# Google Fiber just announced their pricing and plans **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 26, 2012, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480 "2012-07-26T19:08:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2012, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/41 "2012-07-27T19:23:23Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Google insists that they don’t want to get into the ISP business. They want to show this is possible, and to shame the phone and cable companies into improving their shitty service. That, and they want to find out what new businesses will be invented when people have super high speed (and to own the advertising on those new businesses.) Google may say that, but the truth is, they are purveyors of online services. This country’s shitty internet situation is negatively impacting their ability to sell online products, including their own OS alternative, Chrome OS. They’re not going to “shame” Verizon or AT&T into anything. They won’t care about Google Fiber unless Google Fiber starts costing them money. I suspect we’ll see widespread Google Fiber adoption long before we see Verizon & ATT stepping it up. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2012, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/42 "2012-07-27T19:33:15Z")
Fiber to the home is expensive of course. I think the solution (to the problem of the relatively slow speed of Internet access in the US) might be faster wireless technologies. For example, what sort of speed and coverage can you get if you use the old analog TV spectrum for data services? ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/43 "2012-07-27T22:37:53Z")
Having no use for a tablet, I’d rather the fee be $100 with no tablet. That point aside, Monticello, MN is an interesting case. The city had the same shitty internet service that the rest of the state did, but they decided to do something about it. The city built a fiber to the premises network. Guess what happened? The local cable company build a fiber network too, you think that would have happened had the city not started taking their customers? Now the cities losing money and the small government types are screaming about it, but the town is now better off than most of the rest of the state. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/44 "2012-07-28T00:57:00Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > I realize it’s probably a lost cause, but I’m slightly hesitant to add “my home address,” “my bank account information,” and “everything I watch on TV” to the growing list of Everything Google Knows About Me. Dood. I’m watching live at your computer right now on Google House View. Nice place, but maybe straighten up a little. Hey, is that an authentic didgeridoo?! ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/45 "2012-07-28T03:02:50Z")
> [@Shalmanese](#): > > So what’s not evident from the announcement is that Google hasn’t laid down a mile of fibre yet within KC. Not true. In the Argintine neighborhood, I’ve been following the progress avidly. Heck, I’ve touched an actual reel of fiber that was in the process of being pulled on Strong Avenue. The Google Fiber store at 43rd and State Line is connected, as well as several local hospitals. I suspect the neighborhood approach is a way to get a huge amount of free advocacy/advertising by geeks. A friend of mine is talking about buying a bunny suit and rainbow dyeing it to to sign people up. Or failing that, sign them up and pay the $10 fee on their behalf. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/46 "2012-07-28T14:08:12Z")
Yeah, the TV portion of this is pretty useless: no ESPN networks, no Turner networks (CNN/TBS/TNT/etc), no Fox cable networks (FX mostly, and I’m sure there’s a significant number of people there who care that there’s no Fox News as well), no AMC… I don’t see an option for adding HBO either. That said, if I were in KC I’d probably still go for the $70 internet tier and deal with my TV watching elsewhere. That much speed for that reasonable a rate is _so cool_ for a 6 devices connected at all times techie type. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/47 "2012-07-28T14:55:25Z")
> [@Mdcastleman](#): > > Having no use for a tablet, I’d rather the fee be $100 with no tablet. The tablet is the remote control. Rather than some infra-red thing with physical buttons that only works line of sight from a cable box, you now have something wi-fi based that will probably work anywhere in the world, with a graphical interface. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/48 "2012-07-28T15:21:26Z")
> [@Kiros](#): > > Yeah, the TV portion of this is pretty useless: no ESPN networks, no Turner networks (CNN/TBS/TNT/etc), no Fox cable networks (FX mostly, and I’m sure there’s a significant number of people there who care that there’s no Fox News as well), no AMC… I don’t see an option for adding HBO either. > > That said, if I were in KC I’d probably still go for the $70 internet tier and deal with my TV watching elsewhere. That much speed for that reasonable a rate is _so cool_ for a 6 devices connected at all times techie type. A lot of the potential customers for this have been trying to cut the cable for a while. ESPN means nothing for me, and if I had the option of deleting it from the cable I have right now, I would. But I believe ESPN will start selling bundles of their channels for “IP only” customers, with all the ESPN-U and ESPN-360 stuff. Also, this is way early. I’m sure they are a long way from done with negotiations. One interesting thing - since this system is pure IP, no legacy analog channels, Google could pay for only the number of viewers, rather than the deal Time-Warner and Surewest have where they have to pay for every single connected home. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/49 "2012-07-28T15:37:25Z")
Will Google have bandwidth caps? Because even if I can currently get acceptable speed from the telephone or cable company, they have monthly limits on the amounts you can download. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/50 "2012-07-28T16:53:25Z")
Go to the website, it says no bandwidth restrictions. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/51 "2012-07-28T16:54:03Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Will Google have bandwidth caps? Because even if I can currently get acceptable speed from the telephone or cable company, they have monthly limits on the amounts you can download. The Plans & Pricing page says no data caps. ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/52 "2012-07-28T17:07:23Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > The tablet is the remote control. Rather than some infra-red thing with physical buttons that only works line of sight from a cable box, you now have something wi-fi based that will probably work anywhere in the world, with a graphical interface. OK. But while I see benefits for fast internet, why would I need a $200 tablet to turn my TV on and change the channel on my TV while I was vacationing thousands of miles away in Croatia? Why would I need a $200 tablet to turn my TV on and change the channel while sitting on a couch when they could have set it up to use a $10 IR remote? ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/53 "2012-07-28T19:17:33Z")
> [@Mdcastleman](#): > > OK. But while I see benefits for fast internet, why would I need a $200 tablet to turn my TV on and change the channel on my TV while I was vacationing thousands of miles away in Croatia? Why would I need a $200 tablet to turn my TV on and change the channel while sitting on a couch when they could have set it up to use a $10 IR remote? The idea (and this is speculation, but from someone who does a lot of home theater tech) is that it will be a whole other level of control interface. “Change the channel”? How about program the recording of a program from Croatia, watch recordings in Croatia, etc. Every really high end system involves some sort of programmable remote, and if they do it right, this is the ultimate programmable remote. If you want a $10 IR remote, Time-Warner is your supplier. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2012, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/54 "2012-07-28T19:38:09Z")
Even with my digital cable subscription, there are so many channels that it would take a really long time to flip through all of them. So instead, it would be faster to use a tablet interface to search what’s available and change to it immediately. Also, I’ll bet that Google also intends to expand the available options beyond those being transmitted now to anything that’s available via iTunes, Netflix, Hulu, etc. Ultimately (I think) the goal is to make available any movie or television show ever produced. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/55 "2012-07-29T16:33:22Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > It’s much, much, _much_ faster than anything else currently available. I might add that most Americans are pretty clueless on the fact that the [US ranks as 26th in terms of global internet speed.](http://www.techspot.com/news/45566-us-ranked-26th-in-global-internet-speed-south-korea-number-one.html) We love our internet and techno toys, but have fallen way behind in the infrastructure that makes things zip and fly! Hopefully Google will, if nothing else, shame/force those cable/internet [del]rip-off gougers[/del] providers into updating their technology and service. I would sign up for Google Fiber immediately if it were in my area…geez, at that price, it is a steal! ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/56 "2012-07-29T19:27:33Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Fiber to the home is expensive of course. I think the solution (to the problem of the relatively slow speed of Internet access in the US) might be faster wireless technologies. For example, what sort of speed and coverage can you get if you use the old analog TV spectrum for data services? that TV spectrum is still being used for TV. there are different numbers of broadcasters on individual channels but that spectrum is still used by TV. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/57 "2012-07-29T22:17:54Z")
Google bid on wireless spectrum when the upper UHF channels (60 through 67) went up, but were out-bid by a phone company. Speculation was that they planned some sort of free wireless service. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/58 "2012-07-29T22:30:57Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Even with my digital cable subscription, there are so many channels that it would take a really long time to flip through all of them. So instead, it would be faster to use a tablet interface to search what’s available and change to it immediately. Exactly. Rather than flipping through pages of a grid, imagine a system that could show you everything that fits your particular tastes, with enough bandwidth and storage that it basically constructs a custom TV channel just for you. > [@](#): > > Also, I’ll bet that Google also intends to expand the available options beyond those being transmitted now to anything that’s available via iTunes, Netflix, Hulu, etc. Ultimately (I think) the goal is to make available any movie or television show ever produced. I’d imagine that is what Google Play is intended to evolve into. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/59 "2012-07-30T02:08:22Z")
I will be visiting the Google Store in Kansas City next week and will report. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480/60 "2012-07-30T02:21:33Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > Fiber to the home is expensive of course. I think the solution (to the problem of the relatively slow speed of Internet access in the US) might be faster wireless technologies. For example, what sort of speed and coverage can you get if you use the old analog TV spectrum for data services? > > that TV spectrum is still being used for TV. there are different numbers of broadcasters on individual channels but that spectrum is still used by TV. I was referring to the analog spectrum that the [FCC auctioned off a couple of years ago](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/700mhz_auction). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/google-fiber-just-announced-their-pricing-and-plans/629480.md?page=4)