Are you worried that an unlocked or SIM-free phone will not work on your Carrier?
 
Sick of buying open market phones and then finding out that they do not work, or only partially work on your wireless provider?
 
Well, here's the Real solution:
 
The Huawei u9508  Pentaband true world phone.
 
(Also known as the Honor 2 -or- Ascend G615)
 
What's a "Pentaband" Phone?
 
A pentaband phone has all 4 GSM frequencies (850/900/1800/1900 MHz), and all 5 WCDMA frequencies (850/900/1700/1900/2100 MHz), in use world wide.
 
That means a pentaband phone will work (including high speed 3G data) on any GSM system in the world.
 
In the United Sates, it means it works equally well on T-Mobile or AT&T.
 
Now to be clear, this is still a GSM phone, and must have a GSM provider.  It will not work on Verizon or Sprint in the US, and it will not work on a few remaining CDMA providers in South America.
 
It also does not have LTE (4G).
 
With the exceptions above, If this phone does not work, the only phone that will is a satellite phone.
 
Not only that, but the u9805 has some really great other features as well:
 

• Quad core Huawei-developed processor @ 1.4 GHz and is available with 1 or 2 Gig of RAM.
  
• 1280x720 (True 720p) resolution. (Same pixel density as an iPhone 5, but on a larger display). 720p movies play pixel-for-pixel with no scaling.
  
• Includes a very pure Android 4.0.4 (ICS).  Other Firmwares are available.
  
• Dolby Stereo and Internal Dual Speakers with great sound and lots of audio power.  (Like HTC One, but at half the cost).
  
• Normal (full size) SIM slot, Standard connectors and a Micro SD slot.  No cutting your SIM!
  
• WiFi Hotspot.  Also supports Bluetooth and USB tethering.
  
• Replaceable Battery.
  
• Dual Mics for noise cancellation.
  
• GPS and GLONASS.  Works in high latitudes, or if GPS is jammed, unavailable or cut off.
  
• 8MP Dual-flash camera with Face recognition, special effects, panorama, etc.  Great Front camera, too.
  

 
What is this phone missing?  Well, no consumer product is perfect, and this phone does have it's negatives:
 

• No NFC (Near field). (Not yet in wide use anyplace.)
  
• No LTE
  
• No official, Pure Android 4.1 or 4.2 (Yet).  There is an official 4.1.2, but it pretty much requires the 2 gig version, and has Huawei's "Emotion UI"
  
• Cheap, snap-on back
  
• No HDMI connector
  

 
Worried about buying/using a Huawei product?  That's not really rational:
 

• No Huawei phone has ever been proven to contain any factory malware/spyware
  
• With all of the attention Huawei has been getting, they would be the last to try something like that right now
  
• What phone does not have Chinese components or assembly?
  
• The US government is probably spying on you no matter what phone you are using
  
• Your wireless provider is most likely using Huawei infrastructure equipment, so no matter what brand phone you are holding, your call and your data are going through Huawei equipment anyway.
  

 
The Huawei Honor 2/Ascend G615/u9508 is now the linuxslate.com recommended phone for those wanting carrier freedom.
 
Huawei also makes several other pentaband phones, including the new Ascend P6, and the Ascend Mate, a 6.1" "Phablet".  Sadly, neither have more resolution than the u9805, and neither have dual speakers.