Can you buy an iphone without buying a carrier?

I want to buy the iphone 5, but without the carrier. So later on i can connect it not right now can i do that?

Yeah

Provided you know which carrier you will be going with you could buy one out of the classifieds a lot cheaper. Most cases you can get an almost new phone for about a third to half the price.

Yes you can if you want to seriously over-pay. Why would anyone want to do something that stupid?

Yes, of course. You can choose to connect with a carrier whenever you want, but still be able to use Wi-Fi and some apps