Re: [PLUG] OT: Unlocked Cell Phones

[Mike DePaulo <mikedep333@gmail.com>]

Hi, I am an experienced retail-unlocked user on AT&T.

On Mon, Nov 9, 2015 at 6:11 PM, jeff <jeffv@op.net> wrote:
> Mainly the two systems. You might want to check plans to see if there's one
> that works better for you.

Not any more :)

1. Some phones like the Motorola Moto X Pure Edition support all 4
major carriers:
The 2 CDMA carriers: Verizon & Sprint.
The 2 GSM carriers: AT&T & T-Mobile

(Yes, all these 4 carriers now have LTE networks too.)

Motorola will even sell you the phone with any of their 4 SIM cards.
(They officially support a 5th carrier, U.S. Cellular, too actually.)
http://www.motorola.com/us/products/moto-x-pure-edition

2. See google's project Fi, which works with their Nexus unlocked
phones. It apparently uses both t-mobile (GSM & LTE) and Sprint (CDMA
& LTE).
https://fi.google.com

> I like Verizon for the coverage. Ymmv.

See #1 above.
http://www.androidcentral.com/moto-x-pure-edition-second-opinion

> There are nice things to be said about the Galaxy S6 and LG G4.
> Possibly of concern are removable battery and whether you can insert an
> additional SD card.

It sounds like you are assuming that unlocked phone users are limited
to Nexus devices if they want a warranty and official sales in the US.

Not any more :)

T-Mobile and their no-more-subsidies business model is now being
adopted by AT&T also. This model is compatible with unlocked phones;
the only thing you are really missing out on is the 0% interest loan
on the phone.

So some companies like Motorola are selling unlocked phones (both
low-end and high-end) with US warranties, uSD card slots, etc.

Just make sure it has the combination of features/compatibility you want.

For example, it looks like all Motorola Moto G 3rd edition variants
have microSD card slots. However, the "XT1540" variant is the one for
T-Mobile, AT&T, and other North American carriers. Unlike $500 phones,
$200 phones need multiple models to support all the different bands.
Also, the 16GB version ($220) has 2GB of RAM, while the 8GB version
($180) has 1GB of RAM.
http://www.motorola.com/us/products/moto-g
Click Network -> Expand:
http://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_moto_g_(3rd_gen)-7247.php

BTW, whenever I think of Motorola nowadays, I think of the Japanese
company "Muji" and their slogan "Lower priced for a reason." Notice
they said "lower priced", not "low priced" or "dirt-cheap."

-Mike
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