The appeal of unlocked cell phones is that they allow for easily switching between service providers. Numerous handsets are available thusly, and while most folks normally go with the latest ones, it often pays to consider older offerings in addition. For instance, unlocked cell phones like the Nokia Surge make fine second handsets for those who find it necessary or more convenient to keep two separate contact numbers. It looks like a T-Mobile Sidekick but being unlocked means that you aren’t restricted to just AT&T in the United States. It has the same form factor as the popular Sidekick, only instead of swiveling it slides to reveal the keyboard underneath. The inclusion of text messaging and social media capabilities makes it clear that Nokia is gunning after the youth demographic with this model.

There’s simply no better when it comes to unlocked cell phones for second or third “lines.” But just what is the Surge? What’s it like? Well, it’s a 3G phone offering 2.4 inches of screen real estate at 320×240 TFT pixels and 16 million colors. The 2 megapixel camera is inferior when compared to the 3 megapixel-plus version on the related 6760 Slide model available in the rest of the world (which phone, incidentally, isn’t carrier-exclusive), but the Surge did debut earlier, too. Video recording is done at the standard QVGA resolution.

It runs on the Symbian Series 60 multi-tasking platform, which goes great with the provided feature-set, marking it a mid-level offering. The Surge is compatible with Bluetooth 2.0, with A2DP support, and offers microUSB connectivity as well. Audio is delivered by a standard 2.5mm jack. In keeping with most Nokia products these days, there is also a built-in stereo FM radio player. MicroSD cards are supported for close to a maximum of 8GB of additional storage space, on top of the 2GB card included. This phone can also be found in black, white, or red color schemes. Talk-time is scored for decent five hours, with standby is a healthy five hundred.

Best of all, being unlocked means not having to deal with AT&T and a long two-year contract with mandatory voice and data plans that could possibly add up to about a thousand dollars a year for even a rather casual user! And naturally the Surge is designed for those who are constantly texting, chatting, e-mailing, or using the internet. Such folks could quite easily wind up with over two thousand dollars a year!