Brain lock

As always, something has me a little confused.
What is it this time? Well, it’s the phone locking issue that has everyone from tech geeks to politicians in a tizzy. (Actually, it seems that only tech geeks and politicians are in an uproar over this issue.)
The issue of locked phones has been around for years, but was turned up to 11 earlier this year when Apple launched its do-everything iPhone, locked to AT&T Mobility’s network.
Ever since AT&T Mobility started selling the iPhone, hackers far and wide have been spending every Red Bull-fueled waking hour in their parents’ basement trying to unlock the device so they and their geek buddies could claim they unlocked the device. Party!
For the 99% of iPhone owners who don’t live in basements, this is a fringe story lost to the everyday happenings of living. And for good reason.
Let’s say someone feels the need to have an unlocked iPhone so they can express their “right” to use any device on any network.
First, the only other likely option would be to use the device on T-Mobile USA’s network. No offense to the industry’s No. 4 operator, but T-Mobile USA does not have the coverage depth of its larger rival, and can only offer slightly cheaper rate plans to lure iPhone customers.
The only positive I see to an unlocked iPhone would be for people who travel overseas could use a prepaid SIM card instead of paying the international roaming fees charged by AT&T Mobility.
But that has not stopped politicians from jumping on the case, loudly complaining about how locked devices deprive consumers of choice.
Now the unlocking frenzy has trickled over to the CDMA side of the technology equation, with cries for Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel to provide unlock codes for their devices. This makes even less sense: Verizon Wireless uses BREW as the technology platform for its data services, Sprint Nextel uses Java. Porting a handset from one operator to the other would probably render data services unusable. Customers could use voice services, but how happy are they going to be when they are unable to check a sports score or send a picture message?
I’m not saying I approve of the locking process, but there are many technical reasons that make the process impractical and the discussion a waste of time.