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Comment by vageli | Hacker News Reader

Google Fi does everything you ask for (and works with more phones that just those that Google manufactures).

Google Fi is an MVNO of T-mobile/Sprint (last I checked anyways). so if T-mobile blocks the private relay for their network, it could affect them too.

Also, Google Fi kinda sucks. They used to be the cheapest, but nowadays you can get better prices from other services. For example, Google charges $10/gb/mo, whereas Mint Mobile (another T-mobile MVNO) charges 4gb for $15/mo, or $30 for unlimited.

Google Fi is only cheaper if you use less than 1.5gb of data per month, and the service quality is probably the same.

...and that's not even mentioning all the privacy concerns attached to Google.

The difference is that Google Fi runs at the top network priority. You can find loads of dirt-cheap MVNOs, but your data is at the back of the line if there's any congestion.

Getting top priority isn't worth that much of a premium.

It's exciting to watch how many years in a row they can stay at $10/GB, and not in a good way.

If that's a concern, you should just go with T-mobile directly then. They have a $60/mo plan with unlimited data, incl' 50gb of high priority data.

Fi caps out at $60/mo (so 6gb), after which you get unlimited data for "free". However, you only get 15gb of high priority.

I think Fi is trying to take advantage of the Google brand to sell MVNO service at a crazy markup.

But I use 1 gig of data a month. Why would I want to double my cell phone bill for exactly the same service?

That's still $30 a month when other MVNOs will give you 4GB for $15

The difference is that Google Fi runs at the top network priority. You can find loads of dirt-cheap MVNOs, but your data is at the back of the line if there's any congestion.

What are you going to do with 1gb of high priority data per month?

Get my vaccination card at the entrance to a stadium. Messaging, email, access my NAS at home through my VPN. Download a podcast or audiobook. I mean, the answer to that question is literally "anything except watch videos".

My car has an "unlimited" plan with AT&T, and holy crap, it's worthless. If I actually need to do something, like, now, usually I have to turn off my phone's wifi if the car's on.

And this isn't me modifying my behavior. If I had a habit of watching YouTube or Netflix from all over the place, I'd get a different phone plan. I'm not like penny pinching here. It's just that my current phone plan works, I like how easy it is to administer, and switching providers in a huge PITA for a family of 4, so something else better be damn good.

Google Fi has had alternative plans to the $10/GB one for a while now. Works out to be similar (slightly less) cost than going to T-Mobile, Verizon or another carrier direct. Still very happy with the service personally but they do also block iCloud Private Relay.

> ...and that's not even mentioning all the privacy concerns attached to Google.

Fi does not feed usage information or otherwise into the ad machine. See the privacy notice on https://fi.google.com/about/tos/

As someone who used Google Fi for a while internationally, DO NOT get Google Fi! So many problems on an iPhone 7. Little to no connectivity in many places where they advertised having connectivity. This was ~2018-2020, so maybe it has improved, but I had such a bad experience with them.

I have a newfangled 5G phone that doesn't do 5G even though I'm in Los Angeles, so I was glad to switch from VZW to TMo, to make them buy my phone, then I switched back to VZW because TMo doesn't have 5G either, no matter the maps they show on TV.

I'd do Cincinnati Bell in a heartbeat, if I could.

If you're talking about UWD 5G, that shit is DTLA and a few other areas. Try it out! It's fast as shit when you can get it.

What if you never go international? That seems like a bad reason for -everyone- to drop them.

Oh god, their service was EVEN worse in the United States!! In major metropolitan cities, in San Francisco especially! I have never had a worse experience with a cell provider. And I use AT&T!

Google Fi has been blocking iCloud Private Relay for longer than T-Mobile. I’m a subscriber and it stopped working after the new iOS went to GA, but worked during the Developer Beta period.

Works for me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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