Google Fiber gigabit service in Austin priced at $70 per month, basic Internet service free

[Himanshu Arora]

Google has unveiled pricing details for its gigabit Internet service in Austin, which is set to launch next month. A basic version of the service, featuring download speeds of 5 Mbps and upload speeds of 1 Mbps, will be available for no monthly charge, although users will have to pay a one-time equipment installation fee of $300, which can be paid all at once or spread over 12 months.

The promised 1Gbps service will be available for $70 per month -- those who opt for the plan will also get 1TB of cloud storage across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google+ photos. Google is also offering a $130 combo pack that includes gigabit-speed Internet service, 1TB cloud storage, as well as over 150 TV channels, and the ability to record up to 8 shows at once.

“How you’ll use 1-gigabit in the near-term is to do the same things, just a whole lot faster,” said Mark Strama, the former state representative who is heading up Google Fiber’s efforts in the city. “But what’s really exciting about 1-gigabit is all the apps that haven’t even been developed yet.”

Just to give you an idea, the 1-gigabit service is fast enough to download 25 songs in a second, a TV show in less than 3 seconds, and an HD movie in less than 36 seconds.

The news comes just a few weeks after Google started rolling out an Early Access Program for Google Fiber for Small Business in select areas of central Kansas City.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/58953-google-fiber-gigabit-service-austin-priced-70-month.html

 

[SirGCal]

It stops like 10 miles from my house... Figures... I'd jump on that and away from TWC in a second...

 

[stewi0001]

Man, I wish this was in my area.

 

[Jam Jack]

I wonder if they will ever bring this to the UK

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

Doing the quick crude conversion to my currency it sounds way too rich for my blood but then again it doesn't interest me yet because it'll be sometime before we get something like this.

 

[Scshadow]

I'm starting to tire over this subject. Whenever Fiber stops being a hobby for Google and they decide to try a serious rollout of their service, I'll get excited. Not that it isn't legit news, I just tire of it. I want to see Google Fiber in my area within the next 100 years.

 

[S_Brideau]

Gigabit for the same price I pay for 30Mb/s. Please come to Canada Google Fiber.

 

[RustyTech]

I want you naw!! NAW!!!
/cry cuz I know it's not gonna happen

 

[Purpledemon]

This is a great service. I have had the Gigabit Service for almost a year in Provo, Utah. The pricing has been the same as announced in Austin, TX. It is super with a household of streaming. No lag. In order to get the Gigabit speed you need to have a recent build of computer that has a gigabit lan card. My wireless went from 12 mbs to 42 mbs which is good for a 54 mbs card. You need ethernet connection to take advantage of full speed. You also need to remember that you can only send or receive as fast as the server you are connecting to. Many like Microsoft, NVDIA, Java, and other tech giants are up to this.
I am confident that there will be competition coming very soon from other ISP's worldwide and not isolated to Google Fiber. Best to be patient and it will come within a few years. If you are inpatient you can always plan to move to a Fiber Neighborhood

 

[tipstir]

I am sure Google with it's billions will soon take over all CATV, SATV and be 100% planet coverage in the future at this rate.

 

[Guest]

Google fiber is a disrupting business idea! By gigabit speed at doorstep, there would be drastic changes:

• many of our internet infrastructure by pushing limits of ISP bandwidths, web server capacity, cloud storage, computing etc
• liberate us public from monopolies that currently exist in businesses
  
• affects how technology companies operate, innovate, design products/services to support the explosion in customer needs
• affects many aspects of our lives such as communication, entertainment, social media, sharing of info, trading/commerce, security/privacy/piracy and just about everything

the only problem is how fast this can expand and I'm little skeptical even Google has enough resources to move at a rapid pace...I simply wish they come to our neighborhood soon

 

[Guest]

I prefer Digis myself. You are right though. Many streaming providers will always have certain speeds. They will keep them at speeds that will reliably stream content. The idea is, you can't download it because it isn't your content to keep. I do feel gigabit ethernet or internet is something better to stay in corporate servers. I say that because 90% of users will never use that bandwidth and end up paying for something they will never use. Even at 5MB's which is quite fast. The standard 100MB's ethernet standard still far exceeds the internet speed, even 12MB's that Century Link, and comparable speed that Digis also has around in my area now. I also personally don't use wi-fi, because it is slower by technology and pollutes the electromagnetic spectrum. So wired is still the best and reliable. I don't update things because a company wants more money and says jump. If it works reliably then I don't need to replace it. Digis is very reliable without a early termination of $200 like Century Link hits you with. It also turns out that fiber has it's limits as well, compared to dish radio transmission, if line if site isn't an issue. I know from experience and research. Gigabit is all technology hype right now, just like HDMI will always be, and HD tv's that will never have a true to fit standard; not even with the Blu-ray fad.

 

[taimuraly]

We home users pay $82 for 10Mbps download and 1Mbps upload speeds. Office users pay $171 for the same speeds.
Monopoly sucks (Not the game though)

 

[Guest]

What is their stance on torrenting?

 

[Guest]

Free it is not free. the gigabit subscribers is/are/will be paying for the regular user. its fraud.