T-Mobile skips Black Friday-But will have a Magenta Saturday sale

Black Friday is getting so big that companies and retailers are trying to create their own spinoff sales days to get attention. Running with the color + day theme, T-Mobile’s marketing department has decided that “Magenta Saturday” will be its big push. On Nov. 19, the wireless carrier will hold a big sale on some of its biggest phones, but only if you get one of its new Unlimited Value plans. Most of the discounts are mail-in rebates too, so you won’t see much savings up front.

The phones and tablets on sale:

(These come with a two-year contract and you have to pay off the phone in 20 monthly installments. Instead of embedding the costs of the phone into its rate plans, T-Mobile is charging less for plans and letting customers choose their phone price. All carriers charge you about $600 for top smartphones, but they hide the price inside their rate plans. T-Mobile is making it more visible. )

• HTC Amaze 4G – $50 after $150 mail-in rebate (+$20 monthly for 20 months)
• Samsung Galaxy S II – $50 after $150 mail-in rebate  (+$20 monthly for 20 mos)
• HTC Radar 4G – $50 after $50 mail-in rebate  (+$15 monthly for 20 months)
• T-Mobile MyTouch Q – Free after $50 mail-in rebate  (+$10 monthly for 20 months)
• BlackBerry Bold 9900 – $50 after $150 mail-in rebate  (+$20 monthly for 20 months)
• Samsung Exhibit II – Free after $50 mail-in rebate  (+$10 monthly for 20 months)
• T-Mobile G-Slate tablet – $50 after $250 mail-in rebate  (+$10 monthly for 20 months)
• Dell Streak 7 tablet – Free after $100 mail-in rebate  (+$10 monthly for 20 months)