This may be a concern for international travelers especially, since not all bands are used in all countries.

Unlocked phones typically sell at or close to retail price because the buyer can use the phone with a number of different carriers.Īnother issue with unlocked cell phones is that they may not work on all GSM bands as of 2012, a quadband phone could operate anywhere in the world with a GSM network, but other phones could not. Locked phones are often costly because they usually come with phone service contracts that commit the consumer to that service provider for a certain period of time (like two years). In addition, such phones tend to be more expensive. Jailbreaking a phone is considered legal in the U.S. Consumers concerned about specific features may want to check with a carrier to see if they are available on unlocked cell phones. Some carriers offer free calling to a number of contacts or one-button access to certain features that can only be used on locked phones. Carriers may include such features only on locked phones, which use their proprietary software and settings.

Not all unlocked phones have all the same features as their locked counterparts even when the provider is the same. Some international travelers find it convenient to buy an unlocked cell phone that can be used with various SIM cards.

Verizon prepaid sim card