Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?
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I'm thinking of upgrading my cell phone but I have 5 months left on my contract so my carrier isn't going to do me any favors if I go through them. My phone has a 4G LTE SIM card in it. If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
My carrier is US Cellular, old phone is a Samsung ATIV Windows Phone 8. US Cellular has dumped Windows Phone and there is no upgrade path to WP10, plus the app store finally seems stagnant. I want to try out a Gear VR or Google Cardboard setup so I'm thinking of switching to a Galaxy S7.
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@mott555 It worked for me, but it's a different carrier and country. You could test putting your SIM in some friend's phone
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
My phone has a 4G LTE SIM card in it. If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
You might have to call them and have them "unlock" the old phone before you take the SIM out, but if you do they're required by law to do it for you for free.
It took like maybe 10 minutes on the phone. That was with AT&T.
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It always used to be the phones that were locked to a specific SIM, not the other way around. A potential problem would be if the new phone used a SIM with different physical dimensions.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Galaxy S7.
Bad idea.
Ask @NeighborhoodButcher if you need to know why :p
Isn't US Cellular a CDMA network? It's harder to get unlocked phones for those networks...
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@PleegWat To be honest I was confused about the whole "lock/unlock" thing. Maybe you're right.
All I know is my sister-in-law wanted my hand-me-down phone and I had to call up AT&T and unlock something somewhere somehow to make it work.
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Always Unlocked. First to get updated.
And pure Android, no TouchWiz crap
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
My phone has a 4G LTE SIM card in it. If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
Probably. You might have to cut it or request a smaller format from your carrier.
@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
I want to try out a Gear VR or Google Cardboard setup so I'm thinking of switching to a Galaxy S7.
If you're going high-end, I can recommend Nexus 6P. Or hold out until the next generation of Nexuses.... Nexii... whatever comes out.
As for Gear VR, it should no longer be a Samsung-specific tech by autumn.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
If the phone is actually unlocked, then yes.
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@asdf said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
If the phone is actually unlocked, then yes.
It's a CDMA network so I don't know if it will "just work". They're more complicated
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
All I know is my sister-in-law wanted my hand-me-down phone and I had to call up AT&T and unlock something somewhere somehow to make it work.
Yeah, some phones are locked to a specific carrier and you need to get them unlocked to use a different carrier's SIM card in it.
Anyone remember those shady "Nokia 3510i unlock codes" websites where you put your IMEI in and it rattled out seven or so codes, telling you one of them will possibly work, but if you try too many times your phone will get bricked? Good times, good times.
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Well damn, apparently US Cellular uses CDMA and all the unlocked phones I can find are GSM and not compatible or something.
I'll at least talk to my carrier and see what the official option is. Maybe they'll feel sorry for abandoning us Windows Phone users.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
. If I buy an unlocked phone online and put my current SIM card in it, everything will just work?
assuming your carrier supports it yes.
there may be a hoop or two getting the settings you need for data to work, and you'll need to register your IMEI with your carrier, but other than that initial setup hassle..... yeah everything should just work.
@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Galaxy S7.
samsung?!
ICKY!
if you're going to pay for a new carrier unlocked phone then get the Nexus 5x or 6p. same price tag (or less. Amazon has the S7 carrier unloced in the 600ish range, the 6p starts at 500) and they run AOSP so not only do you get updates practically as soon as google publishes them, but you also have the option to more or less hassle free run a custom ROM, such as the ever popular CyanogenMod.
extra bonus, if you want you can sign up for Google Fi a pay as you go celular service that works with the 5x and 6p (as well as the older nexus 6) that gives you access to all of AT&T, T-Mobile, AND Us Cellular's towers (the GSM towers only in the case of us cellular) for only $20/mo+taxes/fees+0.01$/MB data (prepaid, excess refunded and applied to next month's bill)
my average montnly bill's about $25.
of course that whole prices thing, and the availibility of Fi will vary if you live outside of the US.... but IIRC that doesn't apply to you in this case.
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@TimeBandit Why does the Nexus 6P say "Hauwei" on it? Is Google just re-branding Chinese crap?
Also why does it come in "champagne"?
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Nexus 6P say "Hauwei" on it?
because Hauwei makes it.
the 5x says LG because LG makes that one.
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@TimeBandit Why does the Nexus 6P say "Hauwei" on it? Is Google just re-branding Chinese crap?
Also why does it come in "champagne"?
Every Nexus is manufactured by a non-Google manufacturer.
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@mott555 CDMA is dead technology. You could at least switch to Verizon which also uses it, but at least is popular enough to have a big device selection.
Your life might be more sane if you switched to a non-CDMA carrier.
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@accalia +1 on Google Fi. It's actually pretty good. Price is good too.
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@sloosecannon said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Every Nexus is manufactured by a non-Google manufacturer.
So why the fuck would you buy it from Google and not from Hauwieiswieiei? Doesn't that just add markup for no reason?
EDIT: I guess not, even Hauweiiweiiwe sells the Google-branded version on their official store. At the same price. Go figure.
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@sloosecannon said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Every Nexus is manufactured by a non-Google manufacturer.
So why the fuck would you buy it from Google and not from Hauwieiswieiei? Doesn't that just add markup for no reason?
Because you can't?
It's a phone specifically manufactured as a Nexus...
And the Nexi are probably some of the cheapest phones out there period. Not much markup there...
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Well damn, apparently US Cellular uses CDMA and all the unlocked phones I can find are GSM and not compatible or something.
Nexus 6P
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@sloosecannon said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Price is good too.
$10 per gig? Sounds like it's a little on the expensive side, isn't it?
Poland has - taking the first offer I could find - $5 for 6GB or $12 for unlimited with 1Mbps speed after 10 gigs, but even in the US it looks like you have better data plans. And since unlimited calls and texts seem to be standard these days...
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@sloosecannon said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@accalia +1 on Google Fi. It's actually pretty good. Price is good too.
extra bonus, you can buy the nexus phone through project fi and spread the payments for the phone over 2 years. you're under contract at that point though, so you may want to just pay for the phone outright
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@Maciejasjmj said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@sloosecannon said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Price is good too.
$10 per gig? Sounds like it's a little on the expensive side, isn't it?
Poland has - taking the first offer I could find - $5 for 6GB or $12 for unlimited with 1Mbps speed after 10 gigs, but even in the US it looks like you have better data plans. And since unlimited calls and texts seem to be standard these days...
Not for the US it isn't....You can get cheaper plans if you do one of the sketchy super-cheap providers, but that's a pretty good deal for the service you get.
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@Maciejasjmj said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
$10 per gig? Sounds like it's a little on the expensive side, isn't it?
downright cheap for the states.
i wish it was as cheap as you blokes get data in the old country, but it ain't.....
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@accalia And you can get $150 rebate on the Nexus 6P when you buy it from Google and activate it on Project Fi
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@accalia Hmm, Project Fi looks worthwhile. Historically my data usage is under 200 MB a month, so overall this would be MUCH cheaper than my current plan.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
all the unlocked phones I can find are GSM
Yeah, that's what I ran into as well.
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@mott555 Ugh. Despite their coverage map showing full coverage for my city, when I tried to sign up it told me there was no coverage for my ZIP code.
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
So why the fuck would you buy it from Google and not from Hauwieiswieiei? Doesn't that just add markup for no reason?
Google wants to showcase the latest Android. So every year or so they partner with one or two phone makers to release an Android phone that's co-branded Nexus and the manufacturer.
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@Maciejasjmj said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
$10 per gig? Sounds like it's a little on the expensive side, isn't it?
Not for the US.
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@FrostCat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@Maciejasjmj said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
$10 per gig? Sounds like it's a little on the expensive side, isn't it?
Not for the US.
Oh huh. You guys are getting ripped the fuck off.
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@Maciejasjmj said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Oh huh. You guys are getting ripped the fuck off.
We know.
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@mott555 WTF does their map show excellent coverage for most of my state and then tell me there is no service in my state?
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@mott555 This is pants-on-head retarded. I read that some people lied about their ZIP code so they could sign up and then had it delivered here, and it worked just fine. So I tried that. It let me advance in the sign-up, but as soon as I put in my phone number it basically said "F*** you we hate Nebraska." In short, Project Fi works just fine in Nebraska but only if you don't have a Nebraska phone number.
All this headache because my carrier gave me a Nebraska phone number when I initially signed up for service almost ten years ago, even though I didn't even live in Nebraska yet and wouldn't for many years.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
In short, Project Fi works just fine in Nebraska but only if you don't have a Nebraska phone number.
Get Google Voice. Pick non-Nebraska number. Troll Google Fi.
Or move out of Nebraska. :)
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@blakeyrat You buy Nexuses because the Google branding translates to better software support. At least that's the theory.
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Alternative: (assumes you live in Omaha; you could try a variation elsewhere in the state) cross river to Council Bluffs. Get tracfone. Use THAT number to register with Fi.
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@FrostCat I really don't want to deal with the headache of changing my phone number and updating eleventy-billion contacts and agencies and banks and so on.
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Don't forget that you need to also make sure that whatever phone you buy supports the LTE bands that your carrier uses.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@mott555 This is pants-on-head retarded. I read that some people lied about their ZIP code so they could sign up and then had it delivered here, and it worked just fine. So I tried that. It let me advance in the sign-up, but as soon as I put in my phone number it basically said "F*** you we hate Nebraska." In short, Project Fi works just fine in Nebraska but only if you don't have a Nebraska phone number.
All this headache because my carrier gave me a Nebraska phone number when I initially signed up for service almost ten years ago, even though I didn't even live in Nebraska yet and wouldn't for many years.
Damn, that sucks.
Perhaps try contacting support? They might be able to force it :/
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@blakeyrat said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@mott555 CDMA is dead technology. You could at least switch to Verizon which also uses it, but at least is popular enough to have a big device selection.
Your life might be more sane if you switched to a non-CDMA carrier.
It's not dead if one of the most popular carriers is using it.
IIRC: GSM splits the available bandwidth by device, so each device connected to a tower has exclusive access to that range while connected, but that means that devices in really high usage areas or at high usage times could potentially fail to connect. On the other hand, CDMA switches access so that each device connected gets all the bandwidth for a short time, but then has to give it up for the next device in the queue. In high usage situations, an unlimited number of devices can be connected, but as more devices are added, everyone's access slows down proportionally. I think the newer versions of GSM are trying to mix these methods.
This can have a noticeable effect on battery life, since a GSM device can turn off its radio if it knows it doesn't need it, but a CDMA device has to be always on to catch its next turn at "Round Robin".
@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
@mott555 WTF does their map show excellent coverage for most of my state and then tell me there is no service in my state?
The map probably just shows the generic coverage area for cell service, but the actual coverage depends on the radio tech in the phone (CDMA/GSM). CDMA provides much greater area-per-tower coverage than GSM, which is how Verizon can claim such amazing coverage ("Can you hear me now?"). They also might not have a shared-use contract with whoever owns the towers in your state.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Project Fi works just fine in Nebraska but only if you don't have a Nebraska phone number.
that doesn't sound right.... contact support. there's either an explanation or it's a software glitch and they'll sort it out for you.
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@accalia said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
that doesn't sound right.... contact support. there's either an explanation or it's a software glitch and they'll sort it out for you.
I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but...
https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectFi/comments/3kbgml/beware_of_area_codes/
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@accalia Just from searching the web, it seems the area has to have T-Mobile support to sign up for Fi, and T-Mobile has zero presence in my state.
So much for supporting three big carriers or whatever.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
it seems the area has to have T-Mobile support to sign up for Fi, and T-Mobile has zero presence in my state.
........
what the everloving fuck?!
i'mma blame corporate lawyers for that shit.
always ruining things for us with their contract law and their funny wigs.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
it seems the area has to have T-Mobile support to sign up for Fi
If you want to port a number, that is. If you didn't mind getting a new number you'd probably be fine.
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@FrostCat you might be able to port the original number to Google Voice and keep it.
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@mott555 said in Thinking of buying an unlocked phone. Good idea or bad idea?:
Well damn, apparently US Cellular uses CDMA and all the unlocked phones I can find are GSM and not compatible or something.
My (European) phone worked just fine in the US. Depends on the carrier, I guess? The only thing that's definitely different is LTE frequencies, there are no phones out there which support both the European and the US ones. 3G should work fine on both sides of the pond, though.
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