Unlock Your Phone and Take It to Prepaid

Does this scenario sound familiar? Your cell phone contract with a post-paid provider is almost up and you’re wondering what to do next renew and sign up for another multi-year agreement or explore the world of prepaid wireless. If the latter, you’ll probably hear and read about the term “unlocked phone.” It refers to a cell phone that’s not locked into (or loyal to) a specific provider’s network. You can use an unlocked phone with another carrier simply by installing a Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card – a microchip inserted into your phone that stores your subscriber data and allows a wireless carrier to provide cell service to your phone.

How easy it is to unlock your phone depends on the type of phone you have and your current wireless carrier. Let’s use popular prepaid carrier TracFone Wireless as an example, which owns NET10 and Straight Talk. Because they sell their phones at a discount, Straight Talk, NET10, and TracFone won’t allow their phones to be unlocked. Straight Talk service plans are linked to the serial number on the phone that you used (or are using) with your Straight Talk plan, which means you can’t simply transfer the SIM card. But you can unlock the phone and use it with a GSM network. If you have a phone and are currently out of contract (or paid your early contract termination fee), and are in good financial standing, you can ask your previous mobile provider to unlock your phone. If they comply, there are many prepaid wireless providers that will support it, including AT&T, Straight Talk, T-Mobile, and Virgin Mobile.

Many phone manufacturers also release unlock codes based on your phone model (a simple Google search will turn up various sites that offer device compatibility information). You can also go through a third party (such as a cell phone store) to unlock your phone. If you can’t unlock your phone, you can always buy an unlocked phone from an online retailer like Amazon or eBay, or a brick-and-mortar retailer such as Target or Walmart. And since an unlocked phone isn’t tied to a specific wireless provider, you have the flexibility to insert a new SIM card into your unlocked mobile phone and access different networks to make calls, send texts, and browse the web.

If you’re an iPhone loyalist, only a few prepaid wireless providers actually offer the iPhone 4 and 4S, and so far, only 3 of them will let you bring your own iPhone to the party. As of April 8, 2012, AT&T will unlock iPhones for customers who meet two criteria: out of contract (whether your contract is finished or you’ve paid your early contract termination fee) and in good financial standing. To get the deals offered by Cricket Wireless and Virgin Mobile, you must purchase an unsubsidized iPhone 4 or 4S from the provider. But if you’ve already got an iPhone 4 or 4S, you can bring it with you to Straight Talk (just purchase a Straight Talk SIM or micro SIM card), to AT&T’s GoPhone prepaid service, or to T-Mobile. In many cases, you can keep your number, too.

The links below should be helpful as you figure out which unlocked phone route to take.