3 ms·

TIL locked phones are still a thing, somewhere. Not gonna lie: That feels fairly wild at this point.

blitzar 2y ago
Its always the US ... the comments are always full of "the system will break down if they scrap it / wont somebody think of the children"
- lotsofpulp 2y ago
  You can easily get an unlocked phone in the USA, so it is more like "If you want an unlocked phone, buy an unlocked phone, and if want a mobile network to subsidize your phone, then you might have to deal with the terms of the agreement, including being locked to a mobile network".
  - the_snooze 2y ago
    Enough people seem to love artificially low up-front prices, even if it costs them more (in money and headaches) in the long-run. See: Spirit Airlines, Ticketmaster, and restaurant fees and tipping.
    - OptionOfT 2y ago
      In general in the USA a lot of things are pushed to you as monthly payments, and not the total cost of ownership. Yes, you can afford a $900 / month car note. But that doesn't mean that it actually makes sense to pay it for 72 months at some ridiculous interest rate.
    - Spivak 2y ago
      If you're not planning on switching carriers the financing offered by carriers is a 0% interest loan. If you just need a flight somewhere for a weekend trip, carry on a backpack, and pack your own snacks those $100 Spirit flights are real. If you play the game you actually do come out ahead. It being possible at all to get flights that cheap is the lifeblood of broke bitches. Restaurant surcharges are a mixed bag because so long as they're advertised at the door I think they're great, they make take-out cheaper. But Ticketmaster is just garbage and their practices should be strongly illegal because it's just fuck you pay more.
miohtama 2y ago
The US is also using paper cheques for payments
- dv_dt 2y ago
  And for some forms of US electronic check payments, typing an account number wrong will take 4-5 days to return a "bounced check" result, often with a fee from the entity you're trying to pay.

Its always the US ... the comments are always full of "the system will break down if they scrap it / wont somebody think of the children"

lotsofpulp 2y ago
You can easily get an unlocked phone in the USA, so it is more like "If you want an unlocked phone, buy an unlocked phone, and if want a mobile network to subsidize your phone, then you might have to deal with the terms of the agreement, including being locked to a mobile network".
- the_snooze 2y ago
  Enough people seem to love artificially low up-front prices, even if it costs them more (in money and headaches) in the long-run. See: Spirit Airlines, Ticketmaster, and restaurant fees and tipping.
  - OptionOfT 2y ago
    In general in the USA a lot of things are pushed to you as monthly payments, and not the total cost of ownership. Yes, you can afford a $900 / month car note. But that doesn't mean that it actually makes sense to pay it for 72 months at some ridiculous interest rate.
  - Spivak 2y ago
    If you're not planning on switching carriers the financing offered by carriers is a 0% interest loan. If you just need a flight somewhere for a weekend trip, carry on a backpack, and pack your own snacks those $100 Spirit flights are real. If you play the game you actually do come out ahead. It being possible at all to get flights that cheap is the lifeblood of broke bitches. Restaurant surcharges are a mixed bag because so long as they're advertised at the door I think they're great, they make take-out cheaper. But Ticketmaster is just garbage and their practices should be strongly illegal because it's just fuck you pay more.

miohtama 2y ago

The US is also using paper cheques for payments

dv_dt 2y ago
And for some forms of US electronic check payments, typing an account number wrong will take 4-5 days to return a "bounced check" result, often with a fee from the entity you're trying to pay.