Unlocked Cell Phones vs Locked Cell Phones - What Makes An Unlocked Cell Phone So Desirable Articles | Cell Phone

By: Alex Karim

Today's world is a world on the move. Commerce is global and not merely local. Distances have diminished and people are traveling to the farthest reaches of the globe than ever before in history.

Our constant move calls for our constant communication with the 'base', wherever that base might be.

As a result, the devices we carry along have also become multi-functional. Our devices are required to perform at our speed which has no limits anymore.

A cell phone device is our main center of communication these days. It should not come as a surprise that our cell phone has now morphed into a 'mobile office' of sorts. It has become the communication center while we are on the move.

On a given day I am in Washington, DC but the next day I could be across the pond conducting business while sipping latte in a cafe in Paris.

Needless to say, these days when we travel, our devices have to perform. If I am able to use my mobile device in Washington DC and perform certain tasks on it, then by no means do I want to give that up as I travel. I want to be able to use the same device anywhere. That's where unlocked vs. locked cell phones shine.

Often times network carriers program our mobile devices to accept a SIM card from their specific network. Doing so helps them retain subscribers who would otherwise jump from one network carrier to another as the need arises.

Locking the SIM cards also enables the network provider to charge higher than normal 'roaming' fees while the subscriber is on the move. Due to a locked phone if I were to keep using my current network provider in Paris, my phone bill would probably become my biggest travel expense.

On the other hand, by using an unlocked cell phone, I am able to 'localize' my phone no matter what my location changes to. All I have to do during my travel to Paris is to replace my SIM card from my American service provider by a SIM card from my local albeit temporary French service provider. This move makes even more sense when my temporary French service provider is able to offer me small and temporary phone subscription packages designed specifically for limited use.

So, on and on I travel from one destination to the next; from Paris to Rome and beyond without the fear of being tied down by my network provider from the states. Speaking of Rome, in Rome I always do as the Romans do; use a local network provider.

And, for someone like myself who is always on the lookout for the next latest and greatest device and who could be found with such multiple devices at any given time; I have to have them unlocked.