Wipe iphone, switch carriers, get new carrier-locked iphone, restore? Let's say I have an AT&amp;T iphone 5. I regularly back it up with itunes.
I decide to switch carriers to Verizon. I wipe my iphone, sell it, and get a brand new Verizon iphone 5.

Can I simply plug that iphone into itunes, do a restore from backup, and have everything exactly as it was before? Or is there enough of a difference between the carrier-locked phones that this would not smoothly restore?
You will be able to restore the backup, especially if your old device wasn't jailbroken (if it is, some space might end up wasted due to the unofficial apps' preferences &amp; files).

Even if you look to already expect this, remember the unlock won't carry over.