I knew devices were getting blocked, but not to this extent. Or the fact that mexico’s own government/regulatory bodies condemned the blocking itself.
Here’s a written article (not English): https://pisapapeles.net/bloqueo-celulares-mexico/
Xioami is the only one (in the list) that sent a notification but didn’t block any function or the device itself: https://www.gearrice.com/update/xiaomi-affirms-that-it-is-not-blocking-mobile-phones-purchased-on-the-gray-market-in-mexico-even-though-it-continues-to-be-a-problem/
From what I can tell, Mexico copied the SAR requirements from the international standards that have been set up by that kind of thing. As for network configuration, carriers can push that stuff over text messages as soon as a phone registers with their network, I don’t think you can get a strict ban on phones for not having the right APNs. Maybe Mexico has some kind of radio band that phones will try to access for 5G licensed off for special purposes, but Mexico seems to use the standard 1900/1700/2100MHz bands for phones too.
I know bloated carrier phones are used to subsidise expensive phones and sell them for cheap, but Samsung still sells most devices (at least the ones verified to comply with the law) directly. They’re more expensive, but that’s because Samsung isn’t getting compensation from the carriers. If you want the non-bloated version, you’ve got to pay the difference.