Cafe IPhone

T-Mobile brings to three the number of major cell carriers who are reducing such fees, which range from $150 to $200, depending on how far subscribers are into their contract. Two other big companies, Alltel (which may soon be swallowed up by Verizon) and Sprint, are not yet making such adjustments, though they've pledged to do so.

So while T-Mobile's announcement is welcome, its pro-rating is in some ways less generous than the schemes for Verizon and AT&T, the other majors who pro-rate their termination fees. T-Mobile's $200 fee, the highest among the three companies, doesn't actually drop at all for the first year-and-a-half of two-year contracts.

When it does, it drops to $100 from the nineteenth through twenty-first months. That's more than you'd get dinged at that point by either Verizon or AT&T. Both those companies have a $175 fee that drops by $5 for every month of service, meaning their fees would slide from $85 to $75 at Verizon and from $90 to $80 at AT&T in that same three-month period, a year-and-a-half and counting into the contract. (Verizon's ETF is slightly lower than AT&T's each month, because its monthly $5 pro-rating begins on the contract start date, while AT&T’s starts after the ETF kicks in in the second month, according to company spokespeople.)

However, T-Mobile's fee is better for consumers during the last three months of two-year contracts, when it drops to $50; that's $10 to $25 lower than the penalty for breaking an AT&T or Verizon contract during that period. And T-Mobile's pro-rating is significantly better on 12-month contracts. Although T-Mobile's fee doesn't drop at all until six months in, it then drops dramatically to $100 for the next three months, $35 to $50 below what the others would levy at that time. And the T-Mobile's fee kicks down to $50 in the last three months of the contract, besting the others by $70 to $85.

For other money-saving tips, see our other post, "Cell plan extra charges: Why and what you can do" and "Seven ways to cut your phone bills" on ConsumerReports.org.

—Jeff Blyskal

How pro-rated early termination fees compare

Boxes marked in green denote the lowest fees available among the three carriers.

For 24-month contracts

For 12-month contracts

Note: *AT&T and Verizon provide 30-day trial periods in which you may cancel without incurring termination fees. T-Mobile provides only a 20-day trial period (30 days in California).

In conjunction with retail partner Wal-Mart, Vizio—a company whose sets have typically fared well in our Ratings—is now offering 32- and 42-inch 720p plasma models at prices of $600 and $800, respectively. The 32-inch screen size for plasma, popular in Asia, is new to the U.S. and will enable plasma to compete for the first time with smaller LCD models.

The company has also announced a new higher-performance series—called XVT—that will include both 1080p plasma and LCD models.

The VP422, the 42-inch model, is especially low-priced compared to 720p models from other well-known brands, which typically cost $1,000 or more. While there are no other 32-inch plasmas, the VP322's price compares favorably to 32-inch LCD models in our Ratings, which are typically priced at $800 or more. One exception: Vizio's own VW32L HDTV, which sells for the same $600.

Both models have 3 HDMI inputs, plus component video and RGB PC connections, and offer multiple color temperature settings and independent Red/Green/Blue adjustments.  The company claims that these latest models use new glass for improved brightness for use in brighter rooms. The TVs are now available in all 3,400 Wal-Mart retail locations.

XVT: A step-up series
There are three models in the new XVT series: two 1080p LCDs with 120Hz
technology to reduce motion blur, and a 50-inch 1080p plasma. The two
LCD sets—the 42-inch SV42XVT ($1,500) and 47-inch SV47XVT
($1,900)—include video presets customized for specific types of content
(movies, sports, TV, etc.) and SRS Labs' TruSurround XT virtual
surround audio processing. The 50-inch 1080p plasma, the VP505XVT
($1,700), includes Silicon Optix's Reon video processing circuitry as
well as the SRS audio technology. The plasma set also sports a "Brandy
Wine" colored speaker grill, and includes an HDMI cable. The new models
will be available in July in consumer electronics retailers such as
Circuit City and Sears, as well as warehouse clubs including Costco and
Sam's Club.

Vizio sets have done well in our Ratings, generally offering very
good performance at an especially low price, occasionally earning them
a CR Best Buy designation. —James K. Willcox