Reliance Jio 4G services go live today for all, here are 3 things you should know

Reliance is launching its services for all users today in India. All you need is a 4G smartphone to get a free SIM card and then 4 months of free unlimited data, voice calling and messages.

How to Get Reliance Jio 4G SIM Card?

First of all, the Welcome offer is free and you need not play for a SIM card. The service is now applicable for all 4G smartphones starting today. You can head over to a Reliance Digital or Digital Xpress Mini store starting today to get a free SIM card. All you need to carry with you is a photocopy of your Photo ID with address, and a couple of passport size photographs.

If you live in Delhi or Mumbai, you can also get your SIM card activated quickly through AADHAAR based e-KYC. You need to carry your AADHAAR card and using your fingerprint, your details would be captured and your SIM card will be activated before you walk out of the store.

As far as we have heard there is no need to generate a code from your smartphone to get the offer but we would still recommend installing the My Jio app before heading to a store.

Reliance Jio MNP - When and How?

We have got confirmation that MNP has been started for Reliance Jio 4G, but we would suggest not to implement MNP atleast before the Welcome Offer ends on December 31st. The network is still being tested, and given the large scale at which the network is being launched there are many kinks that need to be worked out.

We already have a detailed post on how to port from Airtel, Idea, Vodafone to Reliance Jio. You can check out here.

Why is Reliance giving free Welcome Offer to all?

The welcome offer till December 31st is both for Reliance testing its interconnect with other networks and also giving users a chance to see how well their network works. Till now the services have been quite inconsistent with frequent call drops, call drops not going through and fluctuating 4G data speeds. But given the unprecedented scale of an IP based 4G network going live at the same time for lakhs of users, while all other networks in the country are based on circuit switched technology, some issues are bound to arise.

Reliance has accused other carriers of not providing enough interconnect points causing call drops. But Jio is going to make this data public on its website soon, taking Airtel, Idea and Vodafone to task. Once the network goes fully functional in January 2017, other carriers would be forced to comply or face TRAI's wrath.

We have covered all details about Jio 4G plans and services which come into play from January next year, you can have a look below.

More Reliance Jio 4G Coverage:

• Everything you need to know about Reliance Jio Plans, Pricing and Data Plans
• Reliance Jio 4G Update: Night Timing, "Unlimited" welcome offer capped to 4GB per day
• Reliance Jio 4G is not as cheap as thought

There has been a lot said about Jio's services and plans as to how it's not as cheap as was announced. While I do get that, its plans are still cheaper than every other carrier in India at present. Moreover, there's no real reason to not use the welcome offer to test their services, it's free after all.

Update 6th September 2016:

Details on MNP updated after confirmation from Reliance Jio.