans is hard when u travel this much
In here India / Bangalore some students started a start up business which cost 2 Rupees for 2 GB of Data which is 8 to 9 cents ... well in USA stealing money from people 🤣 Just for an air ...
Damn lol, were just getting screwed over here i guess lmaoooo
Unfortunately it's just not worth it for me I use like 20 to 30 gigs a month with HD video on metro pcs for $60 maybe if it catered more to high data users I'd be interested
Same ...in t mobile I have used more than 55 GB ... unlimited, but it's throttled after 50 gbt but not that slow.
Jorgiño Luis do you not use internet?
I already did. I have the moto x4 android one in the metal blue color and it is amazing! The reception is 100% reliable and the internet is fast! I love google fi.
I just got Google fi for Moto g7 and it's ok so far
I pay 5.05 USD
(1.4gb per day, unlimited calls and 100sms per day) for 84days
India😋
And what's your point?
oussema trabelsi that’s it cheap and fast I pay 5.11USD for a 50-60MBPS Down and 18-22MBPS Up with a ping of as low as 60-70. (Remember its wireless that’s a respectable ping) and I pay this for a plan that validates for 84 Days. We have dirt cheap fast Cellular internet.
Zishan Ali Are you sure it’s MBps rather than mbps?
Also where do you get such high speeds for so low? Have you checked your speeds using an app other than Speedtest?
@@johnromanas yep. I did my down speed 50mbps and up speed 20-25mpbs. And ping is around 20-40ms in pubg😁😁
Can't wait to try this with my essential phone soon
Google: let’s make Google Fi
Zelda players: I’ll take your entire stock
Really good video. Im loving the transitions and the techniques used in here. Maybe add some background music/audio and you've got yourself a very professional video! Subbed!
My wife and I have had Google Fi for over 2 years and we save about 100$ a month compared to our old AT&T bill. If you travel outside the US you could potentially save even more. Went to Jamaica for 2 weeks and our bill was only 60$ total that month.
I switched to google fi. its awsome in chicago saved alot of money
Wow, that's expensive. Here in Brazil I have a data plan of 36 USD for 120GB. Great vid, tho!
Lol,
Here in India we get 192 GB of High speed data with unlimited calls and SMS with free music and other stuff for less than $7.
You really cant compare because the pay is different in every country
@@saitamachallenge Don't think the paying system differs that much. You can pay through a statement, through an automatic debit on your bank account or through credit card. These are monthly fee on a one year contract. I think the infrastructure that differs from place to place, rather than the paying system.
@@alcrian8627 oh ok, I see what you mean
Dam I live in Canada paying 90 bucks a month for 10 gig
Google Fi is a great 2nd line for me. I have unlimited domestic data with a prepaid Verizon MVNO (Visible) but they do not offer roaming when I visit other countries. Instead of buying a local SIM when I visit Canada and Mexico I just bring my Google Fi SIM.
If I don't use the service for a full month Google Fi even refunds me a portion of the $20 line charge. I like knowing that wherever I go I can have cheap phone and data service. I even carry a data-only SIM with me so my tablet and my iPhone both work!
Yes, to all the comments about the cost of data in the US... it's very expensive here compared to other countries. Our govt made a deal with the major carriers and they have no limit on how much to charge.
its a good idea if you use 6gb+. IMO for me its bad. Right now my plan is 45 dollars = unlimited call/text +2gb of data (throttled after 2gb = unlimited data)
Where as this is Unlimited data (80) or 2gb (40) However, since everything is using data, expect your data to go insanely high.. so in the end its more expensive.
Subscribed. Yes to a video on how google fi performs abroad. I'll be in Europe for 2 months this summer and then I'm moving to Mexico City. Don't hear much about cost (other than 20 cents/minute) of calls from abroad if dialing a US number, or if calling over wifi. Does one have to use an app like whatsapp, or does google fi have its own facetime equivalent? (I'm considering upgrading my iphone 7+ to a pixel 3. Thanks for the informative video!
can you just port your number over like you would normally when switching carriers?
Yes you can port your current number into Google Fi
I already bought google FI this morning
I hope it will be better than sprint.
I switched the day it left beta. I like it. My S7 does occasionally have connection issues though. I assume it would be better if I had a fully compatible phone. Other then that I love the service. With Hangouts I can get call and text on my computer. Love that feature.
Google Fi in rest of the world and in India its ruled by JIO (indian can feel the emotion)!
At that price range, Google can't even come close to JIO
MVNO in an acronym for Mobile Virtual Network, not Movil
I wonder if in the future while i'm talking on the phone with a friend if I'll get interrupted mid sentence with an unwanted advertisement bit, then have to pay a premium to have a normal conversation. Oh! and the advertisements would be linked to our conversation because the service is listening in and recording our conversation.....good vid btw.
Delete this.
Yes I'm considering Google fiber however I only pay 50 a month and have unlimited everything so I don't think Google fiber is a good fit for me and if it's only wifi why is it so hi?
Cna I only buy pixel from Google Fi without any monthly fee plan. I'm from India. I don't need data plan. I use Jio. Today is Google Fi birthday so it's 50% discount on pixels devices. I want to buy one. Please help
i have google fi and live in a major city. it's ok, but if you make lots of voice calls, the voice quality is not great. compared to my previous carrier, AT&T, the coverage and voice quality is inferior. but my bill is also half what it used to be. so there's that.
you should probably do xfinity mobile since they're google fi's direct competitor as an mvno.
lycamobile mvno is 3 times cheaper than google fi , yes roaming gets tricky , but 39$ upto 15gb 4glte and unlimited text and call , and unlimited international calls to 60 differrent countries, you just cannot beat this i have been using for the last 3 years.
Is Lycra mobile have roaming in india
Tried switching to Google Fi, but I'll have to switch numbers....
Can anyone help...I'm considering Google Fi... should I cancel my TMobile plan? -Google Pixel XL 2 user
Ok I'm testing out Sprint T mobile and Fi in my area I have 0 & I mean 0 coverage on T Mobile on a 20 mile drive in my area I have spotty coverage on Fi I would say about 60% but I have the most coverage on Sprint nearly 100% all the time the testing was done on Pixel 3s so the hardware is identical.
When I go to text it goes directly to "Tap to speak" option. I need to just text..how can I get back to basic text messaging?
Queens NYC on the map haha. Thx for this vid, very helpful
I want to ask if I can switch countries. Can I use the American Internet in the UK? Is it equivalent to my being in the United States?
Bottom line to me is that no matter which phone plan you get from any carrier they will throttle you sooner or later so how can unlimited HD be worth anything running at 480 p....
I'm about to go to poland. I've looked up carriers there, but i'd like to be able to use mobile hotspot for my laptop while i'm over there to video call back home. should i use google fi or attempt to use a carrier over there in poland?
Great explanation and visuals! Fantastic
If you are using wifi in a starbucks is this counted against your data? Or is the gig's counted only when you are out driving around and not connected to a wifi or a guest wifi?
HI ..thx very much for the vid it is really useful .. i have a question , can the f1 esim work in a 4g router in Mexico ? thx in advance
I really like your channel
Can I buy a Google phone like MotoG with attendant SIM direct from Google and have them ship it here in Manila via FedEx. How much would it cost both phone and shipping?
We’re looking to pick up the Mofi 4500 router to use in our RV. Will it work with a GoogleFi SIM? Only need it for data - no calls or txting.
Google already has so much information on us. They listen to what we say even when we don't allow permissions. Why do they need even more access to our lives?
FACTS! Signing up for Google FI is personal privacy suicide.
@@meg-k-waldren personal privacy? will google see me in my underwear?!
@@meg-k-waldren privacy was already dead anyways.
Does google fi has a plans for all data only ?
I would see this for people that don't want high cost bills and I could use it for my emergency phone?🤔
Do you have to pay upfront for the first bill?
Subscribed !
I smells 1M+ subscribers here.
Question: When I sign up for google fi, I click use current number, and I have T-mobile phone number, when I click continue, it says no device or SIM. I'm not sure what it means. Is it saying that I will use my current SIM card and device or I will get a new sim card with the device? Also, my iPhone x does have e-sim, is it means my phone can use FI project without a sim card?
2:14 dude Nexus 6P is made by Huawei not LG and Nexus 6 by Motorola
Anyone using this in Istanbul?
Question: what kind of person would want or need GoogleFi ? I'm someone who doesn't travel much and has a Verizon carrier would this be a waste for someone like me?
If you have internet at home or nearby....you can technically use no data and pay and average of around $25-30 a month. In fact you will only use data if you're not near any free hotspots. I've used for 3 years and my average bill is around $32.
Is there any change in audible call quality compared to normal sprint or T Mobile service? And is text considered data?
@@ExplainosphereChannel Text from RCS to RCS is data but Fi doesn't charge you for that. It smartly knows how much data is being sent from RCS to RCS devices and knocks those off your amount used the next day.
20 dollars wow .. it Cost like 12$ with 10 GB in Denmark
In India 7.2 dollar for 3 months unlimited data
at which speed?
If you have an account problem that their front line support can't handle there is nothing they will do. Google, in their typical fashion, has non existent customer service above the basic minimum wage operators. Google would rather you not use their services than provide an escalation point, no matter how many times they fail to solve your issue. Also, remember that you are paying a penny a megabyte. Nearly every web action you do will cost you $.15-.50. This adds up very quickly, and if you care about having a bill cheaper than your original carrier you must stop using your phone on the network. Not fun. I'm happily leaving Fi in 2 weeks. I'm the ideal Fi customer (wifi mostly and monitoring data use) and I've had 2 bills greater than TMobile unlimited and 1 bill a bit lower. Also RCS, a Google developed protocol 2 years ago, was JUST enabled on their own network. An extremely slow rollout, and good luck communicating with RCS with anyone you know on other carriers or iPhones. SMS rules, and RCS is still fantasy.
which LG HTC model are you talking about. I haven't seen 1 in the Google Store. And nothing with an electronic SIM. Thanks
but some info would help
@@ExplainosphereChannel thanks
if i'm looking for a plan where i only have talk and text and no data can i make it so it doesn't allow me to use data, or does it work like, if i accidentally use data it will automatically charge my bill?
also do you think it will update so i could use it with a Samsung galaxy s10, if so how quick will it update?
I don't think you pay the full price if you don't use it. I watched this in another video
😄😄😄😄👍👍👍👍🖒🖒🖒🖒
It sound great
Thankssss
It's a fucked up network. Firstly, I was away from US for 5 months and there is no network at all outside the country. Still I was charged $219 for un used service. I called the customer care and they asked me to pause. I paused the service, still there was unstable network running and charging me for unused service never stopped. Secondly, their 1gb data just runs out in a day. It's all wrong branding portrayal. They eat up all your data just like that. Really disappointed with project fi. Finally, their customer service sucks. The worst I've ever experienced. They don't know what their policies are and never spread their hands for serving the customer. Always transfer you... Never go with project fi. It sucks.
What the hell. This is too expensive. Where I live in India, mobile data is much cheaper. I have a 90 gb/month plan with unlimited calls and messages for just under 10 USD. This is actually among the more expensive plans. You can get more data for less money. But I chose this for some conveniences like data carry-over, family account and the free wifi hotspot you get with this.
Provided the networks in India are only LTE. We don't have the fancy 5G stuff like in the US. But the reception is fantastic.
So I have a tricky question, in countries outside US will the user be using a +1 phone number?
@@ExplainosphereChannel thank you I'm waiting
Google FI
FI
*FI*
Hmmmmmmmmmmm
Master, your phone batterys are low
I pay 10 pounds for unlimited texts, call and data. I have data abroad too. Lol
In cambodia 1$≈11gb of data ....
Any tech genius who can give the masses free internet would be godsend to the people.
The expensive plan I ever been on it so far, I'ma heavy data user, so 15 GB for $80 still not worth it...after 15 GB it's slow down 256kbts 😕😕.. better stay on your regular carrier unlimited postpaid plan that cost $65 autopay ( t mobile, at&t, Verizon)Google still si far far away to give us a respectable plan.
nice vid
Is sim card or what i dint get this
Micro sim card
You can order it from Google or buy one at best buy which cost $10 a store, but they give you a credit on bill after you set it up