Project Fi - what can its subscribers get?

Google Inc. began work on Project Fi, its experimental cellular service, about two and a half years ago. Fi is a virtual mobile operator of the Corporation of Good, which is positioned as a fast and efficient method of communication. Moreover, this project, unlike many others, is not at all free.

As part of this project, Google agreed to cooperate with the largest US carriers, T-Mobile and Sprint. At the same time, the company saved on the purchase of base stations, preferring to rent existing ones from primary telecom operators. The project itself allows its users to make calls, send SMS and use other services available by telephone in 120 countries of the world for only $ 20 a month.
')
As for connecting to the Network, for every gigabyte of information (in any region of the planet where a virtual operator of a corporation is available) you will have to pay an additional 10 US dollars.

How it works?

It's pretty simple. Communication Project Fi provides any way available at the moment. In other words, if the WiFi network is available now, and the regular cellular network does not work, the smartphone will call via the Network. If there is no Internet, the smartphone will work via cellular communication, switching between the towers of various operators, and making it transparent to the user. No need to change the number.

This method of communication is suitable for people who constantly travel, and who do not want to mess with all these international SIM cards, tariffs of various operators and the operators themselves.

First hand information

Not so long ago, Laura Holmes, who had been working on the project since its launch, gave an interview to several online media. The interview revealed several interesting details. For example, many participants in the project initially did not believe that it could earn. “Everyone told us that we were crazy. Indeed, there was nothing like it, ”says Laura.

The ability to talk on the phone with the same sim card in different countries, at a clear rate, using the carrier with the strongest signal in the region - this may seem fantastic. As mentioned above, a phone with a Project Fi SIM card can switch between networks of various types, as well as different operators.

And this greatly affects the business model that has existed for decades. However, so far the project is not available to everyone, and you can work with it only through the latest Nexus smartphones. In the US, a project participant can easily switch between T-Mobile and Sprint towers, and the phone does not require any action from the user. Actions are performed by Google, which interacts with telecom operators both technically and financially.

For the user, this is great. Who does not want to get a good and clear signal to the base station at a relatively low tariff plan? But not everyone likes the Google project, not least because the user really doesn’t have to depend on the carrier.

Now the project is developing quite actively, and it is possible that in the near future it will be joined by other telecom operators, including AT & T and Verizon. The cellular business is changing very quickly, and Google plans to take advantage of these changes.

According to some experts, the project will develop in any case, since the monopoly of mobile operators is yesterday, now everything is changing.

Mega sim

When Project Fi was launched under the control of ex-head of the advertising division of Google Nick Fox, many telecom operators and mobile device manufacturers were not ready for this project. Therefore, Google, working together with the German company G & D, was able to create a new type of SIM, which can be called universal.

SIMs are usually provided by telecom operators, and they work only under the control of the network of “their own carrier” communications. But Google SIM can work with any network, including T-Mobile and Sprint. And since these networks are of different standards (GSM and CDMA), Google had to go one more step, adding the appropriate communication modules to their Nexus smartphones. Thus, the latest Nexus models are able to work in cellular networks of various types.

By the way, Apple now uses similar SIMs in its iPad tablets, which opens up the possibility for owners of these devices to work with AT & T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. The difference between the sims of Google and Apple is that in the latter case, the user, after testing several networks, must choose one single, at least for a certain time. However, iPad does not support voice calls or SMS transmission. But simka from Google does it all, and with networks of different types.

Unfortunately, the details of how it all works in the case of Google SIM, the developers are not provided. But Holmes said that Google uses a fairly large amount of information to determine when to switch between networks. And it can be a switch between the cellular network and Wi-Fi while the user is making a phone call. An interesting point is that while making a call, Google SIM will not be able to switch from the network of one operator to the network of another company.

What else?

Project Fi does not work now with an AT & T or Verizon network. Or any other mobile operator in the United States or in another country. But the technical ability to work with all these operators is, the SIM is created with the support of up to 10 telecom operators at the same time. In this case, all telecom operators will work with Google SIM card - there is a technical possibility for this.

Will the service develop by entering into cooperation agreements with all new telecom operators? Perhaps, but not in the short-term time interval. And most likely, this will happen, is already happening, changing the current state of affairs in the cellular business. And telecom operators should use these changes for their own benefit - after all, everything changes.

As already mentioned, Project Fi now works only with Nexus phones. But in the near future, the project team may add support for other devices, as well as agree on cooperation with other telecom operators.

According to Holmes, Google is already conducting preliminary negotiations with other telecommunications companies about the possibility of their participation in the project. Moreover, Google offers the opportunity to get a phone without a one-time one hundred percent payment, and to break the payment, adding on the subscription fee, for many months - now the telecom operators are doing this.

Project Fi is an opportunity to work only with Google, and not to interact with telecom operators at all. This is today's reality, and the project itself is actively developing.