What Does an Unlocked Cell Phone Mean
What are unlocked cell phones? What are the advantages and disadvantages of an unlocked phone? If these questions have brought you to this article, they will surely be answered. You need to know about what are locked and unlocked phones, if you are planning to change your cell phone service provider in the near future. Remember that unlocking a cell phone and jail breaking it are two different things. You should not get confused between the two.
What Are Unlocked Cell Phones
To know what does an unlocked cell phone mean, you must know what are locked phones. I am sure that you are aware of SIM (subscriber identification module) cards that need to be inserted in cell phones to be able to use any service. When you opt for a subscription plan from a cell phone company, that provides you a cell phone as part of the deal, it is internally programmed to be operated only with that particular cell phone service.
That is, the phone works only if you insert a SIM card of that particular cell phone company. If you insert any other card, you won't be able to connect with their service. Such cell phones are called locked cell phones. Now, that you know what are locked cell phones, what are unlocked cell phones is easy to guess. An unlocked phone is one whose internal settings have been changed so that it is no longer tethered to a single cell phone service.
How Do You Know Whether a Phone is Locked
The only way to know if your cell phone is locked is to insert a SIM card of another cell phone service and see if it works. If it does, then your phone is already unlocked or rather never was locked. On the other hand, if the cell phone done not work with any other carrier, then it is indeed locked.
How to Unlock a Cell Phone
The best way to unlock your cell phone is through the mobile phone company itself. They may charge a fee to get your phone unlocked after your contract with them has expired. You always have the option of going to third party services who can do the job for you, for a small fee.
Advantages of an Unlocked Phone
The advantages of an unlocked phone are obvious. You get the freedom to opt for any cell phone carrier of your choice. If you do not find the service to be satisfactory, you can simply change the SIM card. It lets you use other SIM cards when you are traveling out of country.
Disadvantages of an Unlocked Phone
Some say that unlocking a cell phone may negatively affect its functionality. It may not work the same way with other carriers, as it did with the original service it was locked to. That seems to be the only real minus point of using an unlocked phone. However, properly unlocking the phone and reprogramming it can take care of any such problems.
You can either get your phone unlocked from a cell phone company, after termination of contract, or from professional services that charge you a fee. As long as you own the phone, you have a right to get it unlocked and opt for the service of other cell phone companies. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of unlocking cell phones, before you decide to go ahead with it. The best way of avoiding this locking problem in phones, is to buy a cell phone directly through retail and then choose a service provider. That way, your phone stays free from any locking constraints and you can change your cell phone subscriber any time you want.
