Should you buy unlocked cell phones?

Wireless in the Enterprise This newsletter is sponsored by Belden An Easy-to-deploy, Fully-mobile WLAN The Belden(r) Wireless Solution is a Layer-2 Edge solution with a smart Switch, thin radio Access Points, multiple Channel Blankets and a unique Spectrum Re-Use capability. Find out how it solves some of the biggest problems that wireless network users experience today, like interference, full mobility, security and real throughput. Network World's Wireless in the Enterprise Newsletter, 06/06/07 Should you buy unlocked cell phones? By Joanie Wexler As you may know, the business model for delivering cellular phones and services in the U.S. is for network operators to heavily subsidize the cost of the mobile phones they sell alongside their services. In return, they tie you into a service contract, usually for two years, and reserve the right to limit your freedom in using certain phone capabilities and other carriers’ wireless network services. In other words, carriers in the U.S. “lock” the subsidized phones they sell so the phones can be used only on their networks. An unlocked phone, by contrast, isn’t tied to a specific carrier, so it can be used with network services delivered by different operators. The locking/unlocking of phones is mostly relevant to the GSM-based cellular environment. GSM networks are pervasive worldwide (offering service in more than 200 countries) and most users require the mobile network services of one or more additional providers when they travel globally. Make the most of your Mobile Gear Download our Free Executive Guide and learn how Network IT professionals are getting the most out of their mobile devices and improving mobile security. You'll also get the scoop on upcoming mobile tools and technologies and how they may impact your enterprise. Click Here to download today! The “brain” of a GSM phone is the subscriber identity module (SIM). When a phone is unlocked, its SIM card can be removed and replaced with one that associates the user to a different carrier. To get unlocked phones and use SIMs, you have to find a store – virtual or otherwise – that sells unlocked phones, and you’ll likely have to pay full retail price. However, check your carrier contract. Some carriers have a provision that after a specified length of service, they will unlock the phones for you. With unlocked phones, companies can change carriers without having to change out all their users’ phones. In addition, IT departments can buy SIMs that work in frequently visited locations in bulk, and users can be outfitted for mobile communications in their destination city before they leave town. Without an unlocked phone, on the other hand, traveling users will need another device that works locally in their destination city.   What do you think? Post a comment on this newsletter

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Contact the author: Joanie Wexler is an independent networking technology writer/editor in California's Silicon Valley who has spent most of her career analyzing trends and news in the computer networking industry. She welcomes your comments on the articles published in this newsletter, as well as your ideas for future article topics. Reach her at joanie@jwexler.com. This newsletter is sponsored by Belden An Easy-to-deploy, Fully-mobile WLAN The Belden(r) Wireless Solution is a Layer-2 Edge solution with a smart Switch, thin radio Access Points, multiple Channel Blankets and a unique Spectrum Re-Use capability. Find out how it solves some of the biggest problems that wireless network users experience today, like interference, full mobility, security and real throughput. ARCHIVE Archive of the Wireless in the Enterprise Newsletter. BONUS FEATURE IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today. International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: networking.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007