Originally Posted by LIH Prem

Yes, you are correct. It's not a necessity. It just gives you more money saving options.

OP presented a list of options and asked about each one.

tech-savy or not, anybody can do the unlock. It really is that simple.-David

Originally Posted by ArizonaGuy

And what were local calls made within Paris? That's the point of unlocking - you can then buy pre-paid SIM cards from countless wireless providers in whatever country you visit, have a local number for that country and generally far less expensive local calls and texts during your stay abroad. Whether this is best for you really depends on how much you expect to use the phone or text.

And of course if someone needs to call you from the US or you need to call them, just use Skype or any other inexpensive VoIP solution.