News about Google as a mobile carrier has been around since early this year and rumors are concluded after Sundar Pichai senior vice president of Android, Chrome and Apps at Google Inc. confirms the speculation. However, no other news or follow-ups arrive until the recent leaked app from Nexus 6 that provides the world first look at Google network.
The leaked picture was a firmware image of a Nexus Phablet which is initially uploaded at motofirmware.net which is now taken down as of this moment. AndroidPolice comments that the firmware is supposed to be available only for beta testers of an internal build, LVY47H constructed last February 16.
One interesting piece of the leaked application is Tycho.apk. The same source mentions that these kinds of beta applications are signed by a release key that remains unique it cannot be matched by current or previous keys Google has used.
Further research indicates that Tycho is the codename of the beta application Google uses as its carrier service interface. Moreover, AndroidPolice reports that Tycho allows users to partially activate the carrier service, request a new mobile number and even instigate a call transfer from the said application. More of its features include status updates as things or parameters change within the call or if issues and problems are encountered. It also becomes possible for users to open their own account, suspend an existing one or resume it just by using the application.
Tycho also mark a unique feature called Project Fi. It appears to be a payment scheme or service plans that credits unused data at the end of the month. Otherwise, any excess in data automatically charges a flat rate per gigabyte; and from what it looks like, there are no flat rates for both talk and text. Tycho also presents a separate rate for MMS and similar to Google Hangout, all calls within the United States comes for free and lower rates are charged for international calls.
A fresh innovation of Tycho which many users may find helpful is the feature of the application that allows users to switch from their primary device number to the app with just a press of a button. Other than the leaked photos, nothing much can be gathered from the future Google network and in fact, AndroidPolice warns that these leaked photos remains in the realm of speculations until formal announcements from Google.
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