Sprint to introduce Total Equipment Protection for the iPhone next week

January 25 is shaping up like a big day for Sprint. Not only that the carrier is expected to launch a new pre-paid service, but a little something for iPhone users appears to be in stock as well for that very same date.

According to the leaked internal document you see below, Sprint will start offering Total Equipment Protection for the iPhone. In other words, those who opt in will have the option to get a replacement in case their iPhone gets lost, stolen, or damaged. In exchange, Sprint will be requiring a $11 monthly fee, in addition to a charge that a subscriber has to pay in order to get a replacement.

That additional charge will vary depending on the retail price of the insured unit. In particular, an iPhone with an MSRP of $549.99 to $599.99 will be replaced for $150, while iPhones costing north of $600 will require a $200 fee. Interested customers will be given 30 days to opt in for TEP after the smartphone's date of purchase.

So yeah, you'll be paying quite a lot of cash to have an iPhone replaced, but that's probably cheaper than purchasing a new unit at retail price. An official announcement of TEP for iPhone users is likely to come over the next few days. 

source: Engadget