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Posts tagged ‘direct connect’

1
Feb
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Kyocera DuraPlus: a Sprint phone so masculine it’ll kick your face in for misdialing

Sprint’s announced that it’ll carry the Kyocera DuraPlus — a rugged cellphone that recalls a lifetime of tedious internet memes. It’s certified to “Military Standard 810G ,” for its resistance to dust, shock, vibration, temperature extremes, humidity and it’s able to withstand water depths of one meter for, erm, up to half an hour

See the article here:
Kyocera DuraPlus: a Sprint phone so masculine it’ll kick your face in for misdialing

4
Nov

Sprint bringing Samsung Transform Ultra, Kyocera DuraCore to life November 13th?

Here are a couple more devices that will probably add another page to your Black Friday ads: the Samsung Transform Ultra and the Kyocera DuraCore. The leaked images above and below don’t show any super-secret phones that we didn’t already know about, but we do learn that November 13th is a likely launch date for both of them. The Transform Ultra, a QWERTY-packing Android 2.3 slider which already made its debut on Boost Mobile, looks destined to start off at $80, while the Direct Connect-capable DuraCore will go for $70. Anyone getting up early the day after Thanksgiving for either one?

[Thanks, Mike]

Continue reading Sprint bringing Samsung Transform Ultra, Kyocera DuraCore to life November 13th?

Sprint bringing Samsung Transform Ultra, Kyocera DuraCore to life November 13th? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Nov 2011 02:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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20
Oct

Motorola Admiral to directly connect with Sprint on October 23rd for $100

We all knew it was coming, it was just a matter of time — that, of course, is the Motorola Admiral that Sprint sure had a difficult time keeping a secret. But no matter now, as the fleet captain is ready to hook you up with the Now Network’s CDMA-based Direct Connect service online starting October 23rd (November 13th for all sales channels) for $100 on a two-year commitment and after a $50 mail-in rebate. Summing up the specs: the Admiral features a 1.2GHz CPU, 5MP rear camera with 720p HD video capture, rugged 810G mil-spec design, 3G Mobile Hotspot for up to five devices at the same time, a 3.1-inch VGA display and Android 2.3. For a smartphone that you can kick the trash out of, that’s not too shabby. Check out the full press release below.

Continue reading Motorola Admiral to directly connect with Sprint on October 23rd for $100

Motorola Admiral to directly connect with Sprint on October 23rd for $100 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 11:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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13
Oct

Kyocera DuraMax for Sprint hands-on at CTIA E&A 2011 (video)

Call us what you will, but we couldn’t resist taking a quick look at the Kyocera DuraMax, which (along with the DuraCore) represents the first of Sprint’s handsets to support Direct Connect for CDMA. It’s no smartphone, for sure, but we were intrigued by its certification for the military’s 810G standard, which promises resistance to dust, shock, vibration, water, low pressure, extreme temperatures and solar radiation — among other nasty elements.

From the outset, the phone appears stout and bulky. It measures a full one-inch thick, although it seems like even more. Perhaps this is due to the grooved rubber finish, or maybe it’s the clamshell shape, but you’ll want a holster for this one, as the protrusion in your pocket would be hard to ignore. So just who is this device for? We’d like to imagine it’s targeted at the kids who played with Tonka trucks as kids, who now drive bulldozers and pour hot tar on roofs. Yes, this phone is designed to take some punishment, which is undoubtedly its greatest strength. After carefully inspecting each angle, peeking underneath the battery cover and testing the “walkie talkie” feature — which seems to work beautifully — we began dishing out some seriously bad behavior. Check out the video after the break to see just what we mean.

Continue reading Kyocera DuraMax for Sprint hands-on at CTIA E&A 2011 (video)

Kyocera DuraMax for Sprint hands-on at CTIA E&A 2011 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Oct 2011 03:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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9
Oct

Motorola Admiral spied in the wild, waiting patiently for its turn to sail out of harbor

We can’t imagine this Admiral wants to stick around in the docks for much longer, yet its date of departure from port is still unclear. Fortunately, the Motorola Admiral — the device that we presume will become the fearless leader of the Direct Connect fleet — is one nautical mile closer to the sea of finished products, now that we’ve been handed some pics of the skipper itself in the wild. It’s exactly as we’ve expected, as it looks rather close to the version we saw in the now-pulled “official” video. According to the image snapper, the Admiral is “awkward to hold due to the bottom being so thin and the phone being very top heavy.” It’s also known as the XT603, and unsurprisingly runs on Moto’s proprietary UI (formerly called MotoBlur). We didn’t hear of any change in the specs, so for now we’re still expecting to see the military-certified handset come with a 1.2GHz single-core Qualcomm MSM8655 CPU, Android 2.3, 3.1-inch VGA display, a 5MP rear camera with 720p HD video capture and a 1,860mAh battery. One more pic of the sides below. Sound off, loose cannons — is this Admiral going to command your next two-year contract?

[Thanks, anonymous]

Continue reading Motorola Admiral spied in the wild, waiting patiently for its turn to sail out of harbor

Motorola Admiral spied in the wild, waiting patiently for its turn to sail out of harbor originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Oct 2011 20:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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7
Oct

Sprint’s LTE plans detailed: phones, tablets and modems coming by 2012

If you were holding out hope that Tuesday’s Apple announcement would be trumped by an exclusive iPhone 5 on Sprint, prepare to be disappointed. The company’s confirmed that no new handsets would be shown off at its Strategy Event today. Instead, the carrier is focusing on how it intends to bundle all of those separate radios — CDMA, LTE, WiMAX — into a future device line up. Emphasizing the need for an enhanced user experience over 4G technology marketing, the operator stressed a commitment to supporting existing WiMAX subs. Dual-mode CDMA / LTE products are set to launch in the middle of next year, with tablets, smartphones and modems across both the high-end and mid-range to be on offer. Motorola’s Sanjay Jha appeared in a taped segment to confirm his company’s involvement in the production of these 3G/4G products. Of course, Sprint plans to support current CDMA and WiMAX products, offering them for sale throughout 2012. As for Direct Connect, three of those Push-to-Talk handsets will hit the carrier in the last quarter of 2011, with additional devices planned for 2012.

Sprint’s LTE plans detailed: phones, tablets and modems coming by 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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29
Sep

Kyocera Duramax ready to kickoff Sprint’s Direct Connect service on October 2nd for $70

All of the hullabaloo about Sprint’s new CDMA-based Direct Connect service was not for naught, as the Now Network has finally confirmed that it will indeed be launching in a limited number of markets this upcoming Sunday, with broader expansion coming in early 2012. To get things started, however, the network ought to have a phone or two that have the tech built in, right? The Kyocera Duramax will receive the honor of being the very first phone to work with the new plans and will be a certified 810G military-standard clamshell handset with a 3.2MP camera, stereo Bluetooth, a 2.5mm headphone jack (not a typo) and a Dura-Grip rubber casing. What about the Kyocera Duracore and the Motorola Admiral? They’re still forthcoming, but Sprint only mentions that both devices are coming out before the end of the year. The sooner the better here, because the lack of options can’t possibly be a selling point for the brand new service. The nitty-gritty details are in the presser after the break.

Continue reading Kyocera Duramax ready to kickoff Sprint’s Direct Connect service on October 2nd for $70

Kyocera Duramax ready to kickoff Sprint’s Direct Connect service on October 2nd for $70 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Sep 2011 19:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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23
Sep

Kyocera Duramax is in the batter’s box, launching with Sprint Direct Connect October 2nd

Is there still any lingering doubt that something big’s getting cooked up in Overland Park in time for October 2nd? We’ve already seen leaked screenshots showing that Sprint’s aiming to launch its CDMA-based Direct Connect service that day, as well as a Sprint-backed vid of the Motorola Admiral, the first smartphone to sport the new feature. Courtesy of SprintFeed, another gem has been unearthed: the Direct Connect-compatible Kyocera Duramax. Said to start at $100 with a two-year agreement, the rugged clamshell bears a great deal of resemblance to a large number of legacy iDEN handsets. It’s nothing to write home about, but it still sports the proper military specs to keep it protected, as well as a 3 megapixel camera and a non-slip surface. Anyone who isn’t looking for a smartphone but is in need of a Direct Connect device will want to keep a close eye on this one as we get closer to the day of destiny. Oh, and Sprint? The cat’s out of the bag — perhaps it’s time to make it real.

Kyocera Duramax is in the batter’s box, launching with Sprint Direct Connect October 2nd originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 09:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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23
Sep

Sprint’s Motorola Admiral quietly displayed on YouTube as America watches dancing cats

It may not have quite as many views as Admiral Ackbar, but a chieftan of Sprint’s CDMA-based Direct Connect service was officially outed by the carrier via YouTube earlier. Our device in question, the Motorola Admiral, has now been given a speedy lookover despite the fact that the company hasn’t even seen fit to acknowledge its existence otherwise. ‘Course, we don’t imagine this was accidental in the slightest — the video of the rugged Android device has been up for several hours without getting pulled — but it’s still a curious way to introduce one of the first phones featuring a brand new service. Regardless, we now have the clearest shots of the portrait QWERTY smartphone that we’ve seen yet; the two-and-a-half minute teaser didn’t list off a lot of specs, but it did confirm the handset’s 3.1-inch display and five megapixel camera with LED flash. That should count for something, right? Still, it likely won’t be long before we get a real announcement with the full rundown, so just keep yourself entertained by watching the “related videos” section in the meantime. Check out the vid after the break.

Continue reading Sprint’s Motorola Admiral quietly displayed on YouTube as America watches dancing cats

Sprint’s Motorola Admiral quietly displayed on YouTube as America watches dancing cats originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 02:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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22
Sep

Sprint to launch Direct Connect October 2nd, confirms mobile hotspot capping

The way Sprint’s been going lately, we’re wondering if there’s going to be anything left to announce at its October 7th strategy update. Another screenshot has surfaced, detailing the Now Network’s intentions to launch its CDMA-based (read: no more iDEN) Direct Connect service on October 2nd, with “increased coverage” coming early next year. We’ve been expecting to see it at some point this winter, which means the Nextel alternative is getting pushed out ahead of schedule. With this, we should be hearing news in the near future concerning compatible handsets like the Motorola Admiral or Kyocera DuraMax / DuraCore duo.

Unfortunately, October 2nd will be filled with both happy news and bad, as it looks like the leaked memo detailing Sprint’s plan to cap the mobile hotspot add-on was right on target. The carrier made its intentions official this morning, confirming that it indeed will be putting a 5GB-per-month leash on the tethering done from your phone, complete with overage charges of $.05 per additional MB used. Grandfathered add-ons aren’t an option here, so every tetherer already shelling out $30 for the privilege will find themselves restricted as well. But look at the bright side: tablets need not apply to the data cap, and on-phone data plans and dedicated mobile broadband packages will remain unaffected… for now, at least.

Sprint to launch Direct Connect October 2nd, confirms mobile hotspot capping originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Sep 2011 16:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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