No-contract phones

[dennysam]

Hello,
My husband has a month-to-month cell plan (it is NOT a prepaid plan) through Verizon...and wants to upgrade the phone...but NOT change service. Can he purchase an Android phone from Target or Walmart and use it with his old plan?
Thanks for your help...

 

[jaguarskx]

Generally speaking, he would need to buy an unlocked phone so that it can be used with whatever carrier the phone is compatible with. However, unlocked phone are relatively expensive because you buy the phone at full price and it also needs to be unlocked which can add additional costs to it. Smartphones at full retail price (because there is no contract to subsidize the price) can cost up to $650; more if it is a true premium of premium smartphones.

I never been to Walmart 'cause there is no store near me. However, Target only sell phones that are associated with specific carriers which requires a 2 year contract to get the phone for a relatively inexpensive price like $150 - $300.