Google imposes $350 early termination fee for subsidized Nexus One in addition to carrier's own ETF

Here's another reason to consider going the unlocked route with the Nexus One, in addition to having the AT&T (non-3G) and international GSM option. As a number of people have noticed, Google's got its own Early Termination Fee (ETF) equivalent, here called the Equipment Recovery Fee, in the terms of sale, to the tune of $350 if you cancel within the first 120 days. Sound familiar? It's because we saw it in a leak just before the new year. Here's the kicker, though: this is in addition to any fees imposed by the carrier -- not necessarily a problem on its own, but we just glanced at T-Mobile's terms of sale, and sure enough, there's an associated ETF up to $200. If we're reading this right, Nexus One owners who decide to end their service after the 14-day trial period is over but before four months have passed will be hit with upwards of $550 in fees -- more than if you bought the phone outright from the start, especially when you factor in the upfront $180. There hasn't been enough time for someone to tempt fate, but who knows -- come January 20th when early adopters' trial period ends, there might be some interesting stories abound.