Sprint Cell Phone Accessories

Sprint launches first CDMA push-to-talk phones

Sprint shed more light on the future of its Direct Connect service today when it announced two CDMA devices that will support the push-to-talk (PTT) feature. The Kyocera DuraMax and DuraCore will launch in the fourth quarter of this year with a yet-to-be-named Motorola handset set following shortly after.

From the outside, the Kyocera handsets should appeal to long-time Nextel fans. The flip designs sport rubber skins for extra durability and both devices are certified to military specifications for dust, shock, and vibration. The DuraMax goes a little further by adding protection for blowing rain, temperature extremes, and immersion in water. According to Kyocera, it will withstand a dunking in one meter of water for up to 30 minutes.

Both models offer strictly functional feature sets. You'll find Bluetooth, color internal and external displays, a full duplex speakerphone, text and multimedia messaging, and organizer options. The headset jacks are 2.5mm--we'd prefer a standard 3.5mm port--but the DuraMax also has a 3.2-megapixel camera and a MicroSD slot that can support cards up to 32GB (a 1GB card will come in the box).

As mentioned, both phones will support Sprint's new CDMA-based PTT service, along with Land Mobile Radio interoperability, simultaneous PTT and data, and user availability notifications (international PTT service should come next year). Sprint announced earlier this year that it would roll its Direct Connect services over to CDMA in advance of the promised 2013 shut-down of its iDEN network.

Kent German is a section editor for mobile device reviews at CNET. When he's not testing the newest handsets on the market, he's blogging about wireless news, appearing on the Dialed In podcast and watching planes land at the airport (yes, really). In his On Call column, he answers reader questions and gives his take on the rapidly changing mobile industry.

Whether it's for just making calls or for cramming your entire life into one device, the ubiquitous cell phone continues to evolve. Each Wednesday cell phone editors Kent German, Bonnie Cha, Nicole Lee, and Jessica Dolcourt meet to discuss the latest cell phone news and answer your questions. Join us to find out what's in, what's out, and what's coming next.

Send us e-mail at dialedin@cnet.com or call us at 1-866-402-2638 (CNET) and be a part of the show.

Sprint Hero | Cell Phones and Accessories

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The stock messaging app that comes with Android does not support signatures. You need to use a different app for messaging, like Handcent, which is available on the Market.

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