Google's Project Fi, the tech giant's cell phone service project, is now available to the public. Here are six things to know about Project Fi.
1. Project Fi offers wireless service as an alternative to traditional, major cell service carriers by using the best network available at the location and point in time in which somebody is making a phone call.
2. Users' cell phones on Project Fi's network are automatically connected to the best network available, which may be a Wi-Fi network or the 4G LTE network of T-Mobile or Sprint, which are partners with the project. Now, instead of users only being able to connect to one network — their mobile carriers' — they have access to at least two carriers' networks and Wi-Fi networks.
"Networks change in quality as you move around. To help you get the highest-quality connection at your location, Project Fi uses new technology to intelligently connect you to the fastest network whether it's Wi-Fi or one of our partner LTE networks," according to the Project Fi website.
3. Project Fi has verified more than one million free, open Wi-Fi hotspots for users on the go, and the company says data is secured through encryption when connected to these open hotspots. Calls made through Wi-Fi are free.
4. Only Nexus 5X and 6P work with Project Fi, which are equipped with cellular radios and a unique SIM that work with multiple networks.
5. The basic plan for Project Fi is $20 a month, which includes unlimited domestic talk and text, unlimited international texts, the ability to use the phone as a Wi-Fi hotspot and coverage in more than 120 countries. Additionally, the plan charges $10 per one gigabyte of data. Users pay as they go for data, so if somebody purchases 2 GB of data for one month but only uses 1 GB, the unused data is credited back to the user. Data rates remain the same around the world.
6. Google launched Project Fi 10 months ago as an invite-only beta program. Now, it is open to the general public.
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