Boost Mobile, the no contract division of Sprint Nextel, together with Motorola reportedly announced the first Push To Talk slider mobile handset, the Motorola (News - Alert) Debut i856, which gives users the full advantage of a handset that has nationwide walkie-talkie, and glides open and closed with ease for instant communication.

“Motorola Debut enhances the walkie-talkie experience further by incorporating the favorite traits among feature phones,” said Richard Gadd, vice president of Mobile Devices for Motorola, in a statement. “Now Boost Mobile customers can continue to stay in constant contact with the added control of a slider and the fun of camera and music features.”

Officials at Boost said that prospective buyers can procure a Debut handset, shown below, from Boost’s Web site for about $170 inclusive of shipping, and said it is an ideal device for the $50 monthly unlimited plan, which offers unlimited, nationwide, anytime calling, text messaging, wireless Web and walkie-talkie service in 17,500 cities throughout the U.S. on the Nextel National Network – all with no credit checks, additional telecom taxes, activation, roaming, travelling or long distance fees.

“Our wildly popular Monthly Unlimited service is attracting customers who are more likely to purchase higher-end phones,” said Matt Carter, president for Boost Mobile, in a statement. “The Motorola Debut i856 phone meets the need for this demand with compelling multimedia features, including a 1.3MP camera with video capture, instant music access and Stereo Bluetooth capabilities into a sleek but durable design that fits comfortably in a pocket or purse.”

Press To Transmit, or PTT technology, reportedly converts the phone into a single channel at a time communication system reminiscent of old walkie-talkies. Quite simply, a single button is pressed to start talking, and released to receive incoming audio. A conversation is ended only when the originator ends the call and this feature of either transmitting or receiving, and the feature enables a single user to broadcast information to several recipients simultaneously and is useful in scenarios such as a CEO announcing an urgent immediate meeting or a security co-ordinator alerting far-flung staff about a possible breach. 

Officials said that the slider design protects the keys when not in use and also provides easy access to the keypad when required, and said that calls receipt, music control, message viewing and Web connect functions can be activated without using the slider. Debut’s technology and Boost’s service allow users to view threaded texting, which is a scroll function that has all the interlinked conversations in a single screen.

Boost officials, however, caution that unlimited text messaging, threaded texting and PTT are Network and, or SIM card dependent features, and may not be available in all areas, and adds that wireless Web may attract airtime, data charges and, or additional charges, and that wireless email functionality requires an email account with wireless server capabilities.

The company said the dedicated music key provides instant access to the music library that can contain up to 10 hours of music when used with an optional 8 GB removable memory. The phone has a 3.5mm headset jack for wired headphones or wirelessly using stereo Bluetooth, and a 1.3Mega Pixel Camera with Video capture and playback. It is GPS enabled, has Multi Media capabilities, an optional removable micro Secure Digital Card, and a speakerphone with Voice-Activated Dialling.

Earlier, Boost had reportedly introduced a new monthly unlimited plan, ‘Clutch Combo’ with Motorola’s then new mobile handset, ‘Clutch i465,’ which includes a QWERTY keyboard and Walkie-Talkie features.