Republic Wireless Scores Major Coup By Snagging Moto X
Republic Wireless made waves with its $19 per month unlimited everything wireless plan, but the catch was that you had to buy the phone outright--a decent but decidedly midrange Motorola Defy XT, which cost $249. Now, the company has scored a high-end handset with the Moto X (review here) for just $299, and in doing so, it’s seriously threatening the major carriers.
The Moto X is a solid high-end smartphone, but more importantly, it’s one that customers are excited about buying. And considering that the major carriers are essentially all offering the device for $199 on contract, paying an extra hundred bucks to eschew a contract at all is incredibly compelling.
Indeed, Republic Wireless is still sustaining its no-contract ways, but it’s also changing up its plan offerings. There are now four pricing tiers, starting at a laughable $5. That will get you a WiFi-only option--meaning you can’t make calls or send texts when you’re not on your WiFi network--and for $10, you can add cell phone talk and text capabilities for that 10% of the time you’re not on your home or work network.
The $25 plan offers WiFi plus 3G talk, text, and data, and the $40 plan offers the same only with 4G. As far as the plans go, here’s the kicker: You can switch your plan up to twice per month, meaning that if you need more mobile connectivity on a trip, you can opt for a higher-tier plan for a week and then dial it back down to your $10-per-month plan when you get back.
Republic Wireless customers who want to swap out their Defy XTs for a sweet new Moto X can take advantage of Motorola’s $100 Jelly Bean Rebate, so they can save at least a chunk of cash. The Moto X is coming in November, and it will be available in black or white.
In case you’ve forgotten (or just don’t feel like clicking any of our links to previous coverage), the Moto X sports a 1.7GHz dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean), and a 4.7-inch display. There’s a 10MP camera with flash and autofocus, a 2MP front-facing camera, 2200mAh battery, X8 mobile computing system, and WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac and 4G LTE for connectivity.
This development from Republic Wireless is nothing less than disruptive to the mobile market.
The Moto X is a solid high-end smartphone, but more importantly, it’s one that customers are excited about buying. And considering that the major carriers are essentially all offering the device for $199 on contract, paying an extra hundred bucks to eschew a contract at all is incredibly compelling.
Indeed, Republic Wireless is still sustaining its no-contract ways, but it’s also changing up its plan offerings. There are now four pricing tiers, starting at a laughable $5. That will get you a WiFi-only option--meaning you can’t make calls or send texts when you’re not on your WiFi network--and for $10, you can add cell phone talk and text capabilities for that 10% of the time you’re not on your home or work network.
The $25 plan offers WiFi plus 3G talk, text, and data, and the $40 plan offers the same only with 4G. As far as the plans go, here’s the kicker: You can switch your plan up to twice per month, meaning that if you need more mobile connectivity on a trip, you can opt for a higher-tier plan for a week and then dial it back down to your $10-per-month plan when you get back.
Republic Wireless customers who want to swap out their Defy XTs for a sweet new Moto X can take advantage of Motorola’s $100 Jelly Bean Rebate, so they can save at least a chunk of cash. The Moto X is coming in November, and it will be available in black or white.
In case you’ve forgotten (or just don’t feel like clicking any of our links to previous coverage), the Moto X sports a 1.7GHz dual-core processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean), and a 4.7-inch display. There’s a 10MP camera with flash and autofocus, a 2MP front-facing camera, 2200mAh battery, X8 mobile computing system, and WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac and 4G LTE for connectivity.
This development from Republic Wireless is nothing less than disruptive to the mobile market.
