Sprint and Kyocera announced the ultra rugged Kyocera DuraPlus with a built-in LED flashlight that works on the Direct Connect network for push-to-talk, coming in the first half of 2012.
Features of the Kyocera DuraPlus include candy bar style, a speaker phone, microphone jack, 1650mAH long-life battery, external charging port, A heavy-duty speaker/microphone will be available in the future.
The news release claims that:
The Kyocera DuraPlus is the ultimate communication tool for a variety of industries, including construction and transportation. It is certified to Military Standard 810G for resistance to dust, shock, vibration, temperature extremes, humidity, blowing rain and water immersion (up to 30 minutes in up to 1 meter of water).
A price and release date have not been set yet.
Among the initial Sprint Direct Connect services:
- Sprint Direct Connect – Instant, one-to-one push-to-talk calling nationwide on the Sprint network, with any other Direct Connect subscriber. Direct Connect is the core push-to-talk feature and is designed for interoperability across Sprint and Nextel network platforms.
- Guaranteed Talk Permit – The assurance that when you hear the push-to-talk “chirp,” your call was successfully transmitted.
- Call Alert with Text – Send an audio alert with an optional text message to let another Direct Connect subscriber know you are trying to reach them and why.
- Group Connect – Communicate with up to 20 other Sprint Direct Connect subscribers all at once – nationwide, at the push of one button.
- TeamDC– Communicate with up to 200 other Sprint Direct Connect subscribers at the same time nationwide.
- NextMail – Send a recorded message to any email worldwide or mobile handset via text message by using the Direct Connect button.
- Availability Notification – Request the availability status of another push-to-talk member and, if they are busy, request a notification when they are free.
- One-Touch Direct Connect – Allows quick access to multiple direct connect options.