SIM Free Phones - Unlocked Cell Phones

Unlocked cell phones or SIM free phones do not have a SIM card pre installed and you will need to provide a SIM card to enable usage of these phones on whichever service provider you desire. You might wonder why anyone would want an unlocked phone without any connection to a telephone network but there are several reasons. The cell is more versatile and can be hooked to any SIM card as it is not tied to one particular provider. It can be switched easily between service providers too, as it will recognize another person’s SIM so is useful for testing other cells. The SIM free unlocked cell phone allows you to choose how much you are prepared to pay for a service and gives you the freedom to use different provider packages as they are advertised.

Travel abroad with a SIM free phone

These SIM less phones are very good for travelers because of the flexibility they offer when in a different country to your own ‘home’ network. A ‘local’ SIM card can be used in your phone when in the visited country thus saving you a lot of money.

Otherwise charges would incur because your ‘home’ service provider would be routing all your calls despite the fact that you are thousands of miles away from your home base.

More simply put, the nearer you are to a service providers base the cheaper your calls will be. The SIM free phone allows this nearness to occur as one can change the SIM as required and as often as needed. The Nokia SIM free phone featured is an excellent model.

Buying an unlocked cellular phone

By purchasing a SIM free cell phone you are giving yourself a better option with regards the phone of your choice. This is because a locked unit will be promoted by the store because they may be loyal to a particular service provider. So you are free to choose whatever phone you like and not be tied to a contract with any provider. This is attractive when future cell phones come to the market because you can avail of them immediately.

They are getting cheaper

As time goes by these unlocked units get cheaper and cheaper (without reducing the quality expected) and you can get them for less than $40 as per the Palm model shown above.

• Easy To Use – not linked to a restrictive contract

• Suits professional travelers

• Never have to incur a cancellation fee

• Not locked to a fixed term with one provider

• No need to wait on an upgrade

• Always have the very latest mobile phone

• Buy a new unit whenever you want to

• Avoid roaming charges

• Allows one to avail of service offers from different providers

You can buy the SIM free cell online as many merchants provide opportunities to purchase units without SIMs. Agents and providers of cells are reticent to assist with unlocking an existing phone but are more than willing to sell you a new unlocked one. Don’t be tempted to unlock your own phone as it is quite a complex procedure and should not be attempted by an amateur. Owning a SIM free phone is safe because its technical performance is no different than that of a phone with a preinstalled SIM. Likewise, unlocking a cell phone is perfectly legal and will not detract from the functionality of the unit. The ability to change the cell’s SIM at will allows one to circumnavigate roaming charges where they apply. Most of the used cell phones for sale online will be unlocked prior to purchase.

Sim Free vs Dual Band explained

There is a bit of confusion about dual band phones as some people think that they will work on more than a single network. Added to this is the fact that some phones are Tri band (3) and even Quad band (4). The presumption is that the extra bands allow the phone to be used in several countries. This is not the case at all. Dual, tri and quad banded phones are NOT SIM free phones and are tied to one network. The bands refer only to the number of frequencies (or band widths) that the phone will function on.

Phone frequencies

Nowadays all cell phones sold are Dual or Tri band plus a few that are able for Quad band frequencies. The older single band phones tied you to one network only and manufacturers had to make versions of the same phone to suit a number of networks for retail purposes. However the phone you bought became locked to the network and even though you could now talk to a friend on another network you could not get your phone to work if you borrowed his/her SIM and put it in your phone.

This is the current situation with a new phone i.e. it will be locked on the network you bought it from and if you wish to have it otherwise you will need to unlock it, hence the unlocked or SIM free phone.

Are SIM free phones unlocked?

Yes, all SIM free phones are unlocked. When you buy a SIM free cell phone it will not contain any SIM at all as the choice is yours as to what network you wish to avail of. All you need do, then, is buy a SIM for your desired network and insert it into your phone.

Unlocking a previously locked phone

Change to SIM free

It is usually possible to successfully unlock a phone that had been locked. The phone will they have functionality on all networks. A thing to note, however, is that it may still have some operational features that were unique to the parent network and are still part of the phone’s original software.

Best 2011 unlocked phones

These are 2 most recent releases of 2011 sim free phones and some of their attributes which are worth considering before committing to a purchase.

Sim Free Nokia X7-00

The main features of this new touchscreen Nokia X7 include a microUSB v2.0 and an 8 MP camera (3264x2448 pixels) with dual-LED flash and video. It also has Bluetooth v3.0 and a 680 MHz central processing unit. The X7 document viewer has Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF viewing facilities. If you find yourself lost in a foreign country you can avail of the built in digital compass. The memory is also impressive at 256 MB RAM and 1 GB ROM.

The stunning Apple iPhone 4S is the latest smartphone to arrive. The new innovative iPhone talks to you and can recognise your voice when you ask it questions. Not only that but it can send emails with the help of its a digital assistant called Siri (S). The chip used in this phone speeds it up over its previous versions. Apple used the successful iPad2 dual-core chip in the S phone. Siri is wonderful. Minor changes too to the camera which has been upgraded to 8 megapixels. This new iPhone 4S is going to be a big hit in this year's Christmas stockings. I would like a white iPhone 4S please, Santa.

The new Samsung B7722 has a nice touchscreen and capability for 12 hours talk-time. The memory is quite impressive and can be extended from 256 MB to an impressive 16 GB. It features Bluetooth 2.1 and has an integrated MP3 and video player although the camera is just 5-megapixels with auto-focus. It has all the basics that one expects from a cell phone.

Of the two simless phones selected the Nokia is much better but it costs twice the price of the Samsung so it is worthwhile to shop around for the best price on these cells.

Best Mobile Phone Manufacturers

There exists a plethora of companies making cell phones. But which one is the best? I list all the following, in no particular order, as being the best 8 brands or manufacturers available.

Apple

Sony

Samsung

Blackberry

Nokia

Acer

LG

Motorola

Three ways to consider buying the latest mobile phones unlocked

There are three ways to go if you intend to buy a new cell phone. A contract phone, which includes a SIM will be cheap initially for the phone itself, but you have to sign up to a contract provider, usually for a minimum of 12 months during which time you will have repaid the cost of the phone several times over. Secondly you might buy the same phone with a SIM connected to the same network but without the contract part, as you just pay in advance for usage. Usually, they are referred to as Pay-As-You-Go cells. Last but not least are the SIM free phones which the author believes to be the best option.