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In November 2018 Google renamed its mobile network service from Project Fi to Google Fi. 9to5Google reported that the new logo uses the four Google colours, in different shades from the main brand, along with dots, giving the service a mark that plainly belongs to the Google family.

Ars Technica reported that the rename came with a bigger product change: the service, previously limited to a handful of Google-approved phones, would now work with most Android devices and with iPhones. The outlet also noted Google-coloured line art in the new branding and that Fi flyers were being sent out with Pixel 3 purchases.

The Verge's Dieter Bohn spelled out what the rename meant. Three years after launch, Fi was graduating into something more ambitious; the headline's verdict was that the service looked here to stay. iPhone support was in beta and needed a few extra steps through a new iOS app, with visual voicemail lost but iMessage working, and phones not designed for Fi would stay on T-Mobile's network rather than switching between T-Mobile, Sprint and US Cellular. Pricing stayed simple: 20 dollars a line and 10 dollars per gigabyte, capped under Bill Protection. Bohn admitted he had harboured doubts about Google's commitment, given its mixed record with communication services and Google Fiber's faltering rollout, and said the expansion eased them.

Dropping Project from the name is the point. Project signals an experiment, something that might not last. Google Fi sounds like a product that intends to stay.

Opening the service to iPhones is what makes the name change matter. A carrier that only works on a few phones can live with a side-project name; one aiming at the mainstream cannot.

Ars Technica explained why compatibility had been so narrow. Fi works as a mobile virtual network operator, owning no towers and bundling the T-Mobile, Sprint and US Cellular networks so a phone can jump between them, which needs special hardware and software. That left a whopping six compatible current phones: the Pixel 3 and Pixel 2, Moto G6 and X4, and LG G7 and V35. It warned that the wider support did not really fix the problem. A new name cannot paper over a technical limit, and the honest caveats in the coverage show how much of the promise sat in the logo rather than the network.

The visual work is safe. Four colours and dots put Fi firmly in Google's system, which helps recognition but does little to give the service its own personality. For a brand that had to convince people to switch carriers, borrowed familiarity was probably worth more than originality.