Samsung now taking pre-orders for unlocked Galaxy S8
If you don't want to deal with carrier bloatware and unnecessary services, Samsung is now taking pre-orders for the unlocked Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus.
The unlocked device will work on nearly all GSM and CDMA carriers in the US, meaning users can switch between carriers simply by switching out the SIM card inside the phone.
Pre-orders will begin arriving May 31, 2017, with Best Buy being the only retail store in the US you can purchase the unlocked variant of the popular phone.
Those interested in pre-ordering the device can do so on Samsung.com or BestBuy.com.
An unlocked Galaxy S8 is priced at $724, with the larger Galaxy S8 Plus priced at $824.
Despite the lack of extra apps and services, Samsung has a spotty record when it comes to releasing timely software updates for its unlocked phones. I recently detailed why the lack of timely software updates is a concern, especially when it comes to monthly security patches -- the same patches most carrier-branded Galaxy devices receive on time.
For instance, the unlocked Galaxy S7 Edge was updated to Android 7.0 Nougat last week. To add some context, the T-Mobile version of the same phone was updated to Nougat back in February. A three-month delay to release a software update for a phone that shouldn't have as strict carrier testing or restrictions is not acceptable.
For now, I still recommend holding off on purchasing an unlocked Samsung phone until the company starts releasing monthly security updates.