You Can Finally Use Your iPhone On Google Fi, But There's A Big Catch

Announced earlier today, Google has rebranded their cellular service as Google Fi. Perhaps even more importantly, you no longer have to use a Pixel phone to be able to use the service. Google Fi is now available for multiple Android devices as well as Apple iPhones running iOS.

What's Google Fi?

Formerly Project Fi, it's Google's "pay for what you use, month-to-month" cell service. There are no contracts and you pay $20 for unlimited talk and text per month, plus $10 per GB of data used. Even nicer, when you pay for an extra GB of data, but don't use it all, Google will give you a credit towards your next month of Fi equal to the unused portion.

I used Project Fi for a month in 2016 and, while I enjoyed the service, determined I was going to end up paying way too much in data costs to make the service work for me. Plus, having to leave my iOS ecosystem behind to convert to Android was a hurdle I wasn't ready to face.

However, a lot can change in a year. Now that I work at home, I'm on wifi for most of my work day. Data drain for my device is miniscule. Plus, since you can add family and friends to your plan for $15 per month, it seems like an easy economical decision.

So why am I not switching?

The Same, But Different

It turns out, iOS support for Google Fi is still in beta. You have to change around how you receive texts (the Google Fi app for iOS walks you through this) and Visual Voicemail won't work (though Google will send you text transcripts of your voicemails). But the biggest issue for iPhone (and non-Pixel) users is that only Google Pixel devices have the hardware required to switch between multiple cellular networks.

Why is This So Important?

Google Fi doesn't have its own cellular network. Instead, it leases space from other cellular providers, letting its users jump around to whatever network works best for them wherever they are. Non-Pixel devices also don't get the benefit of Google Fi's enhanced network feature, which allows for use of a Google Fi-specific VPN for secure browsing and faster, seamless network switching.

Without the cellular switching feature, I'm not sure how effective the Google Fi service can be. In an area that has a strong signal from a Google Fi provider (T-Mobile, in most cases), you'll be fine. But if you can't jump to a stronger signal from another provider, then you miss out on one of the best features of Fi, always being able to take advantage of whoever has the strongest signal where you are.

Plus, this leaves open a few questions. How does the Google Fi service determine what network you will use when you're on cellular? Are you stuck with whatever cell network you dropped into when you first came off of wifi? If you can't transition to wifi for calls and texts, does that mean you'll end up using more data? What about Apple Watch cellular plans?

Switch Today For Big Benefits

That said, especially if you have a Pixel device (or use one of the compatible phones listed here) and you're interested in switching over to an inexpensive, transparent, no contract cell service, today is a great day to do it. For a limited time, Google Fi is offering the price of any phone you purchase back on airline flights or Airbnb and hotels.com purchases. If you'd rather bring your own device, they'll give you a $200 service credit (which, depending on how much data you use, could last you a very long time).

There's a lot of positives about Google Fi and I'm excited to see them opening the service up to more devices. But I'll be digging further into how it looks on the iPhone before I make the jump to see what actual cell service looks like and if it's reliable enough to be worth the switch.

I’ve been writing about technology, gadgets, and pop culture for the past two decades. I’ve seen the rise and fall (and rise again) of Apple. I've watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate…In addition to Forbes.com, I am a core contributor at GeekDad.c... MORE
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