We just caught word that Samsung will soon be introducing developer editions of the Samsung Galaxy S4 for a couple of different US carriers. Funnily enough, the two carriers with the biggest history of locking devices down will be getting them: AT&T and Verizon.

It’s an interesting dynamic for AT&T users who will soon be able to buy the Google Edition Galaxy S4 with stock Android and updates straight from Google, but those on Verizon won’t have any such alternative. As such, this is a pretty big deal for those who want a device that will be bootloader unlocked.

Of course, the community made quick work of dismantling the Galaxy S4’s security, but sometimes having an official option is more desirable. These devices will be available in Black Mist to start, and there’s no current indication if any other color options will be made available. The specs list for the devices also list 16GB as the only option for internal storage.

We’re not sure how or where these will be offered, but it’s worthy to note that developer edition devices typically aren’t offered with a subsidy. We’ll be looking to get more details from Samsung about these listings, but in the meantime let us know if this is a route you’d consider going just to ensure you have a developer-friendly version of one of 2013’s hottest smartphones (read our Galaxy S4 review) out of the starting gate.

[via Samsung (AT&T, Verizon)]