Synthia, I'm glad you raised the issue of locked mobile phones - I thought I saw something recently about some companies allowing customers to "unlock" their phones, but only after they had completed a one or two year contract. (To be honest, it all sounds quite restrictive to me now that I'm used to how mobile phones work here in Europe.)

The other thing to remember is that in the US, you pay for all "air time" with your mobile phone - incoming calls as well as outgoing. There's no premium for someone to call you on a mobile number (in fact, you generally can't tell the difference between a mobile number and a regular number), so they hit the person with the mobile phone. At least it explains the "5000 minutes a month" plans they try to sell you there!
Cheers,
Bev