Let me start off by saying that I get absolutely terrible phone reception from AT&T in both my home and work. I got sucked into the Microcell gimmick, after spending, I'm not exaggerating, at least 10 hours with customer support trying to figure out why my reception is so terrible. The root cause that AT&T hesitates to admit: they have too many users for their networks, and their technology is particularly bad at going through obstructions like buildings (note that buildings are not a problem in my home, where neighborhood rules require all homes to be single two story, and all are made of wood. I'm also inside a large city, surrounded by AT&T towers).
So here's my plan: I was thinking of upgrading today (I'm eligible), and buying a new phone at the discount rate with the 2 year commitment. Why would I do this given my signal struggles? On the off chance that 4G/LTE solves my problem (current phone is 3G, 4G/LTE is heavily advertised in the area and friends with 4G seem to have better reception), or if my phone is at least partly to blame (it seems to have trouble getting back on a network once it loses signal; requires a reboot).
What I wonder is whether I can buy this new phone with a 2 year commitment, and if I'm unhappy, return the phone, cancel the contract, and face no risk of cost if my signal performance does not improve. I believe I have 14-15 days to cancel before I am charged the ETF. What if I am not yet past the timeframe for my current 2 year commitment, will they make me retroactively pay the ETF on that contract?