Using Sprint Galaxy S4 internationally AFTER canceling your Sprint service

[mannafromkevin]

Hi thar!

I'm going to be living in Spain for about 9 months for work.

I currently have an active account with Sprint for my Sprint Galaxy S4 (SPH-L720, Android 4.4.2, not rooted). I have already called Sprint Customer Care to have my phone unlocked for international use, which they then did for me without any issue (or at least they say it's now unlocked).

However, Sprint Customer Care told me that I will still be billed by Sprint even though I'm using a foreign carrier's SIM card while overseas. They will put my account on "seasonal standby" which is good for 6 months. During that 6 month period I'll be billed $8 or $9 a month, however I have heard that after taxes and surcharges it's more like $20/month. Then, after that 6 month period, the "seasonal standby" runs out and Sprint will resume billing me in full. In my opinion that's ridiculous, so I need another option.

So my question is this:
Since Sprint has unlocked my Galaxy S4 for international use, if I were to cancel my contract before traveling abroad, would my device still work with a foreign carrier/SIM card?

Would the international unlock from Sprint be in some way affected by my canceling my Sprint service?

Thank you!

 

[al3azim]

you should be fine to use the phone internationally without having Sprint service. The phone will work just fine.