Dog Food – My Move to Republic Wireless

I’ve owned an iPhone in one form or another (or it’s owned me) since 2008. I’ve never considered another device during that time. Not once. I skipped a few models along the way, but by and large I’ve followed the upgrade path. My wife owns an iPhone, my daughter had an iPhone. I’ve owned nothing but Macbook Pros for computers since they came out in 2006. I love Apple products.

Last November, Republic Wireless launched the new version of their service on the Moto X. The pricing for the most popular plan is $25 for all you can eat voice, texting and data. No contract required, but you have to buy the phone. I currently work for Bandwidth, the parent company of Republic. When the Moto X launched, I started to take a look at making the switch to Android. There were two reasons for this: 1. With one teenager in the house already and another one coming, our phone bills were getting outrageous. 2. The Republic product had evolved to a point where I could actually contemplate using something it.

Notice I didn’t say that our company coerced me into changing. I felt perfectly comfortable sitting in meetings with our CEO and my iPhone. I know it probably drove him crazy, but to his credit he let it lie. I did, however, feel like I needed to eat my own dog food. How could I really tell the story of how great a product Republic was when I was unwilling to use it?

A month ago I started carrying both phones. I started doing everything on my Republic Moto X but kept my phone number on my iPhone. At first I had all of the usual reactions you might expect. The device doesn’t feel the same in my hand as the iPhone 5. I never put a case on my iPhone 5 because I truly enjoyed the way the cool of the metal felt in my hand. The Moto X feels like a lot of other devices. I was a bit depressed.

As the month wore on I started to discover things I really liked about Republic, and some were in fact better than my previous device. The size of the display was actually better for consuming news feeds like the Wall St Journal and Twitter. The integration to all of the Google services I use every day was way better. Of the rest of the apps I use, some were better, and some were worse or non-existent. This was going to work.

A week ago I pulled the plug on my iPhone and moved my number to Republic. I also moved my daughter over this past week and bought her the new Moto G. She absolutely loves it. I’m going to have her write a review and post it here as well.

I get emotionally attached to beautiful things, so this move was not easy. My kids will tell you that I refer to my Macbook Pro computers as “my babies”, and treat them with the requisite care. The same goes for my iPhone. Putting it in the drawer felt very strange.

Here’s my take on the move.

Things I Miss About My iPhone

The Mailbox App – This app was a game changer for me. It’s not available on Android. Sucketh
The camera – Maybe I just don’t get the Moto X camera, but the iPhone camera was / is simply amazing.
The feel of the device – I know this is stupid, but it’s true.
The seamless integration into all of my other devices (AppleTV, Mac OSX, etc.)
IMessage – I’m currently stuck in iMessage hell where I’m not seeing a number of messages from my old iPhone friends. This is a known “bug” within iMessage, for which Apple is currently being sued. It’s clear to anyone who’s paying attention that Apple’s being childish here.
The type ahead and auto correction on the iPhone are way, way better.

Things I Love About Republic

The price. My phone bill is on its way from over $200 to about $50 once everyone’s converted.
The great integrations Android provides to Google. Previously mentioned, but it’s worth mentioning again. This stuff “just works”
Being a part of a company that’s punching entrenched telecom in the nuts. It’s the same reason we don’t have cable TV anymore. Be the change you want to see in the world.
The service is really, really good. I’m not just saying that. I wouldn’t use it if it wasn’t.

For those of you who want to know, here’s how I sequenced my transition in a bit more detail.

In early 2014, I contacted Cellbreaker to see if I could terminate my AT&T contract. If you’ve never heard of these guys and you want out of your current contract, you must check them out. 100% legal, they find where the carrier has violated their contract with you and then enforce your rights to terminate. Anyway, they did their thing and I started my extrication from AT&T
I turned up my Republic phone and started carrying it as a 2nd device. I would install apps here and there, see which ones I liked and test different things while keeping my iPhone as my primary device. If I found a new app I liked, I immediately checked to see if I could get it on my new Republic phone. If yes, yay! If no, boo! It was mostly “yay.”
In April I flipped it. I started putting my iPhone in my bag and carrying my Republic phone. My number was still with AT&T. I would check my Republic phone 2-3 times a day for missed calls and any missed messages.
Last weekend I ported my number away from AT&T, and ported my daughter’s number to her new Republic phone. Both numbers transitioned without a hiccup. Only my wife’s phone remains with AT&T. We’re working on that!

My dream scenario is to have Republic service on an iPhone. Until that day arrives, I’m really happy I’ve made the switch to Republic.