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It’s been awhile since we last heard from Republic Wireless ever since they turned the wireless world upside down with their $20 a month hybrid unlimited plans. Now they’re back with their open beta program, and it looks like they’ve brought with them the all new mid-level Motorola Defy XT. The device is a definite upgrade from the original LG Optimus One, back when they first opened up their beta.
The Defy XT is a rugged device featuring dust/water resistance and comes with a 3.7-inch display, 1GHz processor, 5MP rear/.3MP front facing cameras, 512MB of RAM, 1GB of internal storage and running on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. The device is being sold for $250 which may sound a little pricey to some, but for a $20 a month unlimited talk, text, data plan — it’s hard to complain.
Those that were signed up for the beta first time around are being offered $100 off an upgrade to the new Moto device. As a refresher, Republic Wireless uses modified handsets that work using their hybrid technology — that is, all traffic is meant to be used on WiFi and switches over to Sprint’s network as backup. Full press release below.
Republic Wireless Further Disrupts Wireless Market; Reopens Beta & Introduces New Motorola Android™-powered Smartphone
$19 Unlimited Talk, Text & Data on Motorola DEFY™ XT
Cary, NC July 31, 2012 – republic wireless, a division of Bandwidth, and the nation’s first Wi-Fi-centric mobile operator, today reopened its $19/month unlimited Beta to new customers, offering an all-new handset, the Motorola DEFY XT.
With the Motorola DEFY XT, republic wireless members enjoy the features and functionality of an Android™-powered smartphone in a durable design. Water-resistant, dustproof, and scratch-resistant with its Corning® Gorilla® Glass display, the DEFY XT is a smartphone that can keep up with life. It features a crystal-clear 3.7-inch display, 1GHz processor, 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, and Dynamic Widgets to provide quick access to favorite apps and contacts with automatic updates based on preferences.
The Motorola DEFY XT features republic’s proprietary Hybrid Calling technology to leverage Wi-Fi as the primary network, and uses the cellular network as a backup only when needed. It will be offered to republic members for $249, and $19/month for unlimited talk, text and data, with no contracts.
“Since launching last year, republic has disrupted the wireless industry in a way few could have ever imagined,” said David Morken, founder & CEO of Bandwidth. “Consumers are flocking to republic because they’re fed up with the status quo. We’ve liberated them from a world of so-called “unlimited” plans that have caps on data usage, hidden fees, long-term contracts and other restrictions. We’ve set a new bar and we’re ushering in a new era of Wi-Fi-first wireless for millions more people.”
“We’re thrilled to reopen our Beta today and unveil the Motorola DEFY XT,” said Brian Dally, GM of republic. “Today marks a major milestone of our resolute effort to build an engine that can scale to handle millions of members. Your republic is still an unmatched $19 a month for unlimited service that keeps getting better. ”
The beta will re-open today, July 31 and the company will begin accepting orders from individuals that claimed a spot in a Beta wave earlier this year.
Cost of republic service will remain the same, with:
■ $19 per month for unlimited text, talk and data over Wi-Fi and cellular (plus taxes)
■ No contracts, no overages and no hidden fees
■ New members get a 30-day money-back satisfaction guarantee
■ And there is no early-termination fee if members wish to cancel their serviceMotorola DEFY XT features:
■ Dust-proof and water resistant, with a Corning® Gorilla® Glass display that resists scuffs and scratches
■ Quick access to your favorite activities and the friends and family you contact most
■ See and be seen with the front-facing VGA webcam for video chats, plus a 5 MP camera with auto-focus, LED flash and 4x digital zoom
■ Access more than 600,000 apps and games available on Google Play™ as well as millions of books and songs and thousands of movies and TV shows.
■ Customizable activity dashboards provide additional functionality with access to an integrated compass, pedometer, music player, and weather
■ 1650 mAh battery, for optimized performance and longer life-proof funThe company also announced that its original members will soon be offered the opportunity to upgrade from LG Optimus to the Motorola DEFY XT for just $149. This $100 discount is in appreciation of members’ support and feedback during the beta period.
For more information, and to join a wave, please visit: http://republicwireless.com/
To connect with the republic community, please visit: http://republicwireless.com/forum
About republic
Headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, republic wireless, a division of Bandwidth, is an innovative new carrier spearheading a wireless freedom movement to return value and control of the smartphone experience to our members. Leveraging the power of the Internet and an engaged community of users, republic wireless offers unlimited voice, text, and data service for only $19 per month, with no contract. republic wireless’ Hybrid Calling enables its smartphones to use Wi-Fi in the home, office or anywhere else as the primary network for calls. When outside of Wi-Fi coverage, the smartphone seamlessly uses the cellular network.About Bandwidth
Bandwidth is among the nation’s largest and fastest-growing communication technology companies. The company operates four divisions – inetwork, Phonebooth, Broadband and republic wireless – that all share a mission of transforming the communications industry. Across the four divisions, Bandwidth provides a full range of communications services, including wholesale voice origination and termination, a full suite of 9-1-1 services, hosted VoIP and internet connectivity service for SMBs, and a consumer wireless business. Founded in 1999, and a certified CLEC in 49 states, Bandwidth is a profitable company headquartered in Cary, NC with a large remote office in Denver, CO and field offices in eight other cities. For more information, please visit www.bandwidth.com.MOTOROLA and the Stylized M Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Motorola Trademark Holdings, LLC. Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google, Inc. Corning and Gorilla are registered trademarks of Corning Incorporated. 2012 Motorola Mobility LLC. All rights reserved.
They’re purposefully holding back on badass, consume-lots-of-media phones. This is for casual users, not stream Netflix over 3G types. Pretty sure that’s why they’re using these low-rent phones.
holy damn! for this i WOULD switch over! :D
Motorola Defy? O_o
when you’ve gone from an HTC Sensation to an AT&T Fusion and you can’t cough up a lot of franklins, this will do perfectly, trust -,-
They should somehow get a CDMA version of the Galaxy Nexus to work on their network for the Google Play price of $349
This is stupid if you make it your primary phone because there will be several instances of wifi-less regions what if you are traveling and are constantly making calls over the network? are they going to drop you because your CUI index is too high??
Well, their service isn’t really for everyone. Definitely not travelers or those away from WiFi most of the time.
For those reading this and thinking $19/month is the greatest thing since
sliced bread – THINK AGAIN. Republic Wireless offers NO CUSTOMER SERVICE
and NO CUSTOMER SUPPORT. If you want support, you have to follow them
on Twitter, FB or read page after page after page of useless forum posts in the hope of finding solutions to your problems. If you have questions or concerns,
forget the dozen of emails they force you to send, just to be ignored;
call them directly to get the help you deserve.
Republic Wireless phone numbers:
919-297-1079 – Brian Dally, manager of RW
919-297-1010 – David Morken, CEO
919-297-1037 – Adam Oakley, order fulfilment specialist
919-297-1100 – this is an automated company directory. If you know the last name of
someone at RW, you can reach them that way too.
Tim Jones, cell phone product specialist
Sandra Perez, sr. manager of customer care team
Sarah Davis, admin of forums/community boards
Sean Rivers, admin of forums/community board
Jessica Orr, marketing/community specialist
(BTW, I found these at Yelp, where they get negative marks – not to mention the complaints against them at the Better Business Bureau)
What don’t you regards understand? This is beta testing and this is a great idea. If this pans out over time and republic actually grows then I’m sure the service and product will grow. These are the only people in the US actually challenging the major carriers that are ripping us off. This is a good thing and its def not a plan for the light hearted or non techie crowd at this moment-hence the word ‘Beta’.
gingerbread?…