Google announced on Wednesday that US Cellular, a regional carrier that serves 4.9 million customers in the United States, is now part of Google wireless service Project Fi.
U.S Cellular, as well as Sprint and T-Mobile, have joined Google’s Project Fi, a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) launched in April 2015, that combines multiple virtual networks to give the costumers better coverage when Wi-Fi is not available.
According to Evan Jacobs, a product manager for Project Fi, US Cellular coverage will be “rolling out to all users” in the coming weeks and will provide added consistency and speed.
Project Fi offers more than wireless service
The primary goal for Project Fi is to provide users the network connection they need no matter what their cellular service provider is, in case, they are out of range. Switching from a mobile carrier to another will help customers always to have no only internet connection but also unlimited domestic calls and texts. Also, Fi service does not require any annual contracts.
A key aspect of using Project Fi is that Google credits customers for the data they did not get to use, for example, if a customer pays $40 for 4GB and only uses 3GB, the company will give back that $10 difference. However, Google’s wireless service does not work with all phones; it only works with the Nexus 6, Nexus 6P, and the Nexus 5X.
The more cellular network, the better
With 4.4 subscribers in 23 U.S states, US Cellular is one of the top mobile networks in the United States. This third system will improve Project Fi coverage and speed by giving customers the chance of staying on speedy LTE data.
“In most areas, multiple cellular networks are available — in fact, the majority of Project Fi usage occurs in areas where more than one of our partners offers LTE coverage,” Google said in a blog post this week. “But factors like obstructions from nearby buildings can meaningfully impact the speed and coverage available from each LTE connection. By analyzing rates from each network, Project Fi can predict the fastest network at your location — down to the city block — and automatically connect you. We’re always adapting to consider how factors like new cell towers and newly-available radio frequencies are impacting real-world speeds.”
Google states that Project Fi customers will now have a connection nearly 99 percent of the time and spend about 95 percent of the cellular time on LTE networks.
Source: PC Mag