Mobile and Gadget Info: unlocked

By Lincoln Spector

Purchasing a smartphone from your cellular-service provider typically comes with all sorts of compromises, restrictions, and limitations.

But an unlocked Nexus phone can eliminate many, if not all, of these problems.

Until last year, if you used Verizons network (as I do), you had to buy a phone from Verizon. A good smartphone might cost you U.S. $200 — plus an additional $25 a month for two years. That makes it an $800 phone! Other cellular providers had similar policies.

And if youre partial to Android phones, you have another problem: Manufacturers love to "customize" the OS — and Google lets them do it. The hardware maker might mess with the user interface and add apps you probably dont want and almost certainly cant remove. Even worse, the phone vendors control when you get updates, which usually means either "later" or "never."

I recently solved these problems by buying a Nexus 6P phone directly from Google (site). It cost me $550 plus tax — with no increase to my monthly Verizon bill. Best of all, it comes with a clean, unaltered edition of Android 6 — aka, Marshmallow — the latest version of Googles phone operating system. Google promises timely updates, and Ive already received one.

Heres how to get out from under the carriers and the manufacturers thumbs by setting up a pure Marshmallow device. Ill discuss some cool Nexus 6P features — and a few of its problems. Nothings perfect!

Starting with a solid smartphone platform

The Nexus 6P is easily the biggest and best phone Ive owned. It measures 6.27 by 3.06 by 0.29 inches, which means it can house a roomy 5.7-inch screen but wont fit in a shirts breast pocket.

The 12-megapixel camera captures details in very low light conditions; I have yet to use the flash. Burst mode is as simple as keeping your finger on the shutter button. Only video gets stabilization, but I can live with that.

One complaint about the camera: The only way you can turn off the shutter sound is to mute the entire phone.

The 6P also has a fingerprint reader for secure-but-instant access. More on that in a moment.

Unfortunately, its missing a Micro SD slot. Thats not surprising: Micro SD storage used to be in all Android devices; now its rare.

Why no memory slots? Without one, the manufacturer is free to overcharge obscenely for extra storage (see, ZDNet article). As I write this, I can buy a 128GB Micro SD card for $33. When I bought my Nexus 6P, I paid an extra $50 just to double my storage to 64GB.

What exactly is an unlocked smartphone?

No, Im not talking about the lock that keeps thieves from accessing your phones content. Im talking about the lock that keeps you from using your phone with any cellular provider you choose.

If I buy a phone from Verizon (or from most other cellular providers), it comes locked; it works only on the Verizon network. But the Nexus 6P comes unlocked. In theory, I should be able to simply move the SIM card from my old phone to the new one, and have access to the network. Sounds easy enough — but it didnt quite work out that way.

My first step was to plug the Nexus into AC power. I then turned it on and ran the setup wizard. Next, I shut it down to change the SIM card.

I had some trouble finding the SIM Card–insertion tool, which was hiding on the back of the tiny, essentially unreadable, "Safety + Warranty" book. But the more daunting problem was size; my SIM card was too big for the slot.

Through some research, I discovered that my old phone used a Micro-SIM card; the Nexus uses a Nano-SIM. Deciding against trimming the card with scissors, I contacted Verizon. Much to my surprise, I only had to go to the nearest Verizon store and get a new SIM card. I didnt even have to pay for it.

Everything went quickly and easily in the store. Verizon might be an evil, faceless corporation, but they have excellent customer service — at least from my experience.

Working with the Marshmallow operating system

Installing apps: Google knows every app youve ever downloaded from its Play Store. Though thats a bit scary, it can be convenient when youre setting up your second or third Android phone. You can bring up a list of past apps and pick the ones you want on your new device.

The bad news (aside from the privacy issue): Adding the apps isnt as easy or intuitive as it should be.

In the Play Store, tap the menu icon in the upper-left corner and select My apps (see Figure 1). Then tap All for a list — in what appears to be random order (Figure 2) — of all apps youve ever downloaded and installed. The only workable approach is to go through the list from top to bottom. When you see an app you still want, tap it and then tap Install.

Figure 1. The My apps option lets you download previously acquired applications from the Google Play Story.

Figure 2. If youve downloaded lots of Android software, working through the list of apps to download to a new phone can be a slow process.

I found this process time consuming and annoying, though it might not be as bad for you. Over many years as a technology writer, Ive downloaded perhaps hundreds of apps I never want to see again. The worst part was the Play Stores propensity to occasionally close on its own, for no apparent reason. Id then have to work my way down the list again.

Putting out the "Do not disturb" sign: I hate all the notifications that pop up on a smartphone. Yes, I want to be notified that Ive just received a text message, but I dont need to be notified every time I get email or theres a sale at Needless Markup.

Heres how to control notifications in Marshmallow:

Go to Settings and tap Sound & notification (Figure 3) — its in the Device section. Scroll down and tap App notifications. The resulting list shows every app that can send alerts. Tap one and turn the Block all setting to On (see Figure 4).

Figure 3. Use the App notification option to control alerts from installed applications.

Figure 4. Its easy to turn off annoying notifications from specific apps.

I do this every time an app annoys me with a useless notification.

Its not obvious how you mute a pure Marshmallow phone, but your options are powerful. Pull down the notification bar at the top of the screen and then tap the bar with the time and date. The Do not disturb option offers the choices: Total silence, Alarms only, and Priority only. That last option gives you all sorts of controls on how and when you can be disturbed.

Quick identification with a finger touch

I really like the phones fingerprint identification feature, Nexus Imprint — when it works. The fingerprint sensor is placed in the precisely right spot on the back of the phone, so it feels as if you can simply pull out the phone and itll immediately unlock itself.

You can have it memorize your fingerprints in the initial setup wizard or in the always-available setup screens Security section. (You can teach it to recognize multiple fingers.) During this process, it asks you to touch and release the sensor several times, so it can recognize that finger from several slight angles, as shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Training the Nexus phones fingerprint reader for better accuracy

I did both index fingers. But it frequently doesnt work. Oddly, the simple act of washing and drying my hands rendered it useless, forcing me to use my PIN. You know how your fingers get wrinkly when theyve been in water for a long time? I suspect that the problem is a subtle variation of that phenomenon.

Equipped with the next generation of USB

Aside from the headphone jack, the only port on the Nexus 6P is the new, fast, and seemingly incompatible-with-almost-everything USB-C (more info). Thats both good and bad, although I suspect that the bad will go away in a year or so.

The good: With the provided USB-C cable and AC adapter, the Nexus 6P charges amazingly fast. The battery went from 18 percent charge to 90 percent in an hour. This has changed my charging habits; I no longer leave my phone plugged in overnight.

The bad: Aside from AC power, theres not much I can do with that port, for now. The Nexus 6P comes with a USB-C/USB 2.0 cable, but its only 13 inches long. Ive had to buy a USB-C car charger, and Im considering a USB-C portable charger.

I can use the cable for PC-data transfer, which Ill discuss in an upcoming next article. Stay tuned.

Purchasing an unlocked phone can free you from proprietary operating systems and being shackled to one cellular provider. The Nexus 6P works with Verizon and AT&T — it supports both CDMA and GSM networks. All you have to do is switch the SIM card (see a YouTube video). But be warned: Thats not the case with all unlocked phones. In fact, the 6P and its smaller 5X sibling are the first Nexus phones that support Verizon.

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