Republic Wireless makes the $300 Moto X official, but you can’t have it yet
Yesterday, we heard rumors that Republic Wireless, the low affordable carrier that keeps costs down by transmitting voice and data over WiFi whenever available, would be looking to introduce the Moto X at a very attractive price point of just $300 off contract. This was the price we all had in our dreams, but quickly found out that we’re doing simply that: dreaming.
They made that news official, as they let us know that the device would be coming this November at just $300. So why is Republic taking it upon themselves to bring everyone the phone they want at the price point they want?
They say it’s because of one key thing they learned during the service’s beta period: it doesn’t matter how much service costs if people can’t get the devices they want. It’s not easy for Republic, a company that can’t offer BYOD as their devices piggyback on Sprint’s nationwide network. Republic Wireless also has to customize the software of phones in order to work with their WiFi handoff technology.
The phone is $299 because we are footing the bill. Period. This is NOT a $299 phone.
That’s something we expected Google to do whenever the device launches in the Google Play Store, as they also foot the bill for their own smartphone — the Nexus 4 — to make it more affordable for folks to buy. That’s looking less and less likely as the days tick on, but we’re glad that at least one carrier, no matter how small they may be, is willing to give it a shot.
New Plans
Republic also had some new plans to share with us, and they’re a doozie. For $5, you can enjoy talk, text and data completely over WiFi. This is a bit of a problem for when you’re on the go, of course, but that’s where the new $10 option comes in. This plan gives you unlimited talk and text over cellular, and you’ll take care of all your data needs over WiFi.
Those two plans join the $25 and $40 per month options already available, which give you everything mentioned before, plus 3G or 4G data, respectively. These are some super affordable options, and should appease anyone looking for a decent value.
Unfortunately we won’t see the $300 Moto X until November when the service is planned to exit beta, but that should be a short wait for anyone who is looking to take advantage of one of the sweetest deals in wireless.
[via Republic Wireless]