Any Advantage to Buying a T-Mobile Branded Phone?

[RicKaysen]

I intend to purchase the new Samsung S20 that's due to be released in February. Thinking for the first time to go the unlocked route and buy directly from Samsung to give me the option of testing other carriers 5G services when they become more widely available. I've only bought from T-Mobile previously and wondered if I'll run into any limitations using an unlocked phone on the network. Opinions?

 

[SpookDroid]

Not on Samsung phones. You might have to wait a few weeks before using features like WiFi-Calling, but on Samsung phones T-Mo is pretty good with allowing features to be used lately. Updates would have to come from Samsung, however, and sometimes those (ironically) can take longer to hit unlocked models than carrier ones.

 

[RicKaysen]

Not on Samsung phones. You might have to wait a few weeks before using features like WiFi-Calling, but on Samsung phones T-Mo is pretty good with allowing features to be used lately. Updates would have to come from Samsung, however, and sometimes those (ironically) can take longer to hit unlocked models than carrier ones.

Thanks for the reply! I only use WiFi calling when visiting friends who live in a remote area, but it does come in handy. I'd be happy if T-Mobile let me use that feature on an unlocked phone.

 

[SpookDroid]

They usually do for top-brand phones. So you should be fine. It usually comes down to offers and bonus deals when purchasing carrier ones (for instance, if you're like me and are on the JUMP! OnDemand program or a similar one, it makes ZERO sense to purchase outright, at least at launch).