181–190 of 608 posts
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How do you feel about services that require $650 phones? Also, discounts when network utilization is low?
How do you feel about services that require $650 phones? Broadly speaking, few do. There are a lot of cheap Android phones out there.
For those who don't want to read the FAQ or find the video incredibly unhelpful [1]: a. It only supports the Nexus 6 out of the gate. b. It automatically switches you to the "fastest" network available. Partners out of the gate are Sprint and T-mobile. Sounds like it prefers Wifi, then 4G LTE, and then degrades down to 3G or 2G. c. Pricing is $20 for unlimited talk (domestic) and text (domestic and international) and…
What I don't get is, what's in this for Sprint and T-Mobile? Currently a user of their network is a customer they "own" -- they deal with that customer directly. Now they have Google sitting between them and the user, which effectively commoditizes their service; Google could switch them out for another network down the road without the user ever knowing or caring. That's great for Google, and probably also great for…
I could see how it could be an attractive revenue stream.
For those who don't want to read the FAQ or find the video incredibly unhelpful [1]: a. It only supports the Nexus 6 out of the gate. b. It automatically switches you to the "fastest" network available. Partners out of the gate are Sprint and T-mobile. Sounds like it prefers Wifi, then 4G LTE, and then degrades down to 3G or 2G. c. Pricing is $20 for unlimited talk (domestic) and text (domestic and international) and…
The FAQ isn't particularly helpful, considering that instead of directly answering the FAQs, Google just kind of weasels its way around them. For example: "Q: Does moving between networks affect my battery life? A: We like full batteries too. Our software is optimized to not put extra strain on your battery by only moving you between networks when absolutely necessary." Just say "Yes", Google. Just say fucking "Yes".…
Do you really need a "yes" there? I think it is pretty normal to have a stupid PR response there -- of course the answer is "yes". There is no other way.
For those who don't want to read the FAQ or find the video incredibly unhelpful [1]: a. It only supports the Nexus 6 out of the gate. b. It automatically switches you to the "fastest" network available. Partners out of the gate are Sprint and T-mobile. Sounds like it prefers Wifi, then 4G LTE, and then degrades down to 3G or 2G. c. Pricing is $20 for unlimited talk (domestic) and text (domestic and international) and…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
What I don't get is, what's in this for Sprint and T-Mobile? Currently a user of their network is a customer they "own" -- they deal with that customer directly. Now they have Google sitting between them and the user, which effectively commoditizes their service; Google could switch them out for another network down the road without the user ever knowing or caring. That's great for Google, and probably also great for…
They already do that (allow a 3rd party to resell over their infrastructure) with Ting. They are in a commodity biz.
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This plan actually makes no sense. Overage charges are the same rate ($10 / GB), so why am I buying a "plan" at all? Why don't they just charge $10 * x gigs / month instead of all this buying / refunding business?
Or better yet: why aren't they offering an unlimited data plan like what T-Mobile and Sprint (Google Fi's "partners") already offer? Why aren't they even at least going with T-Mobile's approach of "throttle the connection once you go past your data cap, but don't charge overages"? It's like they're taking the best things of both carriers - their unlimited data plans - and pretending those things don't exist, that the…
With pay per gigabyte, incentives are aligned. Consumers and websites have an incentive to conserve data. Carriers have an incentive to encourage use and increase speeds. There's no reason to block servers or VPNs or tethering. There's no reason to throttle BitTorrent or Netflix or terminate anyone's service for "excessive" usage. In fact, with pay-per-GB carriers should encourage BitTorrent use and fight for consumers against the MPAA!
Historically unlimited data has been better for consumers because carriers have charged ridiculous prices for overages (e.g. per-KB prices that add up to hundreds of dollars per GB), and consumers don't have a good way of knowing how much bandwidth they're using when they use different services, so they can't predict their bills. If these two problems can be fixed, pay-per-GB is the best way forward. I'm glad Google realizes this.
For those who don't want to read the FAQ or find the video incredibly unhelpful [1]: a. It only supports the Nexus 6 out of the gate. b. It automatically switches you to the "fastest" network available. Partners out of the gate are Sprint and T-mobile. Sounds like it prefers Wifi, then 4G LTE, and then degrades down to 3G or 2G. c. Pricing is $20 for unlimited talk (domestic) and text (domestic and international) and…
What I don't get is, what's in this for Sprint and T-Mobile? Currently a user of their network is a customer they "own" -- they deal with that customer directly. Now they have Google sitting between them and the user, which effectively commoditizes their service; Google could switch them out for another network down the road without the user ever knowing or caring. That's great for Google, and probably also great for…
For those in the know: how much would they get per subscriber, assuming $20 for the "basics" as they call it, and $10 per Gig for data?
This is likely difficult to calculate, given they are using both T-Mobile _and_ Sprint, and they refund unused data. But I'd be curious nevertheless...
This is insane. I can't think of an industry that google is not trying to compete in. Auto industry, space industry, internet of things industry (Nest), internet/media industry, cable/internet provider industry, automobile industry, robotics industry, software industry, smartphone industry, pc industry now the telecom industry. I'm starting to expect Google to launch an airline here pretty soon. How can they possibly…
They won't be a market leader in everything. What do they lead aside from search, ads, and mobile OS? The really funny bit is that near the end of Steve Jobs's life (per the biography), Larry Page asked him for advice and of course he said "focus on doing a few things really well, cut out everything else." Seems Larry decided he knew better.
The big thing about this from my perspective is that it abolishes roaming. One plan, and you pay the same whether you use it in your home country or anywhere else. I'm not aware that anybody else is offering that, especially not at that price. As a German living in the UK i currently juggle two SIM cards, and whenever I fly back home I have to mess with the data flatrate there since it's worth activating the monthly…
Then in the UK there's Three who basically abolished roaming in 18 countries (sadly not Germany for now). This includes unlimited (25gb) 4g, which is pretty awesome and better than the 256k Google is offering.