Metro Detroit Covered By Project Fi, A New Google Wireless Service
By Edward Cardenas
SOUTHFIELD (CBS Detroit) - Google has jumped into the wireless business with the launch of its Project Fi.
The company's entry into the wireless service field comes without building wireless towers to provide service and instead utilizes cellular networks and Wi-Fi networks for phone calls and data needs.
"As mobile devices continually improve how you connect to people and information, it's important that wireless connectivity and communication keep pace and be fast everywhere, easy to use, and accessible to everyone," Nick Fox, Google vice president of communications products, wrote in a blog post. "That's why today we're introducing Project Fi, a program to explore this opportunity by introducing new ideas through a fast and easy wireless experience."
Project Fi is still in its early stages, and initially is available for Nexus 6 owners through an invitation from Google. According to a map from Google, most of southeast Michigan is covered by the service's 4G LTE coverage.
According to Google, calls made using the service can be placed on cell networks from Sprint and T-Mobile - or on approved Wi-Fi networks - and allows users to automatically move between the strongest signals.
Subscribers can also place calls, send texts and check their voicemails on Google Hangout-supported smartphones, tablets and laptops through their phone number.
The basic plan will charge $20 per month with unlimited domestic talk and text, unlimited international texts, Wi-Fi tethering to use the phone as a hotspot, and access cellular coverage in over 120 countries.
Users can choose the amount of data they want to use for $10 per GB. Unused data is applied as a credit toward the following month's bill. For those who may exceed their data budget, users get an alert. If they go over, users are charged at a $10 per GB rate for the amount they use.
Owners of existing Nexus 6 phones will have the opportunity to get a free, Fi-enabled SIM card from Google.
