[hayden]

At a Cingular-sponsored lunch at CTIA Wireless today, executives from the big orange carrier laid out a few of their plans for the rest of the year. The biggest news (other than the launch of the Cingular 3125 smartphone) was that Cingular will be getting a push-to-talk version of the new Blackberry Pearl (shown at right) in "four to eight weeks."

They also said we're going to see "quite a bit of improvement" in Cingular's high-speed phone options by the end of the year. Cingular's rollout of the high-speed HSDPA technology has seemed pretty glacial to me - though they now claim to have "87 cities," they still only cover about 20 metro areas; both Sprint and Verizon have much broader high-speed coverage.

You'll also see more Wi-Fi devices and Windows Mobile devices in the "near future," Cingular reps said. Come on, guys, the future is now! -- [via Gearlog.com]

[BBadBoy]

So, do you think the ptt feature will make for a thicker Pearl as it does for Nextel versions of BB's?

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~

[jlesh]

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~Just my opinion, but a PTT BB on Cingular(not Nextel) seems not very useful.

[cdup]

Gotta say that it would be very nice if Tmo decided to adopt a ptt ability. Either way, good stuff

[trinybwoy]

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~
Cingualr doesn't have the ptt version that nextel uses.
Cingular's technology is somewhat like a one-way phone call. And it's not INSTANT like nextel's. It has to dial/find the user and it's the same length as waiting for someone to answer their phone.

[trinybwoy]

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~
Sorry I wasn't able to complete my previous post, but here goes:
Since cingualr doesn't use the same technology as nextel, their fones are not hindered with "larger phone versions" beacuse of the "ptt" feature.
Cingular's version uses exisiting gsm technology to transmit on the "ptt" frequency. Thus a seperate radio is not needed for communication.

[anguyen]

yeah, the PTT technology is not the same as Nextel. I work for Cingular, I know

[BBadBoy]

Doesn't sound like I'd use it very often. But then again, I don't use the ptt feature of my 7100i very much anymore either. I like Nextel because the network coverage has been very good for me.

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~

[SuzzyP]

Those who work for Cingular.... Is the ptt feature all that popular for them? can't imagine it would be... Verizon has/had it and i heard from Verizon reps that they were not selling very many phones with that feature. seems like they are putting alot of energy into a feature that isnt very popular... anyone?????

[Dirty Cash]

I had a PTT phone with me wife when we had Sprint...we used it mostly when we were in a store or mall...it was convenient, but I believe their technology also is similar to answering a phone. Had to wait for a connection before talking. After a while it just became passe (hope I spelled that correctly) and we just sold those phones! But if you have many associates/friends who routinely use PTT...it's worth it!!!

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~

[Mr Dawg]

~via BB (wap.pinstack.com)~

[BenMarvin]

Nothing beats Nextel for PTT excellence. It was nice when most people at work and friends had it. But I just don't find it useful anymore.

[melissaox]

Why would you push to talk when you can PIN?
My hubby and I always PIN each other, never call. We are strange, what can I say?

[feelmaroon]

ptt. not bad. what' smore interesting is the aesthetic of the cingular version. silver all around instead of just the sides. looks pretty sweet.

[shafferds]

this should be interesting if bb puts the ptt on the bb