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Google adds bare-bones unlimited plan to its Fi wireless service

The search giant is trying to attract more customers with cheaper rates.

Richard Nieva Former senior reporter
Richard Nieva was a senior reporter for CNET News, focusing on Google and Yahoo. He previously worked for PandoDaily and Fortune Magazine, and his writing has appeared in The New York Times, on CNNMoney.com and on CJR.org.
Richard Nieva
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Google added a new plan to its Fi wireless service.

Angela Lang/CNET

Google on Thursday said it's adding a new no-frills phone plan to its Google Fi wireless service, as the company tries to attract more customers with cheaper rates. 

The new plan, called Simply Unlimited, offers only unlimited calls, texting and data. It's the service's new entry-level tier, stripping away extras like international calls and hotspot capabilities. (Those extra features will now be available with Fi's second-tier plan, called Unlimited Plus.)

The Simply Unlimited plan starts at $30 per line for three phone lines, $45 per line for two lines and $60 for one line. 

Google isn't a major player in the wireless market, but the search giant has in the past used Fi to test models and services it hopes the greater wireless industry will adopt. When Fi first launched six years ago, it offered a novel pay-as-you-go plan that charged customers only for the data they used. The company also offered a new technology to allow users to switch automatically between cellular and Wi-Fi signals while on a call.

The pay-as-you-go plan is still around, but Google has since begun offering more traditional plans, after customers said they wanted to pay a consistent price each month.