Android phones, apps and tablets

Is this aimed at me? I'm on a contract where I brought my own phone (form Apple, 3 years ago). Can't I just drop that Sim into a new Nexus 5X or whatever?

http://www.lfgss.com/comments/12540542/

If you own the phone outright, it won't be locked to a particular provider. So, yes. You may need a new sim card but your provider should just be able to send you the relevant sized one.

That's not true, you can buy a phone outright that's still locked to a network. You have to get the (i forget the name) code off the provider for the handset in question to be able to release it.

But if you bought a phone outright that was locked to a network, you would be a moron. No?

Not if you weren't aware it was locked to the network. Also there's a large used phone market.

I bought an 'unlocked' phone that as soon as I turned on showed it was locked to 3. Cue rapid return of handset and refund. The idiot in this case was the seller, though it could be argued buying phones off ebay is stupid too.

Weren't all the Apple phones bought outright from Apple stores but locked to O2 for the first fortnight or 2 months or something of release?

So in that case, you are not buying a new, outright unlocked phone. So 'tis an entirely different scenario.

From that i conclude they are all pretty much the same.

"If you own the phone outright, it won't be locked to a particular provider."

But you can buy a brand new phone, never been unboxed, that is locked to a network is what I'm saying.

Moto X is bigger so that's me out. Bit waterproof and large battery, they just need to make a 5" one.

bought by morons

You mean Joe Bloggs gets an upgrade through their contract and decides to flog it on ebay without opening it.

Here you are inheriting the moron factor

Or people ON that network. Or people that don't know the difference. My parents know what an iphone is but I bet they have no idea about carrier locking or that it's removable.

Example...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Apple-iPhone-6S-16GB-Gold-Vodafone-Smartphone-/151830749474?hash=item2359d16122

You're still wrong and I'm still right and that's the important thing. #hippyisalwaysright

Here's another case where a brand new, SIM-free device can be locked to a network...
http://kenstechtips.com/index.php/apple-iphone-when-sim-free-doesnt-mean-unlocked

Now as clever as you are I bet some people of similar intelligence would have been caught out by this one.

So, the examples about when a new phone can be locked to a particular network (excluding buying hooky units off ebay) involve iPhones, on an Android thread?

I used Apple as a filter in ebay because it was first in the list. Feel free to have a look for yourself.

I don't need to, I excluded ebay from the equation.

I'm not doing maths as well.

5" is indeed the correct size.

And how does a carrier-locked phone affect my ability to upgrade a phone from Android 5 to 6, or 6 to 7 if I get a Nexus 5X?

(Sorry for the questions, I'm considering the switch from iOS but the idea of not being on the latest possible software, or software that has been tweaked by consumer electronics companies - who typically make the world's worst software - seems odd to me).

carrier locked android phones sometimes have locked/crippled bootloaders so you have to use signed builds and sometimes the manufacturer's software too. I know Samsung Kies only looks for updated builds which match your product, so if you bought a Samsung through Orange with an Orange build on it, it would only offer you the updated builds that had been Oranged.

Gotcha. So a non-carrier Nexus 5X won't have these problems.

If you want the latest software, Nexus is probably the way to go, followed by someone like Motorola or HTC.

Basically the unmodified software comes out and then the manufacturers customise it for their phone.

If you get a phone through a network (e.g. direct with Vodafone) then they may add further customisations so the chain then goes Google -> Manufacturer -> Network.

Obviously one way round this is to root your phone and install the latest CM. Although some phones lose functionality, e.g. camera performance, when rooted (I think some of the Sony phones have this).

Basically, if you want the pure Android with quick updates, buy the Nexus. It won't be locked.