For those of you who have read this blog in the past, you may already know that I’m a big T-Mobile fan. I signed up for T-Mobile One in 2016 and never looked back. I loved the flat $70/month pricing, the unlimited everything, and free international data. Until late last year I never thought twice about my T-Mobile service.
However, in late 2018 I started noticing that perhaps my T-Mobile service wasn’t as good as I thought it was. I first noticed this phenomenon when I was on a trip to Australia with my girlfriend. She has Sprint’s Unlimited Plan which is similar to T-Mobile’s, but everywhere we went she had much better service than I did. It was at that point when I first started to question my loyalty to T-Mobile.
I also started noticing issues as I started carrying a Verizon work phone more often. On several occasions I’d notice extremely slow download speeds from my T-Mobile phone yet my Verizon phone worked flawlessly. In the past I’m not sure that I would have thought twice about the slow download speeds on T-Mobile (chalked it up to some mitigating reason), but now that I had a second phone to compare it to I did.
Finally, one of the main reasons I loved T-Mobile for years was the free texting and WiFi offered on GoGo enabled aircraft. However, more and more I’ve noticed airlines using ViaSat or Panasonic which leave me without service. All in all, after a few months of less than stellar service from T-Mobile I started to look elsewhere.
What Is Google Fi?
Google Fi, formerly known as Project Fi, is a cell phone service from Google. What makes Fi unique is that the service uses coverage from T-Mobile, US Cellular, and Sprint instead of having dedicated towers. Google Fi enabled cell phones then pick the towers that offer best coverage available at the time. Additionally, Fi taps into (some?) WiFi hotspots to again offer customers the best possible connection.
Additionally, Google Fi costs just $20/month to get setup. From there, users only get charged based on their data use. Data then costs just $10/GB for the first 6GB of data usage. After 6GBs any extra data usage is “free” thanks to Bill Protection. Finally, Google Fi users can use the service all over the world and can get the same experience abroad as offered domestically.
Now, that’s how Google tries to explain it. Basically from my understanding Google Fi is an $80/month unlimited plan that offers high-speed data services both abroad and domestically. This is accomplished by Fi selecting the best cell tower available (T-Mobile, Sprint, US Cellular) to provide service.
Why I Ended Up Choosing Google Fi?
When I first started looking for a new cell phone provider I of course started with Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint. All three offer great service in the United States as well as international packages. After looking around for a few weeks I kept finding that Verizon and AT&T were too expensive to justify marginally better domestic service. Likewise, both carriers required you to pay extra for international data usage which could add up quickly given the amount that I’ve been traveling in years past.
Sprint offered the most competitive and comparable service to T-Mobile. For all intent and purposes Sprint’s service is identical to T-Mobile’s. That is, Sprint offers unlimited everything domestically as well as free data usage and texting abroad. At first, I was convinced that I would simply end up switching to Sprint.
However, after learning a bit more about Google Fi the concept sounded appealing. I liked the idea of using a mesh of T-Mobile, Sprint, US Cellular, and WiFi hotspots to get cell phone service. I also appreciated that Fi costs just $80/month + taxes/fees(?) which is extremely reasonable for unlimited data/texting abroad. Similar coverage from Verizon and AT&T would have ended up costing me much more given my travel habits.
One Small Piece Of Fine Print…
Finally, another reason I ultimately decided to pick Google Fi is the cell phone. See, only Fi enabled devices are able to switch between cell towers. If you bring your own device (BYOD) and it is not Fi compatible (ie. iPhone or Samsung Galaxy) you will be tied only to the T-Mobile network.
While that sounds like a negative, and it is if you are bringing your own phone, for me it’s positive. I’ve been an avid iPhone user since the original iPhone arrived in 2007! For more than 10 years I’ve been stuck in the iOS ecosystem and therefore have ignored every great phone that has come out since. However, with Fi I am forced to finally try something new. So, when I signed up for Google Fi I also purchased the new-ish Google Pixel 3!
The Pixel 3 supposedly has an incredible camera, so I’m excited to try out a new phone as I switch carriers. Specifically, the Pixel 3 is supposed to have an amazing low light camera mode which I could see being very helpful for my mid-flight dining pictures which usually feature a dimmed cabin.
Lastly, I’m excited to try out the Android operating system. Like I’ve said I’ve used iOS for the more than a decade so I’m excited to try something new.
Final Thoughts
Don’t worry, I’m not leaving T-Mobile cold turkey. Instead, I plan on maintaining both my iPhone and Pixel for a month or two to try to decide if A) Google Fi is worth it and B) if the Pixel 3 is worth it. From there I will cancel one service or the other and use the winner as my primary carrier for the rest of 2019.
I’m excited to have finally signed up for Google Fi. I’ve been looking into the service for a few months now and am glad to have finally made the plunge. Hopefully the results are positive both from the cellular service and from the Google Pixel 3. Keep an eye out for some photos from the Pixel 3 to come from future reviews. I plan to use the Pixel 3 exclusively on my upcoming trip to Hong Kong again on Cathay Pacific.
Note: I happened to sign up for Google Fi on the same day (minutes before actually) Tiffany from OMATT posted a nasty review of the cell phone service. She had not so great things to say about the cell phone plan from Google so I’m actually a bit nervous about what to expect. Ultimately, I hope my experience ends up more positive than her’s.
