Sprint
recently rolled out a brand-new walkie-talkie service based on
different technology compared to what it has used in the past. Previous
Sprint Nextel phones used the Nextel iDEN network to pass walkie-talkie
signals back and forth. This service was fast and reliable, and has
become a way of life for literally millions of users.
The problem is Sprint's iDEN network is old, and has no clear
migration path to 4G. This means Sprint is faced with the challenge of
providing a comparable walkie-talkie service over its existing CDMA
network. Sprint and technology partner Qualcomm have cooked up a new
way for walkie-talkie signals to pass back and forth over the CDMA
network with performance equivalent to that of the old iDEN network. It
is called QChat. QChat needs some serious 3G action to work. It needs
EVDO Rev. A (which has shorter latency periods) to match the speeds
seen on the iDEN network.
Qchat
t really couldn't be easier. On the left side of the Sanyo PRO 200 and
PRO 700 is the DirectConnect button. A quick press opens a list of all
your recent DirectConnect sessions. From this screen, you can select
any of your contacts to contact them, or use the right soft key to pull
up an options menu for other action items. With a contact highlighted,
the left soft key is a Message/Alert key. Pressing it pulls up a short
menu that lets you call, text message or send a VoiceSMS to that
contact number.
But who wants to do all that when you can just reach out to that
person right away? With a contact number highlighted, pressing and
holding the DirectConnect key will automatically open a connection to
that number. With repeated tests, opening a connection ranged between 1
and 1.75 seconds, with 1.25 seconds being the average. This is timed
from the start of pressing the walkie-talkie button.
Once the connection is open, it behaves just as the iDEN system
did. One caller presses and holds their button to speak, while the
other listens. As soon as one person has let go of their button, the
other can speak. When you press the walkie-talkie button, it takes
perhaps 1/4 of a second to open the line on the other phone. There is a
slight delay in sending and receiving messages, perhaps 1/2 a second.
During a normal phone call that might be an issue, but because of the
nature of how DirectConnect conversations take place, this isn't a big
deal.
One thing to keep in mind. QChat requires EVDO Rev. A coverage.
Sprint's entire EVDO network has been upgraded to Rev. A, but that
doesn't mean every single market has EVDO coverage. Some are still
limited to 1X networks, and in those regions, QChat DirectConnect will
no work. Just something to keep in mind.
In all, though, we were impressed with the service. It performs on
par with the old iDEN-based walkie-talkie service. It is fast, simple,
and works well. Sanyo PROS Sprint sent us two of its new phones that use the QChat-based
DirectConnect service to test it out. The Sanyo Pro 200 and Pro 700 are
nearly identical, with the 700 being a ruggedized version of the 200.
They share the same feature set.
The handsets are slightly long in the closed position, but don't
weigh too much and are certainly more attractive to look at than many
of the iDEN phones on the market. Both are made of solid materials,
with nice, large rubber buttons on the side for easy use. Both have
soft-grip covering on the back, and won't slip out of your hand easily.
The 700 is a tad bit thicker and has sturdier side panels and hinge.
The keypads are generously sized and the buttons are all easy to
find and use. Perhaps the best feature is a dedicated text messaging
button. Press it, and it automatically starts a new text message. Nice!
Both phones have QVGA displays. They are very impressive. Very
bright, with excellent sharpness and resolution makes icons and images
on the screen pop to life. The high-quality displays are a nice touch
for these phones.
The menus for the phones is a standard Sprint menu. You can use the
soft keys to access your favorites or contacts, and the menu key in the
center of the D-pad will bring up the main menu. The main menu is a
ho-hum 9-icon grid that lets you access most of the phones' features.
It is obvious that these phones are meant more for work than fun
with the complete absence of any media capabilities. There is no
camera, and there is no music or media player at all. That means no
picture taking, no listening to music, and no watching videos. You can,
however, download Java apps from Sprint's application store and surf
the web at 3G speeds. The browser is the same ACCESS browser that is
used on other Sprint models. It worked well, and mobile web sites
loaded in no time at all.
VIDEO Here is a video tour of the Sanyo Pro 200/700, as well as a
demonstration of how well the QChat DirectConnet service works. You can
watch the video here:
Or visit YouTube for more viewing and sharing options.
