The Return Of The Real Walkie-Talkie
from the breaker,-breaker dept
Forget push-to-talk, in Hong Kong people are going old school, and buying traditional "walkie-talkie" 2-way radios. People use them for all sorts of reasons. It doesn't sound that dissimilar to here in the US. I own a set of 2-way radios that I use when snowboarding with friends, so we can find each other. However, in Hong Kong it's apparently becoming something of an obsession for people to use just while walking around. So why aren't they using push-to-talk type solutions on mobile phones? They're actually interested in the CB like quality of being able to talk to anyone "out there" on the same channel. Maybe that's an area the push-to-talk folks need to explore: push-to-talk chat rooms. Then again, maybe (hopefully, please) it's just a fad.
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Text Message Spam
In Asia, text message spam on cell phones is a big problem.
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Cost
And of course you don't have to pay for the calls!
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HK walkie-talkies
Before this article came out, I was a little worried about being pegged for a tourist when I used my 1st-gen motorola talkabouts in HK next week. Since everyone is apparently using them there now, my loud voice and obnoxious attitude when speaking on them will be the only thing that will prove to those around me that I am in fact an American tourist.
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Yeah, but...
1. The sound quality is hideous.
2. Most of the wrist-mounted versions have no CTCSS (aka PL) privacy call codes, so instead of hearing just your honey ask you if you want green eggs or ham, you hear _everyone's_ transmissions.
3. The antenna is pitiful, so the reception.. you guessed it.
4. Unreliable. On mine, the battery pops out within its compartment, and it's suddenly dead with no warning to you.
Even the $20-for-two FRS shirtpocket radios are better than this.
Hey, I was the first geek on my block to get one, and therefore the first to FreeCycle it away
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