Gadgetory

google has its own wireless plan you go with its phone I'm Bridget Carey and this is your CNET update Google is challenging the status quo for the wireless industry it just launched its own mobile service in the u.s. called Project Phi and it is so crazy simple it could change the future of wireless service if other companies follow but not everyone can sign up right away you have to request an invite and it only works on the Nexus 6 phone Google developed a special SIM card for the Nexus 6 that jumps between multiple networks you see Google then build its own infrastructure from scratch Google is piggybacking off Sprint and t-mobile cell towers switching you between whichever carrier has the stronger signal it also automatically connects to nearby open Wi-Fi hotspots when available because open Wi-Fi is sketchy Google says it is encrypting your data to protect it from hackers now pricing for project Phi is very straightforward and there's no annual contract everyone pays $20 a month for unlimited calling and texting data is $10 for every gigabyte that's it so if you want three gigs of data every month your bill comes out to $50 but what if you don't use all the data Google will credit you back on the next bill for data you didn't use if you had 800 megabytes to spare one month you get eight books back the opposite is true for when you go over you are only charged for what you needed if you went over 400 megabytes you're only charged an extra four dollars international travelers will also like this feature you won't be charged more for using data when you travel to more than 120 different countries international texting is included in the plan and international calls are 20 cents a minute even though most people won't be able to switch to this Google will still influence change in the industry when Google shows consumers there is an alternative out there other carriers may follow with more attractive offers and that's all Google wants if this service leads to better plans and we're gulping down more content from the web no matter which company we get our service from it just benefits Google we saw this with Google Fiber the home internet service that is a hundred times faster than what most have at home the prices and availability of one gigabit speeds encourage competitors like AT&T to expand coverage and compete with Google's prices Google is not alone in some of these ideas republic Wireless a small company based in North Carolina announced it will also pay back customers for unused data the wireless world is changing fast and there are new ways to think about how you pay for service take for example the messaging app whatsapp Android and iOS users can now both make voice calls through the app so you can talk to anyone internationally over a data connection that your tech news update you can head over to cnet.com for more from our studios in New York I'm Bridget Carey