Galaxy S7 Independence Day: Samsung selling unlocked models in the US

[RV_]

One of the things I hated about Android phones is that Samsung and with phones the carriers, did not support them for long and for the newest software we had to wait years in some cases not at all. That is a major reason we switched to Windows phones as we get updates and new versions directly from Microsoft, we do not have to wait for Verizon. I just upgraded my phone to Windows 10 mobile and love it, albeit I still haven't invested the time to learn all of what I need to with some time on tutorials and videos online.

 

We switched to Windows mostly because we buy our phones outright and had problems with out Galaxy Tabs not getting updates until a year later and the same with our Galaxy phones. Even if they do this to their flagship phone, where are the security and performance updates for low priced Samsung phones? Microsoft supports all their phones directly with the advent of Windows mobile 10 on all devices with the hardware to support it like my Lumia 735. I see this move by Samsung to be trying to head off the Surface enterprise phones with 10 from being the only phones that the manufacturer not the carrier supports.

 

If they do it only for their most expensive phones they will really look bad. But if they do support their phones for 5-10 years like Microsoft has done with their tablets and computers, and offer the supported soft and hardware from this point on Apple will descent in market share even faster than they are now, and Microsoft will be picking up the slack.

 

Now, Samsung has claimed to remove that terrible thorn in their smartphone owners side according to this report. It's about time but too late for us. They had us, and lost us through the worst update and owner support after the sale.

 

Bye, bye bloatware! Samsung is freeing US consumers from carrier restrictions and crapware, with the launch of unlocked Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge models.

 

Excerpt:

 

"Today is Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge Independence Day, as you can now purchase an unlocked model from Samsung, Best Buy, Amazon, and others, and use it on T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, or most US GSM and CDMA carriers.

 

The Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge (see my full review) is arguably the best smartphone currently available. Until now, you could only purchase one in the US through a carrier, which meant it was loaded with non-removable crapware. Some carriers keep bloatware to a minimum, but as we saw on AT&T's Galaxy S7, there are upwards of 20 additional apps and services that consume storage without any option to remove them from the device.

 

These new, unlocked models will come free from carrier bloatware and should also get software updates a bit faster since the devices will not have to be tested by each, individual carrier. Some of the carrier software is helpful, but you can usually find this software in the Google Play Store. For example, I install T-Mobile Visual Voicemail on every unlocked phone I use with T-Mobile.

Tim Baxter, president of Samsung Electronics America, stated the following:

 

"At Samsung, we listen to our customers to deliver meaningful innovation by offering an ecosystem of mobile products, services, and experiences designed to enhance their mobile lifestyle. The unlocked Galaxy S7 and S7 edge offer more US customers a way to join the Galaxy family, giving them access to a portfolio of seamless mobile experiences including connectivity to wearables, making payments right from your phone and even virtual reality worlds."

 

Prices and link with pics are in the article here:

http://www.zdnet.com/article/leave-the-bloatware-behind-samsung-now-selling-unlocked-galaxy-s7-models-in-the-us/?ftag=TREc64629f&bhid=19724681974700635514865380622813

[chirakawa]

Yes, it's about time Samsung followed the lead of Motorola, LG, and others in producing unlocked phones without all the bloatware.

[RV_]

Are they also updating them without the waiting for the carrier? I was not sure since I don't use them anymore.

[chirakawa]

Are they also updating them without the waiting for the carrier? I was not sure since I don't use them anymore.

 

In the case of Motorola's most popular, the Moto X Pure, updates have been ahead of and independent of the branded versions. I'm not sure how they plan to update their latest offering, the Moto G unlocked. I'm not too familiar with the other brands.

[RV_]

The whole thing that makes Android a mess is the broken update system where the carriers tack on bloatware, or really useful apps and features and must rewrite the code for each of the updates before releqasing it to their customers. So while some may have Android 4.4 other have 4.1 for the last year or two and finally give up and biuy another phone. For folks that upgrade to the latest and greatest on the old contract plans, and paying the big bucks despite payments, this may not be a big thing. But it encourages the hardware manufacturers to drop support and force folks to work with insecure or older software versions. I used to be an early adopter for all my computers buying new every 18 months or so. I went through eight Galaxy phones between us, and a a Windows Nokia Lumia 822, before we settled on our Lumia 735s. And we made no payments for any of them, bought them paid in full upfront and then brought our own phones to AT&T, then Straight Talk, and now Verizon.