unlocked phone vs carrier issued phone

[Shreddingbetty]

Is there any disadvantage to buying un unlocked phone? I recently switched to T mobile with my Verizon phone (I am waiting to buy the Samsung s10 which is why I did not get a new phone when I switched carriers) and it seems like some stuff does not work as well (like the voicemail for example, it works but in an indirect way as I have to call the VM #).   It seems like when you buy a carrier based phone there is a lot of carrier based extra stuff on it which you cannot get rid of. I know T mobile is unlocked after like a couple of months anyway if it is paid off. Plus it should work in Europe on the T mobile service.  So presumably I won't need a separate sim card when I go there. I pondered getting an unlocked phone from Samsung directly to maybe limit some of the extra carrier related crud but I also wonder if the phone won't work as well with carrier specific functions then.  And I am assuming you cannot do a insurance on your phone if you get an unlocked phone.

At this point I am leaning more towards just buying a tmobile phone but I was wondering if there are any significant advantages or disadvantages to having an non carrier specific unlocked phone. 

[mrsukyankee]

I have an unlocked phone and it works with every carrier I've had as well as working better in other countries as I can just purchase a sim there and put it in. You can definitely get insurance on an unlocked phone - both my H and I have it.

[mich1]

When we travel with our unlocked phones, we stop at a phone booth on the way out of the airport and have them exchange the SIM card out and get a plan for our time there. For our trip to Portugal, we had 30 days unlimited talk and text and 5GB data for 30 days for 10€. That is why cheaper than the $10/day a US phone plan charges for international use.

Our US phone plans are through Ting. No contract, and a fraction of the cost.

Can’t say anything about insurance, we don’t have it on either of our phones.