Google Project Fi Experience/Coverage?

[halfbask]

I'm about to purchase a Nexus 6P and subscribe to Project Fi for use during the month of September. Curious if anyone has experience on the Camino Frances. Any surprises, anecdotes, successes, etc.

 

[Tincatinker]

Had to use Google to translate your question - have moved it to the 'mobiles' thread.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I heard about ProjectFi on this forum and researched how it might work internationally. One website discussed this for Spain and New Zealand (both of interest for me) and it said it pretty much just works. So I picked up a Nexus 5X and I'm using ProjectFi on it. It is my first smartphone. I haven't used it internationally yet though.

A camino related aspect is the camera. The pictures look great but it has a really wide-angle lens making it easiest to use for scenery shots. Another thing to note is that the default app for the camera has little in the way of control. Look into installing an additional app and getting some practice using it before you go. I'm going to research ProShot.

Consider having the camera add GPS data to your photos.

Not camino related is this gripe I have. ProjectFi uses Sprint and T-mobile as its partners in the US. I live in a metropolitan area of 300,000 but at home I only get a mid-strength cellular signal. Just 3 miles away I get no signal. I hardily ever use the smartphone as a phone but I may still possibly drop ProjectFi for this reason. ProjectFi lets you do this easily and the phone is unlocked so can use another carrier.

Even if you have the same problem locally you may want to stay with ProjectFi until you finish your camino.

I believe that calling home from Spain will cost you 20 cents a minute (if you use cellular) but ProjectFi attempts to use Wifi first in which case it shouldn't cost you anything and free Wifi is easy to find along the camino. I think cellular calls within Spain are covered by your monthly charge and you do not have to get a new SIM card.

So, probably the only thing that you didn't know that is of help here is my opinion of the camera and app.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

On a walk a couple more thoughts about ProjectFi on the camino came into my head.

1) This isn't specific to ProjectFi but the contact phone numbers you entered into your phone at home will have to have an exit prefix and country code dialled before the number. You might want to copy the number in your "Home" contact to a "MiCasa" contact with the international prefix added.

2) The Nexus phone comes with a charger that will quickly charge the phone. This has a USB type C jack. This means that you will want a plug adaptor so you can plug the supplied charger into a Spanish electrical outlet. Tape the charger and adaptor together so you don't pull the charger from the outlet leaving the adaptor behind (like I did.)

3) You may also want to take a cord that has a USB type B jack on one side and a USB type C jack on the other side to be able to charge the phone in case you lose the supplied charger (borrowing someone else's USB type B charger until you get your own.) They are likely going to be impossible to find on the camino. The phone will take longer to charge via USB type B.

4) ProjectFi should try to use WiFi (if available) to call internationally. Rather than risking a long call at 20 cents per minute via cellular you could try disabling cellular and enabling WiFi to force the phone to use the cheaper way. Enable cellular afterwards so calls can get to you.

An April 2016 review of ProjectFi discusses how well the service worked in Madrid: http://toomanyadapters.com/project-fi-travel/