I just don't understand it. over 2 years ago I signed up with the expectation that I would receive a new phone after paying for 2 years. I didn't read the fine print, didn't fully understand that I was paying for the phone that was given to me. I'll own up to that.

But here is where it gets weirder.

An 'upgrade' to the Pixel 7a through the subscription plan is $20.80 a month for 2 years.

Buying a new Pixel 8 is only $16.62 a month.

Intriguing.. But I understand. It's on sale right now. $300 off. a little interesting that a newer, stronger phone would be cheaper.

from the shop in the SAME WEBSITE, Pixel 7a is ALSO on sale $200 off or $12.46 a month.

So. Ultimately, the phone subscription plan gives no benefits, Sales don't apply to the upgrade. You can do everything off the subscription plan that you could do on it.

What am I missing here? Please help me understand why a massive company has this system?

I'm thinking about getting it but would love to know more...

I'd love to find out how the experience is so far, and what made you sign up for it?

What is the catch on the subscription program? I was ready to pay up front, but this seems like they are giving a discount AND free financing.

I’m looking at the phone subscription for the pixel 7a, and it says I’ll pay $20.80 per month for two years. This comes out to $499 in total, whereas the phone is available on the Google store for $449, with an option for 0% interest financing. Am I missing something? What’s the point of the phone subscription if I’m actually going to pay more?

I was under the impression that the phone subscription plans had been phased out. But as my subscription was coming to an end I saw there was the ability to renew with the Pixel 9a. Cost wise it came out the same per month as if I had bought the phone brand new with the current deal going on. (256GB Model with $90 6a trade in) Does anyone else out there see any functional difference between the two deals here?

I currently manage a group plan of three members. One of the members (Member1) has the 6a on the Phone Subscription Program. Another one of my members (Member2) wants to trade in their 4a and get on the 6a with the Phone Subscription Program. When I try to do this, buying the 6a through the Phone Subscription Program is not an option.

I've talked to support and they told me that I would have to remove the member from the plan and add it back and then I might be able to buy the 6a through the Phone Subscription Program.

I also noticed that Google recently changed the Help Article to now say "A phone" instead of the "Pixel 6a". I asked support about this as well and they told me the 6a was still the option for the Phone Subscription Program.

Originally, I was able to sign up for the subscription program on Monday for Member1 but the ship date said July. I asked support about this and they said the delivery date would change to within 5-7 business days after ordered. Then Google I/O happened, the 6a price dropped, and the shipping date was not changing so I canceled the order and the subscription (which was never active) until I could talk to Member1 about what they would like to do. After reviewing the options they wanted to go with the 6a through the Subscription Program if possible but now I'm getting conflicting information.

Before I coordinate removing and re-adding Member1, has anybody else run into this? Or could someone please confirm that buying the 6a through the Phone Subscription is available to them? Support seems to think that the problem is because Member2 already has the Phone Subscription. I don't think that is accurate because I can't imagine I'm the only person who has ever had a group plan with multiple Phone Subscriptions.

Anyways, thank you to anybody who has any ideas or who can help!

Hi everyone,

All new, just for you! Join our phone subscription program to earn savings every month. You’ll get Pixel 4a today, device protection (optional), and a phone upgrade after 2 years for just $15/month(1) - that’s $133 back in your pocket over 2 years.

How it works:

• Get Pixel 4a today at a great monthly price. It comes packed with the things you want most in a phone, like a camera that takes great low-light photos, a battery that lasts up to 24 hours(2), and the new Google Assistant(3).

• Protect your phone. Get device replacement or repair for damage from cracks, spills, and more. Also includes coverage for loss and theft (except NY residents).

• Upgrade to a new phone after 2 years and continue to earn savings every month.

Already have a financed Pixel 4a from Fi and want to subscribe?

• It’s easy. If you purchased your Pixel 4a with financing from fi.google.com, you can transfer to the subscription program within 60 days of phone purchase*.

***Limited time policy: If you bought a financed Pixel 4a from fi.google.com before October 22, 2020, you have until November 22, 2020 or 60 days from your purchase to transfer into the program, whichever date is later.

• You'll need to have active Google Fi service on your account in order to transfer. If you are new to Fi, you can request to transfer after you receive and activate your financed Pixel 4a.

Start your transfer to the subscription program.

Questions? Check out our FAQ page and Help Center to learn more, or let us know here!

Thanks,

Diane, Google Fi Community Manager

(1) Price doesn't include required service. Prices for optional upgrade and device protection may vary according to upgrade device. Terms apply.

(2) Approximate battery life based on a mix of talk, data, standby, and use of other features, with always on display off. An active display and other usage factors will decrease battery life. Pixel 4a battery testing conducted in Mountain View, California in early 2020 on pre-production hardware and software. Actual results may vary.

(3) English only. See g.co/pixelassistant/languages for country and language availability and Google Account requirements.

The customer service at Google Fi is beyond terrible and I have a simple question that they just dont want to or can't seem to answer so I'm going to Reddit.

I'm about three months away from getting a new phone through the Pixel subscription plan. The current 4a phone I have now can't hold a USB C cord in it to charge and it's beyond frustrating.

Is there a way to pay this off early and get a 6a or something and not have to wait till the end of June.

The customer service is piss poor at Google and they can't seem to understand what Im asing and give me an answer to an unrelated topic.

Seems like a good deal. Wish it was 1 year instead of 2 but it's a start!

https://9to5google.com/2020/10/22/google-fi-phone-subscription/

My wife and I just switched over to Fi from AT&T. We were planning on getting the Pixel 7a on the subscription plan but we're told that the 6a was on the plan but out of stock permanently and the subscription service for the 7a was not yet available. Does anybody know of a way to check the subscription plans status without phoning the Fi support people?

A few months ago I received this offer from Google:

Join the Google Fi phone subscription program For $15 per month, the Google Fi phone subscription program includes a Pixel 4a, device protection, and a phone upgrade after 2 years.

The allure of this service for me is that it bundles in device protection for free, compared to buying a new phone outright.

When I log into the Google Fi website now, however, I find no reference to it.

I can still get to the advertising page for this service via Googling, but I can't actually find any way to sign up.

P.S. Google Fi is my phone service provider. I currently use it with a Pixel XL 2 that I bought outright for big bucks back in the day.

Edit: It turns out that it's even better than bundling in the device protection for free. You can choose to forgo the device protection and then it's only $9/per month. (I can live without the device protection since I'll still have a Pixel XL 2, which I can easily switch back to should I lose or break the Pixel 4a.

So, anyone else on the 5A subscription? Mine is up in Oct. On my app it says I can continue with the 7a but gives no details like if there's a price change. When I look at the crappy details they do give, it says pixel 6a, and still gives no price details. I chatted customer service and they said it's indeed the 6a (turd) and still no price info. Anyone have experience?

I'm about to pre-order the Pixel 6a but they don't have the usual monthly financing option. Instead they have a "Phone Subscription" option for $15/month for 24 months.

I'm wary of the concept but it seems like a good deal. You get a phone that costs $449 for $360 and the insurance, which I usually skip. What's the catch?

I got he Pixel 5a subscription 2 years ago ($9/month for 24 months) and the following year my wife got the same for the pixel 6a ($10/month for 24 months). This meant my wife got a new Pixel 6a for $240.

Now that my account says "Upgrade Eligible" the only option is a Pixel 7a for $20/month (if I remove device protection) for 24 months. But... I can actually buy a brand new Pixel 8 for $16.62/month WITHOUT a 2 year commitment to Fi. This means buying the Fi Phone Subscription means the Pixel 7a would be $480. Almost the same price as just buying it new.

Is this just the death of the subscription plan option, or is there something I'm missing? It doesn't seem worth it at all.

I knew it was too good to be true. The Google Fi online cart allows you to fill as a new customer with two items: the Flex plan for one user, plus a "free" Pixel 9 XL. I was so close to clicking through and buying, but instead I called Google Fi customer support. I got an English as second language Indian representative, difficult to understand, but I persisted. Finally I got him to understand my question, which was simple: "Is this offer true based on the cart?" After being put on hold several times, I finally got the truth: you can start the offer as a Flexible for 1 customer, but when you physically receive the "free" new phone you have to activate on an Unlimited plan to keep the phone and to honor the agreement. Never mind the complexities of porting a number during the online purchasing process -- good luck getting it back once you realize you want to back out. Ultimately, the cart purposefully permits a lie. You can PROCURE the "free" phone with Flex+1, but to KEEP the phone you have to sign up and pay $50-65 for Unlimited, not Flex at $20 ea + $10/GB. I guess you have to read the fine print carefully at the bottom, where it says "Monthly $52.55 - $112.25 before $20.84 credit" -- if the cart was true, that should say for Flex: "Monthly $20 ea + $10/GB" not "Monthly $52.55".

The cart is purposefully designed to be tricky. I shouldn't be surprised, Google is a money-making machine. I hope this helps someone who is just about to click through the Fi cart with Flex loaded up with a "free" phone. Don't do it! You'll be sorry in the end. You'll be stuck with an expensive plan if you want to keep your "free" phone having ported your desired number. If it was me in that position, I may very well have bent over and taken the pounding for 24 months, after which one could flip plans from Unlimited to Flex. But only after the 24 months of Unlimited expired. I'll just continue to buy refurbished Pixels from Amazon.

This is an old question but I could not find a satisfying answer yet. Maybe someone has any experience?

I switched from a Pixel 3 XL to a Samsung S21 and I realize I really miss some of the Pixel features. So I would like to get the Pixel 5a subscription and sell (or trade in) the S21. I think it's a pretty good deal at $9/month (without device protection). I’ve been a Fi customer for quite some time and I would stay on the plan for at least another 24 months. Further I would make sure to activate the phone within 30 days.

So what happens if I decide to buy a Pixel 6 later and gift the 5a to a family member (not on Fi)?

As far as I can see, the terms only say this:

To participate in the program, the user must:

1. Purchase an eligible subscription device from Google Fi and select the subscription during checkout. Device Protection is optional but recommended. If the owner purchases a subscription for another person on their plan, assign the subscription to that member of the group. If the customer is on an individual plan, the subscription is automatically assigned to them.

2. Pass the credit check requirement for financing the device.

3. Within 30 days of device shipment, activate the device on the purchaser’s Google Fi account.

4. To keep the subscription active, the assigned subscriber must stay on the plan.

5. Group plan members can’t purchase on their own. A group plan member must ask the group owner to purchase for them.

Important: If 3 and 4 aren’t met, the customer is charged the cancellation payout amount for their subscription.

--

So I don’t see where it says I have to keep the phone active after the initial activation. They usually do include that language for their other promos, e.g. this is what they say for the Samsung S20 promo: “Activate the phone [...] within 30 days [...] and keep the qualifying phone active on Google Fi for 120 consecutive days.”

I contacted Fi support through chat, they said I would need to keep the phone active, but only pointed to point 4 (see above) when I asked if they could point me to that language in the terms and conditions. So I am not 100% satisfied since the language is different.

There is a thread where someone is claiming they were charged full price after giving their phone away, but they did not say whether they violated the initial 30 day activation.

Does anyone have real life experience (based on a 4a subscription maybe)?

So, happy Fi subscriber for a long time. I'm just terribly confused right now. In Sept 2021 we added a line as part of the subscription program. I still have the welcome email that says, among other things it promotes, "You'll get a new Pixel after 2 years, and continue saving each month." Now, I'm trying to take them up on it, and there are two things that blow my mind:

1. It seems it's just a payment plan. I don't get a new Pixel for free. My monthly charges dropped at the end of the 24 months. So I'll get a monthly charge added to my bill if I change to a new phone.

2. The subscription is way more expensive than just buying a phone in the store. By "upgrading" my subscription, they are offering a 7a at $25.80 per month. If i just go to the online store, I can get a 7a for $12.46/month. So what is this subscription getting me????

I've had the flexible plan and a pixel phone subscription for 16 months.

My idea was to keep fi until the 2 year mark, thinking that it meant i owned my phone and could stop making payments after 2 years. However, reading the site again, does it actually mean that i can upgrade to a new phone and keep this one... But, I have to upgrade the phone and keep paying Google Fi? So, i have a anvil over my head for eternity that i need to keep fi or else I will eventually pay full price of a phone?

If i cancel early, i have to pay full remaining price (no discount) of the phone.