Carrier branded vs unlocked - which do you prefer?

[rockitdog23]

Is there any advantage to a carrier branded device over a manufacturer unlocked?

 

[LeoRex]

Band support information is easily obtained. And most unlocked phones are carrier agnostic, supporting all the needed bands in the region. And using one means you aren't chained to a carrier....

Many carrier versions work on only that carrier, bands are disabled at the request of the carrier.

Most carriers also slather on a bunch of useless apps, like VZ Navigator... Or VZ Backup... VZ anything for that matter.

There are just so many benefits to going away from your carrier to get a phone.

 

[Morty2264]

I've *always* gone with my carrier; but there have been times when I have been tempted to just go full-price and buy the thing unlocked...

Of course, limited funds and being stuck in a contract already (I upgrade maybe every year and-a-half - a bad habit I am trying to break) always work against me.

 

[Laura Knotek]

I used to get carrier branded devices, but now that I'm out of contract for almost 2 years, I'm really happy with my unbranded Moto X Pure Edition. It has the bands to support all US carriers.

 

[kramer5150]

FWIW I have always gone with Verizon carrier devices. There are pros and cons with that. Biggest PRO for me has been (or had been) how they deep discount the phone on 2 year contracts. So every ~20 months I would start to get discount offers for a new phone on a 2 year contract. I tend to stick with what works, its not uncommon for me to stay on the same phone for 2-3-4 years. I have had some really good deals with Verizons discount / plans... $.99 (!!) for a Sony Xperia Z3, $79 for my iPhone 5C...etc. Now that Verizon is doing away with these kinds of discounts, and I basically buy the phone outright or buy the phone on monthly payments... its going to be harder for me to stay with them all together. Unlocked phones are starting to look like a really good choice for me.

 

[libra89]

It depends if it is worth it or not for me. Unlocked phones are great. I'm always checking band support (I'm on T-Mobile) and it's nice to have a choice. Unlocked is much easier though, unless your unlocked device does not support critical things that you need. Since I need band 12 in order for my phone to work at work (and not dip in and out of service), that has limited my unlocked options greatly.

 

[jeff778]

Unlocked it may not support carrier settings and signal can be affected.

 

[nessinhaw]

here in Brazil, carrier branded devices are a huge nope! why? the phone itself isn't even that cheap and plan prices are just absurd! in a year, you will have paid much more than if you bought it unlocked!

we don't have issues with bands here, an unlocked phone will work perfectly in all carriers, so the best option is to buy unlocked phone and go for a pre-paid plan!

normal plans are rly expensive even if you don't get a phone with it

 

[kramer5150]

To clarify why I stick with carrier branded devices; the International unlocked variants of my last two phones (Note 2 and Note 4) are simply not supported on the Verizon network. I could consider switching to a different carrier that does support unlocked variants, but that's not in my best interest as Verizon provides the best coverage for my needs (network > phone IMHO), as well as I still have their grandfathered unlimited data plan (thus pay full retail for the phone to keep it). Their branded phones do come with some Verizon apps (and other bloatware), but I just disable them so they don't run and stay out of my way (only take up a bit of storage space which isn't an issue for me as I never get close to using it up).

This is the major factor for me as well. In my area Verizon is the only carrier that delivers reasonably reliable network service, even in the hilly/remote areas. Its kind of an always on-going pain point for me, because I can not remember Verizon ever carrying a phone that matches my personal preferences. But I absolutely agree Network >> Phone

 

[LeoRex]

Yeah, I'm fortunate to live in an area where pretty much all of them provide good coverage (well, except Sprint)... For my whole route between home and work, T-Mobile's coverage actually exceeds either Verizon or AT&T. But I think I've pretty much decided to just stick to Nexus phones for the foreseeable future. They'll support all carriers and those same carriers won't be able to do any monkey business with updates.

Samsung is frustrating. What they SHOULD do is just release one main variant that works across all carriers in the region. So here in the US... have it support all the LTE bands, CMDA and GSM stuff... you name it, it works. There is no technical reason stopping that from happening. It's all on the carriers insisting on having phones designed specifically for their networks and purposefully leaving out radio bands rendering them useless off their own network. The same goes for LG. OEMs need to get together and get rid of the nonsense.

Maybe the slow shift away from carrier-subsidized phones will push this into action. If someone actually has to fork over the money for their phone (whether full retail or payments), I am not sure how much longer people will be fine with a phone that is useless on any carrier but the original.

 

[Ry]

Unlocked.

And because Verizon works best for me (recently tried T-Mobile while reviewing the Honor 5X), my choices are limited to:

Nexus 6
Moto X Pure Edition (third gen)
Nexus 5X
Nexus 6P

iPhone 6 and up.

Posted via the Android Central App on the Moto X Pure Edition

 

[shabbs]

I've always bought a carrier branded phone... until I got my PRIV. Got that direct from BlackBerry. Carrier branded PRIVs up here in Canada did not have wireless charging, so the only way to get that was to buy direct from BlackBerry. The added bonus is that the monthly Android security updates come direct from BlackBerry. No waiting for the carrier (in my case, Rogers). Got the Feb. update this morning already. Sweet.