4 ms·

Vote with your wallet. Don't buy locked phones. Once the consumers know the power they have in their hands, change will come easier.

by Thiz 14y ago

venomsnake 14y ago
That is fallacy. Carriers are oligopoly with high cost of entrance. So if all carriers provide only locked phones there may not be enough devices on the market. There should be laws preventing forced vertical integration. If you sell hardware you cannot restrict the os(you are free to provide os, but locking of the bootloader should be left to the user). If you sell OS you cannot limit what applications the user can run and from where to obtain them etc ...
- icebraining 14y ago
  Why are you limited to carrier-provided phones?
- rayiner 14y ago
  > So if all carriers provide only locked phones there may not be enough devices on the market. Except you can buy directly from the phone manufacturer: https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Nexus_4_8GB?id=nexus_4_8gb&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Nexus_4_8GB?id..., http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone Your argument basically amounts to: "if the carriers did have a monopoly on phones, then there would be a problem."
  - netc 14y ago
    yet, ATT & Verizon will not charge less. wait, they will force you to buy a data plan too if you use your unlocked smartphone. Imagine a real state market - take mortgage or pay double for the house if you pay cash.
- anigbrowl 14y ago
  Or you could go to MetroPCS or one of several other providers and buy an unlocked phone. T-Mobile offers both contract and month-to-month service, and IIRC will sell you an unlocked phone if you're willing to pay up front for it.
jdechko 14y ago
I'm torn on the issue of buying locked vs unlocked. I have a family to support, so I don't have $500 or more to spend on an unlocked iPhone. Even if I had the money, I live in the US, and I haven't traveled outside of the country in over 10 years. Finally, there is no monthly discount on service if you bring an unlocked phone to a carrier, so that's the third strike. I'll continue to buy a new locked device every couple of years and take the subsidy, thanks. I'll also be having my 4S unlocked when this contract is up. Having said that, I agree that it should be easier to unlock phones in the US, even if it's just for international coverage (which would be something).
- icebraining 14y ago
  I don't have $500 to spend on an iPhone either, so I just don't buy iPhones.
- imgabe 14y ago
  Yes, there is a discount. You can buy an unlocked GSM phone and get a SIM only plan that costs half as much as the regular plans. The total cost is cheaper compared to how much you pay over a two year contract.
  - anonymoushn 14y ago
    Where do you buy this plan? AT&T and Verizon are willing to sell me plans that cost just as much as on-contract plans. T-Mobile is willing to sell me much cheaper plans, but randomly loses service all around my city all the time.
    - imgabe 14y ago
      I use one from Straight Talk, which just resells AT&T's service.
- ddlatham 14y ago
  My family recently purchased three Nexus 4 phones straight from Google ($300 each), and picked up a T-Mobile Family Value plan (which means you don't get a phone subsidy, but it is a cheaper) with 1000 minutes, unlimited sms, and unlimited HSPA+ data. $120 / month for 3 lines.
betterunix 14y ago
"Vote with your wallet" That gives poor people less of a vote than rich people.
- anigbrowl 14y ago
  I don't think so. I ended up going with a month-to-month provider int he first place because I was poor and didn't want to deal with the risk of early termination fees etc. I just bought a lower-quality phone. Being poor means that you don't get to buy the nicest thing on the market if you don't have the money. The economics of contract plans didn't look that good to me, because it meant a much higher monthly bill than I felt comfortable paying for a bunch of features I was not at all sure I would really use or need. I was happy with my decision and have stuck with month-to-month service ever since. Back then, MetroPCS (who I signed with at the time) was a tiny company operating in only 2 or 3 urban markets, now they operate in most of the country.
  - wnight 14y ago
    >>> "Vote with your wallet" >> That gives poor people less of a vote than rich people. > I don't think so. Sure you do, it's not really subjective... 1 < 2, and all that. > Being poor means that you don't get to buy the nicest thing on the market if you don't have the money. Yeah, I knew you did.

Vote with your wallet. Don't buy locked phones. Once the consumers know the power they have in their hands, change will come easier.

by Thiz 14y ago

Vote with your wallet. Don't buy locked phones. Once the consumers know the power they have in their hands, change will come easier.

venomsnake 14y ago

That is fallacy. Carriers are oligopoly with high cost of entrance. So if all carriers provide only locked phones there may not be enough devices on the market. There should be laws preventing forced vertical integration. If you sell hardware you cannot restrict the os(you are free to provide os, but locking of the bootloader should be left to the user). If you sell OS you cannot limit what applications the user can run and from where to obtain them etc ...

icebraining 14y ago
Why are you limited to carrier-provided phones?
rayiner 14y ago
> So if all carriers provide only locked phones there may not be enough devices on the market. Except you can buy directly from the phone manufacturer: https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Nexus_4_8GB?id=nexus_4_8gb&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Nexus_4_8GB?id..., http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/shop_iphone Your argument basically amounts to: "if the carriers did have a monopoly on phones, then there would be a problem."
- netc 14y ago
  yet, ATT & Verizon will not charge less. wait, they will force you to buy a data plan too if you use your unlocked smartphone. Imagine a real state market - take mortgage or pay double for the house if you pay cash.
anigbrowl 14y ago
Or you could go to MetroPCS or one of several other providers and buy an unlocked phone. T-Mobile offers both contract and month-to-month service, and IIRC will sell you an unlocked phone if you're willing to pay up front for it.

jdechko 14y ago

I'm torn on the issue of buying locked vs unlocked. I have a family to support, so I don't have $500 or more to spend on an unlocked iPhone. Even if I had the money, I live in the US, and I haven't traveled outside of the country in over 10 years. Finally, there is no monthly discount on service if you bring an unlocked phone to a carrier, so that's the third strike. I'll continue to buy a new locked device every couple of years and take the subsidy, thanks. I'll also be having my 4S unlocked when this contract is up. Having said that, I agree that it should be easier to unlock phones in the US, even if it's just for international coverage (which would be something).

icebraining 14y ago
I don't have $500 to spend on an iPhone either, so I just don't buy iPhones.
imgabe 14y ago
Yes, there is a discount. You can buy an unlocked GSM phone and get a SIM only plan that costs half as much as the regular plans. The total cost is cheaper compared to how much you pay over a two year contract.
- anonymoushn 14y ago
  Where do you buy this plan? AT&T and Verizon are willing to sell me plans that cost just as much as on-contract plans. T-Mobile is willing to sell me much cheaper plans, but randomly loses service all around my city all the time.
  - imgabe 14y ago
    I use one from Straight Talk, which just resells AT&T's service.
ddlatham 14y ago
My family recently purchased three Nexus 4 phones straight from Google ($300 each), and picked up a T-Mobile Family Value plan (which means you don't get a phone subsidy, but it is a cheaper) with 1000 minutes, unlimited sms, and unlimited HSPA+ data. $120 / month for 3 lines.

betterunix 14y ago

"Vote with your wallet" That gives poor people less of a vote than rich people.

anigbrowl 14y ago
I don't think so. I ended up going with a month-to-month provider int he first place because I was poor and didn't want to deal with the risk of early termination fees etc. I just bought a lower-quality phone. Being poor means that you don't get to buy the nicest thing on the market if you don't have the money. The economics of contract plans didn't look that good to me, because it meant a much higher monthly bill than I felt comfortable paying for a bunch of features I was not at all sure I would really use or need. I was happy with my decision and have stuck with month-to-month service ever since. Back then, MetroPCS (who I signed with at the time) was a tiny company operating in only 2 or 3 urban markets, now they operate in most of the country.
- wnight 14y ago
  >>> "Vote with your wallet" >> That gives poor people less of a vote than rich people. > I don't think so. Sure you do, it's not really subjective... 1 < 2, and all that. > Being poor means that you don't get to buy the nicest thing on the market if you don't have the money. Yeah, I knew you did.