[Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Accessories] IT_Architect:
I read the article. So it seems like a fine scale with the larger number meaning thicker, as with motor oil.

I'll read some more.

These are my thoughts, but I'd like yours:

1. The SM-N9600 has firmware for every country in South America. I would have better hardware support down there and a lot less here. They will very likely take an SM-960U1, but in the US it is a little more sketchy for good reason. The SM-N9600 is missing some of the carriers' primary bands such as B14 (AT&T), B71 (T-Mobile), Verizon's new B66, and more. The SM-N960U1 may well the best world phone in existence today.

2. With the SM-N9600 I get to use two SIMs, for which I need two providers. Colombia is done more like TracPhones in the US. That could give me wireless coverage where one or the other does not.

3. The good thing that came out of all of this is it caused me to raise my head and realize the cellular world, including myself, are limiting themselves to an extended copper paradigm in a world where those limitations are no longer relevant. In a world-wide-digital-mobile society, having a telephone tied to a single wireless provider and device no long makes sense. Using VOIP, multiple numbers go to a single device with no special phone hardware, a single number can used by multiple devices, or any combination. With VOIP It also doesn't matter where in the world you are physically, nor how you get your data connection, nor even if you are using a phone. You can have multiple independent conversations occurring that were connected through the the same number at the same time separated session. When you change wireless providers, such as when you pop in a SIM card, nothing changes and there are no numbers to port or forward. We no longer have to concerned with VoLTE VoWiFi compatibility because they become irrelevant. Buying a special 2-SIM phone in order to enable two numbers simultaneously is an extension of the copper paradigm. Separating my telephone numbers from my wireless carrier simply makes sense. My biggest obstacle has been MMS+call recording. Only RingCentral can do it, but expensively and inflexibly. While I miss having root, I would trade it for Samsung Pay as long as I have solid call recording. VOIP would be the best way, but the SM-N960U1 gets me there for the time being.

4. The US cell phone environment seems to be Hell-bent to take away our call recording, which has caused many people a lot of grief. You know from the news and earlier from defectors like Snowden that they record all of your calls and a lot more. Thus, this is not about privacy. These are Nazi tactics to prevent you from defending yourself. With VOIP we can sidestep the whole rotten mess. With VOIP, all their prying eyes will see is LTE packets carrying encrypted IP data, and if I choose to use a VPN, turn that into destinations unknown so they won't even have metadata.

Future: From a wireless perspective, any device running any OS, with a wireless modem, with or without a PSTN telephone number assigned would work fine because the number wouldn't be used for anything anyway. We could OPTIONALLY install a secure VM that could replace KNOX's functionality on any device. They could prototype with this Ockel Sirius A to advance us back to 2009, the PocketPC, Windows Mobile, and the TouchPro 2 w/stylus that Balmer gave away along with the mobile market, and give us apps that Android and IOS can't come close to matching. We would start with OS that people use for their banking, and lots of apps that are free or cheap that you don't have to agree to be spammed or spied on to use.

Thanks!