While smartphones are of great necessity for some people, unfortunately, not everyone can afford them. Some people might take months to years to save for their desired phone, while many wait for special discounts and promos to purchase a smartphone. One of the hottest smartphone deals that mobile carriers take advantage of is selling high-end and mid-range smartphones at a reduced price in exchange for locking the device.
What Happens with a Locked Phone?
Since mobile carriers offer a good smartphone deal with a huge price deduction, they’ll lock the SIM card on your phone that’s only assigned to them. Essentially, the mobile carrier requires the manufacturer to plant a software code on your device to ensure that your phone will not be used in conjunction with other networks during your ownership.
In order to unlock the phone and be able to use other network service providers, there’s another software code that can unlock the device. Phone locking typically occurs in iPhones since it’s an expensive phone that is sold by mobile carriers at a discounted price. If you own a locked iPhone and plan to unlock it, check out this guide by iGeekphone.com.
Reasons to Unlock Your Phone
Having a locked phone certainly has limitations, which is what drives people into unlocking their phone, but you have to ensure that you conduct the unlocking legally. As of today, it’s illegal to unlock a phone in the United States unless two conditions: you have your mobile carrier’s permission and you’ve accomplished their requirements, or you’ve purchased an unlocked device.
It’s not very much advisable to perform the unlocking yourself, particularly if you don’t have specific knowledge about it. Fortunately, you can look for a phone unlocking service at officialsimunlock.com to accomplish your goal. But, is phone unlocking really worth it? If you own a locked phone right now, here are five compelling reasons that you might want to consider a phone unlocking service:
1. Achieve Network Freedom
The biggest disadvantage of locked phones is exactly what defines them: being subscribed to only one carrier, and some people don’t prefer that. Having your phone unlocked by a phone unlocking service is a reliable way to change to different network services whenever you want without having to change phones. Mobile carrier companies are competitors, so they’ll offer competitive promotions to the consumers to try and woo them into changing services.
Also, phone unlocking is also perfect for people who prefer using two SIM cards at once for different reasons. It can be for business, travel, and personal purposes.
2. Make the Most Out of Your Travel
Unlocking your phone means you can travel to different places without getting restricted by your cellular provider, especially if you travel frequently overseas. Wireless network plans are known to be notoriously costly, especially international roaming plans. But, with an unlocked phone, you can just purchase a SIM card in the country you’re travelling in to affordably access the local cellular networks.
3. Get Away from Contracts and Monthly Payments
It’s easier to sign up for mobile plans than it is to pay for a device in straight cash, but some people regret their decision once the requisite monthly payments come into the picture. When you unlock your phone, you’ll finally be able to get out of this monthly responsibility, plus be able to enjoy the other benefits of unlocking.
4. Ensure a Safe Unlocking Process
There are plenty of online resources that can help you perform the unlocking yourself—however, you’re risking your phone in that situation. Phone unlocking services are more reliable, effective, and safe as the professionals are trained to conduct phone unlocking regularly.
Some phone unlocking might need tweaks with the device’s bootloader, a program that basically runs the operating system of your device. Most smartphones have locked bootloaders to protect your system from security vulnerabilities. In case you’ve done the phone unlocking yourself and messed up with the bootloader, you’re putting yourself in a lot of system integrity and security threats.
5. Sell Your Phone Faster
If you’re planning to dispose of your locked device in the future by selling it, most buyers won’t buy a locked phone because it’s inconvenient. By offering a phone that can be used with any preferred carriers, you’ll get more value selling a properly unlocked phone.
Bottom Line
Unlocking your phone has its pros and cons, but the pleasures of having it outweigh the drawbacks. However, before going to a phone unlock service, it’s important to settle your decision with the mobile carrier first to keep you out of trouble. After you’ve done that, you can freely enjoy all the benefits that phone unlocking has to offer.