New Phones
nextel4ever said:
I talked with a Sprint rep a few minutes ago and he says that soon they will have phones that use Nextel and Sprint on the voice side. In other words the phone will swap between networks not just one network for voice and one for DC like the hybrid phones. Has anyone else heard about this?
Not heard this one. I seriously doubt it, too.
Sprint IS planning to launch QChat phones sometime very soon. These phones will have 850 cellular CDMA roaming, but no iDEN.
It is possible that Sprint may release a couple of more hybrids that will default to iDEN for voice if there is no CDMA signal available. Again, I don't see this happening.
rawmustard said:
Most Sprint plans that have come in recent years include roaming, with the stipulations that you reside in a Sprint area and a majority of usage is on the Sprint network. Plans that charge extra for domestic roaming are quite rare now. Sprint won't add 850 spectrum, but the new QChat phones should be able to support 850 CDMA since the iDEN radio will be absent.
Exactly. iDEN kept the 850 CDMA roaming off of the current hybrid's because of interference issues, which won't be the case with QCHat phones.
nextel4ever said:
When do you expect the Q-chat phones to be available?
I've heard as early as February, but March seems more likely. That's just a few months away, either way.
My only concern with the QChat phones is the pricing. I'm wondering if both the phones & the plans won't be higher than current Nextel plans, which are already more expensive than Sprint, when it comes to additional lines, $5 extra for M2M, and no entry level family plan ($60).
We'll have to wait and see, but I look for no later than the end of March, if all goes well.
nextel4ever said:
They may have to take a loss on something to compete. People probably won't pay more for service or plans. I guess we will see what they bring to the table. Are there any pictures of these phones available yet?
Yes. Those pics can be found on Sprintusers.com or phone-rush.typepad.com.
http://www.howardforums.com/showpost.php?p=9793617&p ... »
There are no pictures of the Moto phones on this link, but the leaked article does in fact mention that Moto's will be released as well.
I think the only real difference is the fact that Sprint's family plans charge $10/mo/line for additional lines, whereas Nextel plans cost $20/mo/line for additional lines. After all, Nextel's unlimited DC is functionally equivalent to Sprint's unlimited M2M. Regarding the difference in the bottom-end family plans, Nextel's basic at $70/mo is indeed $10/mo more than Sprint's $60/mo, but with Nextel's you get 700 min/mo, vs 550 min/mo w/Sprint.
But I don't understand why Nextel still charged $20/mo for additional lines long after the competition changed to $10/mo/line.