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Cingular Launches Push to Talk

Article Comments  96  

Dec 2, 2005, 9:21 AM   by (staff)

Cingular today launched Push to Talk, its PTT walkie-talkie service. Cingular is offering the service as an add-on to existing voice plans for a flat rate of $9.99 per month for unlimited use, or $19.99 for family plans. As rumored, the company has chosen Kodiak's RTX system. Unique features include visual real-time availability information (presence), call waiting, and the ability to convert a PTT call to a normal voice call at any time. Like other PTT services, it also offers 1-to-1 or group access with one touch of a dedicated side key, contacts and groups can be configured on the phone, and it can work over speakerphone or via earpiece like a normal phone call. The LG F7200 - an entry-level slider available in stores today - is the only compatible phone available initially. A second compatible phone - the Samsung D357 clamshell phone with Bluetooth - will be available soon.

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kingk12481

Dec 13, 2005, 12:51 AM

What about when...?

Alot of you make good points. That is those of you that are actually discussing cingular's participation into the PTT share of the market.

Without trying to sound like a cingular fanboy, but with a lack of a better way to pose this question, What do you think will happen 2 years from now when nextel's iDEN technology goes strictly government, and you have to revert to sprint's VoIP version of PTT?
Sprint is already in the works to intergrate new phones that use sprints old system, while the DoD is in the works of buying out sprint/nextel's portion of the iDEN technology.
Cingular took a few years to have their own PTT service, yes, but think back to when the patent on the PTT service went public, and Sprint and VZW tried to use it. W...
(continues)
I can't wait to read Nextel18's Idiotic reply.
bigbee

Dec 5, 2005, 9:23 AM

Kodiak PTT is a Phone Call!

There is something very important about Kodiak PTT that everyone needs to keep in mind: a Kodiak PTT call is a phone call on a standard voice circuit. It's actually a voice call to the Kodiak RTX platform (which may or may not be located in local switching facility).

So if you think about it, Cingular is charging PTT users $9.99 per month for the privilege of placing a half-duplex (one side muted) phone call to people whom they can already call (full duplex) for free.

Granted that presence (done via SMS, just like an IM application) and group call are not otherwise available, but those features are of limited value. Presence has no value for people who leave their phone on all the time, and very few people even set up groups muc...
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You do realize of course that all PTT solutions outside the business market (the only place PTT's really useful) are really just a way to charge for M2M minutes that would otherwise be free.

Otherwise known as a MARKETING GIMMICK!!!
...
bigbee said:
There is something very important about Kodiak PTT that everyone needs to keep in mind: a Kodiak PTT call is a phone call on a standard voice circuit. It's actually a voice call to the Kodiak RTX platform (which may or
...
(continues)
Out of curiosity, how would you make a mobile-to-mobile call to 20 different people at the same time?
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Really isn't all PTT a half duplex phone call? I really don't get your point. You sound like Nextel 18's clone.
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bunkrich

Dec 2, 2005, 9:52 AM

why why why

push to talk is trashy and annoying... spend your time and money on something better cingular... why would we need this really maybe for big buisness... but no one normal needs it... i mean cant you only use it with cingy ppl anyways... and um yeah.... cingy ppl can all talk 4 free.... just my thoughts... i hate when you here "beep" and then all of someone convo...
i think the whole jist of it was business 😳 😲 😁 ! 😕

of course there will be average folks that will get it just to get it. but that is only a PLUS for cingular! 😉
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chrismit

Dec 6, 2005, 10:00 PM

PTT

Ok first off i'm not going to bash any company, equipment, or everything else people are bashing on here.

Speaking from the perspective of 2.5 year retail sales rep with Cingular and a former Verizon, and Nextel customer i must say Cingular's PTT solution provides yet another avenue of business.

GSM is a world leader in network and equipment which means there are the most amount of phones available (the ability for a manufacturer to make one phone that can be sold worldwide makes them better and cheaper) while Verizon, Sprint, and Nextel use unique programming language, phone OS/software, and CDMA and IDEN technology limits selection of handsets and technology growth. Trends set overseas with 3G gsm technology are just now trickling ...
(continues)
lucid

Dec 2, 2005, 2:13 PM

to nextel18

nextel18 is just scared his little company is about to get ran over again.

lets see, all 50million+ customers on cingular can walkie talkie each other compared to 17million with nextel. And one of the worst thing about nextel is their coverage, and cingulars walkie talkie feature is waaaaay bigger. check out the map its on all of cingulars towers, which is also bigger than verizon.

nextels walkie talkie is outdated compared to the Kodiaks RTX system cingular is using. some features... real-time availability information (presence), call waiting, and the ability to convert a PTT call to a normal voice call at any time, quick grouping, voicemail, (this is all on walkietalkie feature) and much more, very similar to instant messaging featur...
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whats up with these stupid posters who just have a 1 way vision of things and are quite biased? learn how to argue a point instead of just being so bias please, becuase conversation would be a lot better.

i know the last post https://www.phonescoo...
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...
"lets see, all 50million+ customers on cingular can walkie talkie each other compared to 17million with nextel."

That's not quite true, most of those people don't have a walkie talkie capable phones, therefore they cannot walkie talkie each other. ...
(continues)
Go Cingy!!!!! Wooooooo!!!! Yeehaw!!!! Take that Nextel!!! Woooo, we're loosing customers like gangbusters, but so what, we now have an inferior PTT solution!!!!! YEAH!!! You thought we were only adding four hundred customers per quarter w/o PTT!!...
(continues)
...
Dude, you're funny.

50+ million customers? Try virtually none. Think about it.

Over time, things may change. Cingular's PTT will either be successful or it will flop. It's really complicated when you try to analyze it so I'm not going to bother....
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nextel18

Dec 2, 2005, 10:10 AM

lol. About Time!

now its time to see if its good or not.. 🙂
it is way better than nextel. I work for cingular and have had a PTT phone for over a month. The connection time is a little longer, about 5-8 seconds, but once the conversation gets going, it is about a 0.2 second delay.
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SForsyth01

Dec 2, 2005, 2:44 PM

Did anyone notice???

That the Cingular PTT map shows a ton more coverage than the regular calling map on the cingular site when picking a plan???? How is it that there would be PTT coverage above and beyond normal coverage???
usually, it would be the other way around, becuase without the voice channel you dont have the push to talk.
...
I think you are correct in that they just haven't updated their voice coverage map. If you look at the PTT coverage map it says that an updated version is expected in June 2006. The voice map is expected in end of 2005. They haven't updated the cur...
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berger1

Dec 3, 2005, 1:56 PM

question about PTT

my girlfriend and I have contracts with Cingular for 2 years, and we're not due to upgrade our phones til next year, but we want PTT. We are on separate individual lines. Would I able to BOGO for both of us even on separate lines, and not pay full price ? Could I get the 2 year discount by extending my contract 2 years ?
If you still have a year left on your contract, you might be able to get a one year discount for adding a year onto your current contract. 🙂
 
 
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