For a long time, you couldn't really buy an unlocked phone straight from the manufacturer in the US. The closest thing was importing one is with the correct network bands (GSM), but that also kind of went away when VoLTE became a requirement.

Relatively recently, some manufacturers started offering unlocked devices sold straight from them, but it wasn't until Apple started doing it with the iPhone that it became a mass-appeal/well known thing.

So overall it's because:

• That's just how things were for a long time
• Carriers offer deals on their locked devices
• 2-year carrier contracts were a thing until the mid 2010s or so
• People are just used to their carrier being a one-stop-shop

Nowadays more people are aware about buying an unlocked phone instead of a carrier firmware/carrier locked device. But in the US I'd say most people only know about iPhones being offered unlocked.

Same specs as you except 5800x3D. Same sentiments at 1440p.

And it's been the default here in the US, historically and culturally (for puritanical reasons originally, and now because it's "the norm"). Absolutely barbaric practice. "Yes, please mutilate my newborn baby because *checks notes* having a foreskin is unhygienic and looks weird compared to what I'm used to seeing in porn."

Yes, but he's straight for pay.

No. As a user of both Amazon and Google devices (with screens/sticks), Amazon is far more aggressive in their advertising practices. As the other guy said, neither is ad-free out of the box, but Amazon devices will literally make your screensaver/lock screen a full screen ad (even on your TV). Google just has a home screen ad about something that's going to play on streaming, usually.

If you want NO ads, set up DNS ad blocking or get an Apple TV and use that for streaming. But again, Amazon's devices are FAR more aggressive about advertising as much as possible. My father has one of those Echo Show things that's a speaker with a rotating screen attached to it. It's playing ads almost all the time.

He's trying to instigate a war so that he can be a wartime president. On all fronts. I'm sure he would rather it be a domestic matter, but he's clearly happy to start one internationally, too.

Black people: *exist*

Racists: NOOOO YOU CAN'T DO THAT REEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!1!1!1!!!

They're going to try every medium/platform possible. The only way to tackle this is to teach critical thinking. Easier said than done, I know. Otherwise we board up the internet "for the children" (which is currently happening).

So about that Wifi app in the third screenshot...

Came here to say the same. It's an empty threat. After all this is famously the company who made dual physical SIM iPhones for China and other Asian regions because eSIM isn't/wasn't legal.

I use Seal. It works fine. It has trouble downloading from "official" pages though (e.g. Vevo or Universal or whatever). It's like those pages, since they're owned by corporate entities, have some extra protection on them or something. It's been like this for years, across Android, Windows, Mac, etc -- doesn't matter what I try to use to download, it'll fail on those pages/accounts.

I cancelled YT Premium after paying pretty much since Google Music was a thing. The price keeps going up ($14/month now here in the US), and Lite is meh even for the discounted price (e.g. no background play I think?).

They just keep building the wall higher and higher, while they survive only because creators keep filling it with content. Nobody is watching "YouTube Originals" or their first party content. YouTube exists solely because of third party creators.

Not only that but I can survive with Brave or Firefox with UBO or whatever. It's not that hard to avoid the ads, even if it's a little inconvenient vs being able to use the app.