Comment Re:thats the problem with US phone networks (Score 3, Informative) 210
Just a comment:
Only the major US carriers use "locked phones", smaller regional carriers can't afford to pay the manufacturers to lock their phones. (These fees also include the special logos, menus, and apps) So, if you purchase a GSM phone (CDMA is another story) from one of these small guys, odds are that it won't be sim locked. This means you can use it with any service provider. No hacks required. The only real drawback is that these small carriers don't always carry the latest tech due to cost. As for CDMA, I understand they are moving the tech towards using a chip similar to a SIM. Maybe one day you will be able to move from CDMA to GSM and back simply by swapping a chip.
Only the major US carriers use "locked phones", smaller regional carriers can't afford to pay the manufacturers to lock their phones. (These fees also include the special logos, menus, and apps) So, if you purchase a GSM phone (CDMA is another story) from one of these small guys, odds are that it won't be sim locked. This means you can use it with any service provider. No hacks required. The only real drawback is that these small carriers don't always carry the latest tech due to cost. As for CDMA, I understand they are moving the tech towards using a chip similar to a SIM. Maybe one day you will be able to move from CDMA to GSM and back simply by swapping a chip.
