Public Mobile launched service in Toronto at 12:01 am Wednesday morning. Service to Mississauga and other suburban areas is expected in coming months.

Public Mobile is offering two plans in Toronto:


$24 unlimited talk –Includes unlimited local calling, call waiting, call forwarding and 3-way calling. Customers can add voicemail and call display for $8.

$40 unlimited talk and text – Includes unlimited local calling, voicemail & call display, call waiting, call forwarding and 3-way calling, plus choice of either unlimited Canada and US text messaging or unlimited Canadian long distance.


Additional add-on features include unlimited Canadian long distance for $5 a month or unlimited Canadian and US long distance, excluding Alaska and Hawaii for $10 a month.

FYI, Service in Montreal begins on June 25th.

A clarification: Public Mobile's $40 unlimited talk and text does NOT include Canadian LD. Canadian LD can be swapped for text -- that is, turn it into a voice only plan.

So, it's really $45 for unlimited Canadian calling, unlimited Canadian/US texting, VM, Caller ID.

The current coverage is extremely limited -- parts of GTA only. There is no roaming at all -- when you leave the coverage area, the phone service is kaput. Coverage, according to their maps, is the 427 on the west, Steeles Av on the north, and hwy 30 (Markham Pickering townline) on the east.

Also, there are 23 stores in GTA and 13 in Montreal (where there is no service for another month) -- that's somewhat shy of the 60 on the blog page.

By contrast, Wind Mobile has a $45 plan with the same features: unlimited Canadian calling, unlimited Canadian/US texting, VM, Caller ID -- and a much broader network extending well past GTA, and adding Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary and, in a few days, Vancouver. Plus they have a roaming agreement offering 2G service when out of Wind territory; your phone service is NOT kaput. There are about 35 stores (including Blockbuster locations) in GTA to serve you, and 50+ in total across Canada. And you can subscribe to post-paid if you prefer not to pay as you go.

But wait! There's more! At Mobilicity, that same $45 buys you unlimited Canadian calling, unlimited Canadian/US texting, VM, Caller ID. And while the network is modest in this "soft launch" phase, there are "imminent" plans to extend to approximately the same footprint as Wind Mobile and with a similar roaming arrangement. Plus they will have 250+ retail locations in GTA shortly. Best of all, you can swap (unlocked) phones from Wind to Mobilicity and back to Wind and get full 3G service; 3G phones on Bell, Rogers, Telus are not compatible.

Good notes. Thanks.

Excellent news. I would suggest that theses companies should also look into the study which said Canadian consumers are also attracted by free phones.

People are so dumb that they don't care what the plans are, instead if you flash a shinny new phone, they'll sign the contract. So even though these new companies are offering no credit check, no contract AND unlimited gta, some people simply go to big three cause they offer free or low cost phones.

And of course then you hear people complain about CRTC. Well here's your chance guys. Pay for the darn phone and get your new plans.

A new CDMA carrier in this day and age...and not offering severe discounts to compensate for it?

That's about as exciting as a new AM radio station.

Mobilicity is HSPA, not CDMA - hence why you can bring an unlocked phone from Wind Mobile and vice-versa.

They don't have the same HSPA frequencies as Bell/Telus/Rogers.

(edit - my bad, got confused with which provider the topic is referring to).

On the basis of what we are seeing none of the entrants are offering true "mobile phone" service and won't be for sometime to come. Wind is a bit better but still limited to major cities, Mobilicity and Public Mobile are more like wired phones with a long cord. Public Mobile won't work at all outside Toronto and Montreal this year. Mobilicity and Wind will work but users will start racking up roaming fees that make the presumed savings disappear quickly. For all of them, "unlimited" plans are expensive except for a small minority of heavy users (based on Canadian stats for how much we use our mobile phones - most of us don't spend 1000 minutes a month on the phone or download 5Gb of data).

Having looked at the plans from all three newcomers now, I can safely say none of them meet my needs. Until the new challengers can build our their networks, which will take a few years at best, the incumbents have little to worry about as they are selling a very different product; one which (maybe?) warrants a different pricing structure.

Mobilicity and Wind will work but users will start racking up roaming fees that make the presumed savings disappear quickly.
YOU forgot to include the $0.35 that the incumbents charge for LD, when you are outside your LCA. This is $0.10 more expensive than the roaming fees that WInd charges and $0.15 more than Mobilicity's roaming rates. Both Wind and Mobilicity do not charge LD fees while in Canada, while roaming. Wind also does not charge LD fee while you are roaming in the US, so that is a lot cheaper than the incumbents too.

Mobilicity is HSPA, not CDMA - hence why you can bring an unlocked phone from Wind Mobile and vice-versa.

They don't have the same HSPA frequencies as Bell/Telus/Rogers.
The thread topic is Public Mobile.

Oops. I got confused with the comparison between Wind, Mobilicity, and Public Mobile. For some reason I thought the last two were the same.

(goes to wash egg of his face).

............(based on Canadian stats for how much we use our mobile phones - most of us don't spend 1000 minutes a month on the phone or download 5Gb of data)..............


Oit......sorry to hear none of the new comers doin any good for you. Like you said it might take few years.

Btw, I tried looking up the Canadian stats for mobile phones you mentioned above but could not find it. Would you be kind enough to send the link please. Thanks.

Basicly Public Mobile is for people in Toronto who do not own a car and are possibly thinking of getting rid of their landline phone.

I want to ditch Telus and switch to one of these new carriers but none go up to Barrie and the southwest side of Lake Simcoe. :( I need those areas in the summer time. :cool:

On the basis of what we are seeing none of the entrants are offering true "mobile phone" service and won't be for sometime to come. Wind is a bit better but still limited to major cities, Mobilicity and Public Mobile are more like wired phones with a long cord. Public Mobile won't work at all outside Toronto and Montreal this year. Mobilicity and Wind will work but users will start racking up roaming fees that make the presumed savings disappear quickly. For all of them, "unlimited" plans are expensive except for a small minority of heavy users (based on Canadian stats for how much we use our mobile phones - most of us don't spend 1000 minutes a month on the phone or download 5Gb of data).

I think you underestimate the number of people who rarely leave the city. Personally I spend only a couple of weeks outside of the GTA each year, and while I'm travelling I don't use my phone much. I am considering getting a prepaid SIM for my phone next month as I'm planning a short trip, but I might not even bother. There are a lot of teens/young adults and seniors for example who don't travel much.

I also wonder how much of that limited use is due to fear of going over usage caps. It also doesn't account for the people who will replace their landline with an unlimited plan.

Hard to imagine a business model that relies on low ARPU subs is going to be able grow their footprint very rapidly.

Of course, that being said, I average $1000 CAD per month on wireless for the family, and Rogers still has no service at my house!!