Rain on Wednesday launched the LoopPhone, a smartphone designed exclusively for its network, bundled “free to use” with new unlimited mobile plans – the data-first operator’s most direct assault yet on South Africa’s mobile incumbents.
The month-to-month plans are priced by zone: R595/month buys unlimited data within a chosen city, R695 within a province and R995 countrywide, all with unlimited local calls and SMS nationwide. The two cheaper plans include a data allocation for use outside the selected zone, with top-ups at R20/GB.
Rain, a private company that publishes no subscriber numbers or financial results and rarely engages with the press, announced the launch through paid placements in consumer media.
“Most South Africans don’t need unlimited data across the entire country every day – they need it where they live, work and connect,” said Rain CEO Conrad Leigh in the paid-for material. “By bringing together our national 4G and 5G network, ‘smartswitching’ and LoopPhone, we’ve created a mobile experience designed around how people actually use data.”
The LoopPhone was developed by LoopDL, which Rain cryptically describes as its “product and design partner” – the same branding behind the Loop, the Android-powered portable router Rain launched in July 2025. The specifications include a 6.83-inch Amoled display plus a rear “glance display” that turns the 200-megapixel main camera into a selfie camera, a 7 000mAh silicon-anode battery – a chemistry only now appearing in global flagships – eSim and NFC support, 5G standalone connectivity and Android 16 with Google’s Gemini AI built in.
The fine print
LoopDL’s “smartswitching” software handles the zone logic automatically: inside the chosen unlimited area, data is uncapped; outside it, the phone switches to per-gigabyte billing without the user changing settings.
The handset is “free” to use for as long as the subscription is active – but it remains Rain’s property. Cancel, and the phone must be returned, or “Rain may lock it”, according to the operator’s published terms. Customers who prefer to own the device can buy it outright for R7 999, which knocks R150/month off the plan price.
There are trade-offs in the fine print that Rain’s launch materials don’t dwell on: speeds on the unlimited plans are capped at up to 20Mbit/s, and hotspot use is excluded from the unlimited allowance, billed instead at R20/GB.
Super chuffed with the team @rainSouthAfrica who launched Unlimited but affordable 4G/5G Mobile today. Plus a very cool, free-to-use smartphone. Incredible transformation of the floundering WBS that a group of us bought in 2015.
— Michael Jordaan (@MichaelJordaan) July 8, 2026
The launch also upgrades Rain’s flagship convergence bundle. The new “rainOne unlimited” combines unlimited 5G home Wi-Fi with an unlimited City mobile plan for R995/month, with both the operator’s 101 smart router and a LoopPhone included.
Whether South Africans will embrace a high-spec phone they rent rather than own – one the operator can lock remotely, on a network whose owner declines to say how many customers it has – is the experiment now under way. – © 2026 NewsCentral Media
