iPhones, iPods, and iPads forum: Which iPhone to buy

I've been taking everything on board and it seems like the Verizon version is the best answer from the technical perspective. I have no brand loyalty so I don't care about the company.

Someone said something about cutting up a SIM chip because stoooooopppppppiiiiiiidddddd apple decided to change to a micro SIM chip which the rest of the world does not support (yet) however I won't lower myself to cut up chips to fit stoopiid apple products. If I can not find a SIM chip overseas that works in the iPhone 5, then it will be a short lived iPhone ownership.

I just need to get a smart phone that will be totally flexible whether I am in the US, South America, South Africa, Europe, Western Asia, Australia, South Eastern Asia, Japan, Korea, or where ever.

I may give up and go with a Sat Phone and be done with the whole domestic phone war between Android and Apple.

If you can afford sat phone service, you must have a decent budget

Keep in mind that sat phones won't work well inside (they still require line of sight), so you won't enjoy the same comforts of regular cellular phone service per se.

FWIW, it's pretty easy to use a $3 SIM cutting tool found on ebay, etc. to get the job done. [Why would a 30 year military guy care about having to cut a small piece of plastic?? just teasing ] You could just as easily pick up a Samsung Galaxy S3, which takes micro SIM cards (like the iPhone 4/4S; 5 now uses a nano-SIM). There are several foreign pre-paid carriers that use micro-SIMs anyway, if you don't want to deal with modifications.

Just don't get too hung up on the 'phone wars'. Pick one and enjoy your travels.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57522837-94/ask-maggie-is-back-which-iphone-5-is-right-for-you/

Here's a curve ball: Samsung Galaxy III or iPhone 5???????

But same as you've seen so far. Unlocked, get a sim and you're done.

Seems like a solid 'A or B' choice to me .

Keep researching if you have time. That's my advice. OTOH, you gain some roaming flexibility by choosing the Samsung Galaxy 3, avoid some of the SIM cutting that might be required by getting an iPhone 5. Also, there are more places to buy an S3 now vs Apple iPhone 5 since the S3 has been on the market for awhile already.

Thanks Bob, I appreciate the link. To tell the truth, I never expected that the Verizon edition would be the most liberal in its flexibility.

I hope to hear from a lot of you folks out there who are a lot smarter about this stuff than I am. My decision will be based upon technical details solely as I have no brand loyalty in terms of carriers.

Whether or not you pick a particular iPhone 5 version will likely depend on a few factors.

-Which domestic carrier(s) you prefer

-How much you ultimately want to spend on this handset (e.g. Verizon/ATT models would be subisidized)

-If you need this handset to be unlocked from the get-go, or could wait and have it unlocked later on, possibly using a basic GSM handset for your travels abroad in the meantime

-Which foreign carriers/networks you require abroad (some countries carriers might run on network frequencies not found on the ATT version of the iPhone 5, etc.)

-If you feel comfortable cutting a particular pre-paid SIM card to fit this phone if needed (some come in sizes different than the microSIMs found in the new iPhone 5)

-Adequate carrier/pre-paid coverage where you live/want to use the phone stateside

-Also, FWIW the LTE frequency bands found on the Verizon (CDMA/EVDO version) of the iPhone 5 will work globally in some places AFAIK. The ATT version is mostly good for North American LTE networks, I think. The third (Asian/global) version of the iPhone 5 might suffice if you don't have any desire to use Verizon or Sprint's CDMA/EVDO network in the U.S.

This article will explain more:
http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/09/want-global-lte-roaming-on-iphone-5-dont-buy-it-from-att/

http://duncandavidson.com/blog/2012/09/which_iphone5

http://www.imore.com/iphone-5-splits-two-models-one-us-gsmlte-another-cdmalte-and-everybody-else

http://tidbits.com/article/13258

At least there aren't any that I'm aware of. IOW, if you require the fastest data speeds on your device, you would only get them while using a Verizon branded iPhone while still on their U.S. network. It would throttle down to what the foreign carrier offered. For most this is not any sort of deal breaker, just good to know if you have expectations about how a device will perform outside your home area.

hth,
Pedro