Samsung Galaxy S8 Release Date And Price: Unlocked Preorders Now Available

The Samsung Galaxy S8 is on sale globally as of Friday, but consumers can also now purchase the unlocked version of the smartphone, which is not connected to a mobile carrier. Several retailers including B&H and Best Buy are now offering pre-orders for the unlocked Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, which are expected to begin shipping in May.

B&H is offering the unlocked Galaxy S8 for $829.99 and the Galaxy S8 Plus for $929.99, while Best Buy is offering the Galaxy S8 for $724.99 and the Galaxy S8 Plus for $824.99.

With no carrier affiliation, users can power these Galaxy S8 models on any GSM network, such as AT&T or T-Mobile in the U.S. Several international networks run GSM services, which allow users to buy a temporary SIM card to use phones in various countries.

Unlocked Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus models have the same specs as carrier models, but often get favor when it comes to software updates and beta testing. Carrier unlocked smartphones are also often bootloader unlocked or have a simpler process to unlock a bootloader. Such processes allow various savvy users to access back ends of smartphones for easy customization. Carriers including Verizon and AT&T in particular tend to keep bootloaders on devices locked.

Samsung has also done its part to promote security protocols on its devices with services such as Samsung Knox. Often accessing bootloaders on carrier devices trips a security code within the handset and voids it's warranty. However, consumers who typically opt for unlocked devices tend to be aware and responsible for such stipulations.

Hardware on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus includes a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 or Exynos 8895 chip, a 5.8-inch or 6.2-inch dual-edge curved infinity display, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage, a 12-megapixel rear camera and 8-megapixel front camera, 3,000mAh or 3,500mAh battery and the Android 7.0 Nougat operating system.