We have been using Nextel phones for the last two years. Our bills are a lot less than our previous Unicell bills and the direct connect feature is great - not so great when you don't want to be found though. We do have some dead spots in the building - my office is one of them. We have direct access to the police station and although we have not been configured to the emergency feature (not sure why) - we have the ability to put an emergency call to all of the phones at one time in case we need to lock down the building or for other emergencies. The only other negative I would give them is their phone repair/replacement policies but they are the same as any other cell service. - Bryan On Dec 21, 2004, at 2:10 PM, Ken Kleinman wrote: TahomaWe are looking a Nextel cellular phones - specially because of the walkie-talkie feature.  Has anyone had experience with their cellular and direct call system? Bryan Thompson Technology Coordinator Winooski School District 60 Normand Street Winooski, VT 05404 802-655-2555 AIM: bryantg3