May Galaxy Book S be used with carriers different to Sprint or Verizon?

[uservIeV0Z23FO]

When pre-ordering Galaxy Book S there are two options. Sprint and Verizon. Not sure what these options refer to. Does this mean the device is locked to an operator? Is it possible to use Galaxy Book S with a different operator than the one chosen at pre-order?

[louisyadier]

Yes, it will be carriers lock. If you want to unlock it u will need to complete with the requirements needed due to the carrier chosen.

[userx6Q48IqiXI]

How do you unlock a device when you don't even have an account with the carrier? Are they required to do this? I'm an AT&T user and it would cost a lot more to create a Verizon account than to add the device to my AT&T account. 

[uservIeV0Z23FO]

I learned you'll be locked to the carrier if you finance and get a plan through them. If you pay in full, the device is unlocked and you may use any carrier. This is what I learned from Samsung and T-mobile customer service. I'll confirm when I get the device if this is of interest. Looking forward to starting using this awesome laptop!

[userx6Q48IqiXI]

Not sure who told you this. My inquiry to Samsung said the laptop is locked even if you buy it from them and as of now there is no unlock protocol at all. A Verizon data plan is insanely expensive and will kill my purchase if the lock is real. You can get Verizon-compatible SIM's at a cost 1/10 or less of a monthly Verizon plan. I don't expect to need all that much data on LTE except as a convenience occasionally, so I would be buying this laptop as if it didn't have LTE which is a major selling point.

[uservIeV0Z23FO · Accepted solution]

Today I received the device and both Samsung Customer Care and T-Mobile Customer Service were right: depite coming with an inactive Verizon SIM card, I introduce a T-Mobile SIM card and it works great! I must say, I'm impressed with the LTE speed!

The Galaxy Book S impresses the first time you open it for being so thin and light. The display is gorgeous and I haven't had any issues with application compatibility yet. I know 64-bit Intel apps won't work for now, but so far I found alternatives and there are multiple news out there saying that Microsoft is currently working to bring 64-bit Intel emulation to Windows on Arm. Plus, I also saw multiple application providers, such as Adobe, stating the they are working on Arm64 binaries. This is going to be an excellent companion for home and traveling!

[userx6Q48IqiXI]

Are you in the US? Did you use a prepaid data only SIM? Given my usage, the $10 2GB plan would seem to be perfect. Seems like different Samsung agents give different answers... but you know now from experience.

[uservIeV0Z23FO]

Yes, I'm in US. I used a postpaid SIM card.

[mobilelawyer]

This was my experience as well. I am in the U.S. and bought mine directly from Verizon. The device is not SIM locked. The Verizon rep told me it was unlocked, and it was. I have used it both on Verizon and Google Fi. It worked perfectly. Reviews on YouTube of those who bought from Verizon have stated the same thing. This may not be the case in other countries

[userx6Q48IqiXI]

Does the Windows version include bitlocker? or is there a path to upgrade to Pro via the Microsoft store?