Republic Wireless: making the most of WiFi & Cellular to offer cheap plans, great service

Tired of paying big bucks and signing your soul away into a long-term phone contract?  Youve got to check out Republic Wireless.  They have phone plans starting at $5 per month!  Republic Wireless sent me a Motorola MotoX phone to try out with their $40 plan (unlimited talk, text and 4G data on WiFi and cellular networks), and I think this one's a winner.  Keep reading to get an overview of their service, and what I think about it (and enter to win a Google Chromecast!).

The Basics

Republic Wireless is a low cost, no-contract cellular phone service. They offer 2 kinds of phones:

• Motorola MotoG ($149)
• Motorola MotoX ($299)

... and 4 plans:

• $5 WiFi only plan 
• $10 WiFi + Cell Talk &Text 
• $25 WiFi + Cell (3G) Talk, Text & Data
• $40 WiFi + Cell (4G) Talk, Text & Data (available only on Moto X) 

How do they keep prices so low?  Their phones utilize Hybrid Calling technology to take advantage of WiFi networks for calls, texts and data when a WiFi network is available.  When a WiFi network isn't available, their phones use the Sprint Network for calls, texts and data (if the phone plan you sign up for includes it). Their techonology allows for a seamless WiFi to cellular handover experience for uninterrupted calls and high call quality.  No extra steps or apps are required to make a phone call, even when on the WiFi network).  Utilizing WiFi whenever you can makes so much sense!

The Bongga

Republic Wireless wins on all of the 4 C's of cellular service -- cool phones, coverage, convenience, and cost!

Cool Phones: I'm LOVING the Moto X!  It's a really nice Android phone, with a very sleek and sophisticated profile, sporting lots of bells and whistles.  The camera is AWESOME.  It takes great photos!  Check out these 2 amazing photos my daughter snapped on the fly with the MotoX, no editing or Photoshopping needed.

 

Coverage: Republic Wireless runs on the Sprint network, which is the network I use for my cell phone plan.  I have no complaints about Sprint network coverage, so I'm confident about the coverage for the Republic Wireless phone!  So far, call quality has been great, no interrupted calls, even when I'm walking from my car (cellular network) and entering my house (switch over to WiFi).  Sprint's 3G network tends to be slow, but only if you're browsing the web on your phone -- it's perfectly fine for checking email, or posting to Instagram/Facebook/Pinterest, or using most web-enabled apps and games.  Sprint's 4G network is lightning fast, even for web browsing.

Note, I have yet to enter a location that offers free wifi with sign-in (i.e. Starbucks, McDonalds, airports, etc...), so I don't know how seamlessly the phone will switch from cellular back to wifi, or whether it will switch at all.  The Republic FAQ page says you'll have to sign in the first time, then subsequent visits will be seamless, but I do need to try it out for myself.

Convenience:  With a Republic Wireless plan, you're not bound to a contract.  You can even switch from one of their plans to another -- up to twice per month!   And because the data plans are all-inclusive, you're charged a set amount each month, and you don't have to worry about hidden costs.  The only fees you incur are state and local taxes.

Cost: I can't think of any all-inclusive, no-contract service that's cheaper than Republic Wireless.  Even the phone itself is inexpensive:  just $149 for the Moto G and $299 for the Moto X.  This is how much you would pay for a phone with the other big networks -- but only if you lock yourself into a 2 year contract!

The Blah

There are only 3 things I'm not fond of:

1) You cannot make any international calls on a Republic Wireless phone.  This is a major deal breaker for Alfie and me, because all our family is overseas (it's not a deal breaker for our kids' phones, though, since they can always use our phones to call their grandparents in the UK and the Philippines).

2) You cannot bring your own phone over to a Republic Wireless plan -- you have to purchase one of their phones, and currently, your only option is the MotoX or the MotoG (which only works with 3G plan, not the 4G plan).  It's not a problem for me because I love the MotoX, but if you're wedded to a particular brand of phone, you're out of luck.

3) You can't use your Republic Wireless phone with any other plan.  This is because Republic's phones are specially modified to be able to use WiFi calling without having to open another app, and to use the WiFi around you.

The Bottom Line

If it weren't for the no international calls restriction, I would sign up for a $5 per month Republic Wireless plan today, and make that phone our Home Phone.  Other than that, Republic's low cost option has definitely won me over --when The Pea's phone contract comes to an end, I think we just might be switching her over to Republic Wireless!

Win a Google Chromecast

TWO lucky Bonggamom Finds readers will receive a Google Chromecast! This digital media player plays audio/video content on a high-definition display via streaming Wi-Fi.  In other words, plus Chromecast into your HDTV, and you can watch YouTube, Internet shows, or any content that you can stream over your WiFi network from the internet!

(photo source: Wikipedia common images)

Required Entry

Leave a comment on this post and tell me which Republic Wireless plan would be right for you.

Extra Entries
For extra entries, you can do any or all of the following. Please leave a separate comment for each extra entry with a way to verify the entry (i.e. tweet link, blog post link, Facebook id, Twitter id, etc.).

1) Follow bonggamom on Blogger (1 entry)

2) Follow bonggamom on Instagram (1 entry)

3) Follow bonggamom on Pinterest (1 entry)

4) Pin this giveaway on any of your Pinterest boards (1 entry -- you can use the "Pin It" button at the bottom of this page!).

5) "Like Bonggamom Finds" on Facebook and write this on my wall (1 entry):
I entered the Google Chromecast giveaway from Republic Wireless!  Giveaway ends 9/5 at http://ow.ly/A4MT2

7) Tweet this once per day (1 entry per day)

Enter to win a Google Chromecast fr @republicwireless! Giveaway on @bonggafinds ends 9/5 http://ow.ly/A4MT2

8) Join any open giveaway on Bonggamom Finds (1 entry for every giveaway you join)

The Rules
This giveaway ends at 11:59PM PST on September 5  2014; I will draw a winner at random, on September 6 and post their name after they confirm acceptance. Continental US residents only. For additional giveaway rules, click here.


Disclosure: Republic Wireless provided me with a MotoX and 3 months of Republic Wireless service to facilitate my review, and Chromecast units to give away.  product or give my opinions. Product information (in italics) is provided by the featured company/product. The views and opinions expressed here are my own.
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