Sprint debuts Sanyo PCS Ready Link phones

Sprint and Sanyo today debuted the PCS VisionSM Ready Link Phones by Sanyo RL2000 and RL2500, featuring "push and talk" capability for nationwide two-way communication.

The phones can easily be used like a walkie-talkie to communicate nationwide with other PCS Ready Link customers or to make “standard” clear calls, in addition to supporting PCS Vision services. Bothhandsets feature a built-in speakerphone for convenient, hands-free conversations. The PCS Phones by Sanyo RL2000 and RL2500 are available nationwide in Sprint Stores, online at www.sprintpcs.com andthrough Sprint business channels for a suggested retail price of $299.99 with special rebate offers depending on the service agreement.

The new nationwide walkie-talkie style service called PCS Ready Link gives customers a quick, convenient way to communicate one-on-one or to groups of up to five with the simple push of a button. Ideal for short “get in, get out” conversations, PCS Ready Link is an efficient and cost-effective way to quickly access co-workers, clients, suppliers, family and friends anywhere on the enhanced Sprint Nationwide PCS Network. The new service makes its debut on the two new PCS Vision Ready Link Phones by Sanyo, including ruggedized and clamshell designs, complementing a comprehensive suite of Sprint wireless voice and data products to help increase productivity for mobile workers and individuals.

“Sprint has historically been an industry leader in wireless devices and service integration. The launch of the Sanyo RL2000 and RL2500 continues this tradition by offering advanced, yet stylish, handsets that are tightly linked to a key nationwide service, PCS Ready Link,” said Len Lauer, president and chief operating officer of Sprint Corp. “The overall customer experience of PCS Ready Link will be unrivaled because only Sprint can offer the complete package of a nationwide push-to-talk service on stylish handsets with great battery life that also make clear calls and roam when needed, support additional PCS Vision data services, and allow customers to easily maintain separate personal and company calling lists.”

“The Sanyo RL2000 and RL2500 offer superb ‘push and talk’ technology and a full complement of in-demand features, including an excellent speakerphone, color LCD displays and convenient answering machine functionality,” said Atsushi Kodera, group vice president and general manager of Sanyo Fisher Company’s Wireless Communications Division. “These phones are designed specifically for use with Sprint’s new nationwide PCS Ready Link service and PCS Vision data services. Both are feature-rich handsets that are fun to use at home, at work or on the road.”

The RL2000 features a sporty blue and black ruggedized cover and an easy-to-grip, bar-style design, ideal for use on-the-go. In addition, it offers:

• A thumb-operable PCS Ready Link button on the side of the phone to instantly speak with family members, friends or co-workers from coast-to-coast.
• A top-quality, built-in speakerphone for enjoying hands-free calls and letting friends join the conversation.
• A 1.7-inch, 4,096-color STN LCD display showing the phone’s main menu, features and modes, and providing an exciting, high-quality viewing experience with PCS Vision-enabled Web sites, downloadable Java-based games and screen savers.
• Built-in answering machine allowing the user to screen calls or to answer anytime while the caller is leaving a message.
• Digital talk time of up to 4.5 hours with included standard Lithium Ion battery. Digital standby time is up to 5.8 days.
• The RL2000 measures 5.06″H x 2.18″W x 1.10″D. Weight is 5.3 ounces.

The RL2500 is the first clamshell-design phone that Sanyo has introduced in the United States to include a built-in speakerphone. In addition, it offers:

• A side-mounted, thumb-operable PCS Ready Link button.
• Two 65,536-color TFT LCD displays, including a 2.1-inch main display and 1-inch sub display.
• Built-in answering machine functionality.
• Digital talk time of up to 3.25 hours with included standard Lithium Ion battery. Digital standby time is up to 3.75 days.
• The RL2500 measures 3.60″H x 1.85″W x 1.04″D. Weight is 3.71 ounces.

PCS Vision^SM from Sprint is optionally available when using these phones. The service allows customers to browse the Internet wirelessly with speeds comparable to a home computer’sdial-up connection; check personal and corporate e-mail; download polyphonic ringers and colorful, graphically-rich games and screen savers; and take and receive pictures on select Vision-enabled PCSPhones.

The PCS Phones by RL2000 and RL2500 specifically support the following PCS Vision applications:

Web - PCS Vision provides an improved Web experience with downloads, icons and color graphic versions of popular Internet sites.

Games - PCS Vision enables Sprint and its development partners to move the wireless game experience from the text-based games of today to graphically-rich, colorful brand name games on Vision-enabled PCS Phones using the Java 2 platform, Micro Edition (J2ME).

Ringers - Sprint was the first to offer polyphonic ringtones and now, with Vision-enabled PCS Phones from Sprint, users can express even more personality with hundreds of unique downloadable ringers, including the latest music releases, showtunes and sound effects that can be assigned to specific numbers in the address book.

PCS Business Connection^SM - Stay connected to your personal or company email with access to multiple inboxes. This includes up to two Internet-based mailboxes such as Yahoo! and Earthlink, as well as one corporate account using Microsoft® Outlook® or Lotus Notes® for quick, real-time access to email, calendar, company directory, personal contacts and attachments