14 Aug 2003 | Don Schenck said...

Here's what's coming:

A fold-up device, not much thicker than a piece of paper. It easily folds and fits into a pocket, weighing one ounce.

It can be used, folded, as a phone. You want to talk to someone, you simply use the voice recognition feature.

You can unfold it to make it larger, where it then become a PC-like device, complete with a GUI. Music, instant messaging, phone, all in one. You configure it.

Until then, you are right: this is a step in that direction, starting with the convergence of phone, walkie-talkie, and instant message.

14 Aug 2003 | Sonia said...

Is this the beginning of the merging of phones and instant messaging?

I think that over here in Europe that would be SMS text messaging. Here, people walk into each other on the streets while they click away at their messages!

14 Aug 2003 | JF said...

think that over here in Europe that would be SMS text messaging.

Not the same thing. Instant Messaging has taken off because you can see who's online and available all the time. Without knowing who's around and available to chat you'd be chatting blind (like with SMS). The real-time status info is the real appeal.

14 Aug 2003 | The lorax is dead said...

The real-time status info is the real appeal.

It's also what I sometimes dislike about IM and why I prefer SMS through my phone. Asynchronous (e-mail, fax, voicemail, SMS) and synchronous (phone, chat, walkie talkie) forms of communication have their place. I rarely ever answer my phone -- a buddy list showing I'm available makes me look more culpable when I don't pick up... Not so sure I'm a fan of that.

14 Aug 2003 | Scorched said...

My online IM presence is permanently set on Away. In doing so, I've turned IM back into an phone style conversation. People msg me with "You around?" and the like, and I only answer when I want. I hated constantly updating my Busy status to prevent messages, now I just ignore them. Once I began this, I've noticed several friends with the same behaviour.

14 Aug 2003 | Graham Hicks said...

My HipTop has AIM. It's not perfectly integrated, I can't call someone from my buddy list, but it's pretty nice to be able to instant message from anywhere. It does weigh a little more than an ounce though.

Your prediction kind of reminds me of this, Don.

14 Aug 2003 | jazer said...

A good friend had AIM on his Motorola Timeport through Sprint a few three years ago. But I hated IM'ing him when he was "online" with the phone. He took forever to reply, and did so in SMSpeak. Blech.

14 Aug 2003 | JF said...

My point with the IM stuff is that it would be great to be able to use your phone to "voice chat" in the same way that you can use your computer to voice chat with Apple's iChat AV. So, I should be able to voice chat through my phone with someone else who is sitting at their computer using iChat AV.

14 Aug 2003 | jazer said...

Now, if only this ability would be extended to other IM programs.

15 Aug 2003 | Jon Gales said...

Expect 2004 to be the battle of PTT. Sprint should be launching a similar service within a few months. After that, it's just war. Nextel is already going after Verizon for the use of "push-to-talk". It's only going to get more nasty.

Nextel has been making billions with PTT for 10 years. It's going to fight like a cornered animal.

20 Aug 2003 | rick said...

a few things

#1 It took so long for another carrier to offer walkie talkie phones because Nextel had it patented.

#2 Any two way text messaging enabled phone from verizon has the ability to text message using aim, all you have to do is send a text message to 4646 with username and password. 4647 will sign off.

Not trying to be a smart ass just lettin ya all know in case u were wondering.

20 Aug 2003 | Randy said...

#2 Any two way text messaging enabled phone from verizon has the ability to text message using aim, all you have to do is send a text message to 4646 with username and password. 4647 will sign off.

Huh? Can you give me an example? I don't follow.

22 Aug 2003 | Don Schenck said...

See my blog for my comments about Push To Talk.

WeAlreadyHaveOne.blogspot.com

11 Sep 2003 | Zbigniew said...

Tried the Verizon version since I have a Verizon two year contract. Their reps are clueless. It is not instantaneous as Nextel's. There is no way to talk with a the delay/silende registered. I will dump Verizon for Nextel when portability is approved. I think Verizon is trying to pad their stocks.

12 Sep 2003 | take-a-look said...

As of February 2002 NEXTEL's Customer Service has been entirely outsourced to TeleTech Customer Care Management Group. This was a move made to drive down the cost of customer care operations. TeleTech/NEXTEL has since exported almost it's entire customer care operations to Canada, Philipines, Mexico, with only a few US care center locations remaining. NEXTEL has always struggled with successfully caring for it's customers and this financially driven business move has worsened NEXTEL's attempts at meeting this requirement. NEXTEL now hires less qualified care employees to handle the task of addressing customer needs both here and abroad, and because driving down operations cost is TeleTech's overall agreed objective the remaining US care staff are poorly informed of critical business changes and information needed to better assist NEXTEL's customers. NEXTEL has also spent the last year exporting it's remaining knowledgeable care staff to it's new foreign care centers to train NEXTEL's new workforce to do the same work for less wages. The point to be understood here is NEXTEL is a worldwide leader who has successfully pioneered and developed it's patented Direct Connect service, monopolizing this technology to a major financial benefit (13 million business customers strong). So why is it that NEXTEL would turn it's back on their US workforce by investing and hiring a pirating customer care management firm accomplished at exporting US jobs into a foriegn job market. Now that other cellular providers have embarked on this two-way technology, NEXTEL's customers will no longer be held captive to it's slacking business practices. You, the people have a choice.

Posted by: Unemployed American on August 27, 2003 10:52 PM

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