I did it again
Welcome back!
Well, I’ve been at it again. I know every time I mention cell phones start in on a rant about how I don’t understand why a phone can’t just be a phone any more but, in spite of all my ranting, I’ve got this ‘tech junkie’ gene I was born with. That gene causes me to go looking at and learning about all the latest toys.
Today this gene caused me to go looking at some wireless phones. I’ve seen quite a few phones this evening - phones equipped with cameras, pop email, internet access, and bluetooth capability.
One thing I’ve never been able to figure out is why a cell phone has to be made for a specific carrier. For example, my daughters carry around Motorola W315 phones that only work with Altell. If we wanted to take advantage of the Sprint Power Pack Family 1400 plan which comes with 1400 anytime minutes, we’d have to get Sprint phones to go with the plan. and, I guess at that point our perfectly good Altell phones would become paperweights.
I seem to recall hearing recently that somebody-or-other was trying to get things changed so that a cell phone could be taken from carrier to carrier. It seems to me that that’s the way it should have been from the beginning. You don’t see Exxon selling cars that only run on Exxon gasoline, do you?
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From a technical perspective, the phone does not need to be linked to the carrier. But as the providers are usually providing the phones at a price lower than their actual cost (sometimes free!) the providers then require you to use their service. There is probably some fine print (you may need a strong magnifying glass) that states in their contract how long you have to pay for their service before you can change your phone over. Often it is only a simple chip though on many newer models there is a code that is also in the phone that limits the provider choice and this has to be adjusted by a skilled technician. Here in Europe, you can have this done for less than $10 at a number of independent shops selling the service for various providers!
But you are right, it does seem worth a rant and regulations will change some things in the future. Unfortunately, this means the phones themselves will be more expensive!