Umm, you don`t HAVE to buy the phone through Docomo.
You only have to buy the *new* models. This is the same for any of the companies. They do not give away the new model phones. The only time you`re going to get a free phone is when the market price of the phone drops below the commission the shop gets for having you sign up for a contract. In other words, old phones.
This is the same for ALL the companies. If they say you`re getting a new phone for "free" - it`s just "not up front". Trust me, you`ll pay for it in your monthly bill. But really, recently they all pretty much go by the same rule - you pay for the difference of the phone price and the commission they receive. If you sign up for a big money plan for a year, wow! Look at that! The newest model drops to half price!
(Still happy with my P902i... Which we only ended up paying 5000 for...)