PTT(push to talk)

[shaheen]

what exactly is it? ive heard mixed things about it but what i do know is that its some form of like a chat room or walkie talkie. its either one of these below

1.Uses radio frequencies so u can talk to other people through it

2.uses GPRS so u can meet people or whatever

3.a totally new feature which is free and lets u talk to other people

4. Uses bluetooth to chat to other people

5. i got no idea really so shoot whatever you know cause im very interested in it.

[commedecargons]

PTT is a form of walkie-talkie-like service that runs on the phone network, allowing for walkie-talkie functionality between any two (or more) locations on compatible networks. Nextel in the US has made it their signature feature, but other networks are starting to get in on the game. The main advantages of PTT are that it is nearly instant-connect, and generally does not use up minutes on a phone plan. Although supported by the phone, PTT does require support from the network carrier as well to function.

Qouted from "www.infosyncworld.com"

[shaheen]

do u need to pay for it?..

[tedwardo]

i think you do, since it is using gprs and that costs money (in the uk)

[cdover]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Push_to_talk

According to there you pay for it per minute, like normal calls (except costing is different...).

[Dynamoo]

I think it counts against your GPRS data allowance, and that varies by whatever tarrif you're on.

So far the only GSM phone I know of on the market with PTT is the Nokia 5140 which isn't exactly to everyone's tastes, but most manufacturers have a PTT phone in the works. Siemens announced a PTT phone this week (the CX70).

[TheZodiac]

As far as in the US (Nextel) there are plans packaged with their regular voice plans that include a certain amount of PTT "connects".

Some plance are more phone centric with a small amount of PTT.
Other plans can have up to 5500 PTT minutes, and a minimal (60mins) of phone time, for the business or individual who only needs the instant connect features of PTT. Business are the biggest customers of this Nextel PTT funtionality.

Nextels PTT runs on their proprietary iDEN network (TDMA derived). iDEN was developed by Qualcomm I believe, and Motorola maked the phones.

Most recently, Nextel has incorporated AGPS into all of their currently manufactured headsets. This is for user location services, since (as stated before) Businesses, contractors and state workers are the biggest customers of the Nextel PTT. This helps them keep track of their employees, and in effect able to pinpoint their location in case of emergency (or... for other purposes).

But back to the point: other manufactures of PTT phones wont be using the Nextel method. It will be running over GPRS (would may make it less officient) and could take longer to actually connect to the destination phone. The iDEN systen is proprietary in that it uses several wireless technlogies together to get its job done effectively and quickly.

I suspect the GPRS rendition wont be as successful, and will morph into a sort of Voice IM system for cellphones. Which of course, sounds just like an instant amswering machine to me :)