With 90% of the nextel population too stupid to put there overpriced walkie-talkies into privacy mode will make this a bad thing for most of the population of the united states. Few people have good phone manners and even more nextel bugglers have enough manners and skill to figure out how to setup there phones to where everyone around cant hear there conversation.

Sprint has the worst customer service I have ever seen in a carrier and nextel has the crappiest customer base. This should make the merger good thing for all!!

I am just a bitter person with the way people use cell phones in society today and the nextel chirp is the icing on the cake. I just cant figure out even as a business standpoint why you want to walk around with a 400 dollar walkie talkie?!?!?!

Ainvar. Perhaps you should do more reading, and less spouting. Nextel is intending to "gently push" their subscribers toward Sprint-compatible phones, not the otherway around, as you espouse.
I'd also love to know where and how you got your 90% statistic and what measuring stick you used to establish the level of intelligence. The Nextel subscriber base is made up, largely, by blue-collar (NOT less-intelligent) workers. Many of them work in loud environments such as construction sites and airports. With these environments comes the need to wear protective clothing through which a phone vibration likely will not be felt. Thus, the non-privacy status of their telephone. Tell me how that is any worse than a cell-phone playing some inane midi in the middle of rush hour on a crowded subway? Open your mind to the good the merger will likely do and stop spreading unsubstatiated, overly-negative drivel.
Cheers, aye.

Sprint Nextel Merger would be one of Sprints most smart and inovative actions. This is because Sprint PCS DOES have a walkie talkie service known to a few million by Ready Link. Although not major, Ready Link's features and service is far superior to Direct Connect. Group chats are guaranteed for no cost, Ready Link clarity overpower's direct connect's clarity and availability is never a problem, as long as you got some kind of signal your ready link is clear as always. And it's much much cheaper at only $10 a month unlimited or $5 a month unlimited if you subscribe to Sprint PCS vision You can't beat that with a stick. So at the end, Sprint would be moving more businesses to it's cheaper and more superior ready link service plus they'd be selling more people onto the fair and flexable which incurages people to use more minutes so that they make more money.

3, maybe 4 carriers in each market, max? Hooray for consolidation! Better for the consumer, especially in the wireless market which is so consumer friendly already!

I had both,.loved Nextel Walkie Talkie....but Sprint has the way better plans.if this goes through, we oughta be able to cross carrier walkie talkie.......what a BANG

hah and i ditched sprint years ago(s***ty service and poor cust. service.), and i eventually
made my way over to nextel... as long as they don't **** up all the good s*** nextel has going for it.
i also can't help but wonder what will happen as far as the fact that i am a nextel dealer.

I think this could be good! I hope it gives Nextel a more multimedia boost.

I have a walkie-talkie ready Sprint phone (R-Link I think they call it). I hope I can use that one day to talk to my nextel friends.

if you've had sprint recently, you'd realize that sprint's service overpowers Nextel's almost anywhere and when you get it you'll be wondering what you've been missing since Sprint's recent updates and their great walkietalkie service.