I recently acquired a Motorola NEXTEL i670 from a friend's dad- it still has the original SIM card which is since no longer active. It still allows the phone to start up without that annoying "Insert SIM" popup that won't go away.

I recently discovered that the newer NEXTEL phones are shipped with a built in DirecTalk mode, which is basically an off-network (where NEXTEL service was unavailable or weak) Push to Talk walkie talkie mode.

It uses the 800mHz frequency, transmits digitally, and each phone has 10 built in channels and 15 codes per channel. You can also have a private conversation by entering a user's 10 digit phone number, but since these phones are deactivated and the phone number is actually editable in the menus, I'm going to try changing it to see if private talking functions with whatever number I use.

I'm expecting my grandfathers old work spare Nextel i335 in the mail tomorrow, so when I get it, I will try things out and post an update. I'm curious to see how this works out!

It'll be cool to have a walkie-talkie I can use, basically PTT service for free.

I'm really interested to hear how this works... I have an old nextel and boost mobile phone and would love to use it for this purpose and FREE. Have you had any luck with your experimenting? I have an i850 i455 and should be getting somewhere in the area of 16 ic502's... They would work great for a group of people out driving or walking around and needing to stay in contact easily.

I did in fact get them working! They receive and transmit well. I gave one to a friend who's a little further into the neighborhood- lost reception (phone beeps "User Not Available" indicating out of range of any other handsets) after going up the street.

My neighborhood is very "hilly" and mountainous, so I'm sure the hills are blocking the signal. I personally think the reception is line-of-sight based. If I was in a football stadium and my friend was on the other end, I'm sure it would work fine, because there would be nothing to interfere.

It's a shame it doesn't work from my house to his. It would be cool to DT back and forth.