Qualcomm
GSP-1600

The Qualcomm GSP-1600 satellite phone was a tri-mode portable phone that provided access to Globalstar’s low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite communications network and to cellular networks using Qualcomm's cdmaOne or analogue technology. At launch, it was described as the first handset in the world “to eliminate size, dimension and cost barriers of previous satellite phones brought to market.” The company claimed at the time that it was the “smallest and lightest CDMA satellite phone in the world.” In addition to voice communications, the phone supported features such as global roaming, position location display, short messaging service (SMS), paging, caller identification (ID) and had a user interface supporting multiple languages. It was able to offer data speeds of up to 9.6 Kbps. The phone had a four-line display capable of displaying up to 48 characters. Additionally, it had indicators for battery level, voicemail status, short messages received and satellite signal quality. The phone shared much of its technology platform with the Ericsson R290 Satellite with Qualcomm providing the satellite and CDMA technology from the GSP-1600 to Ericsson. The GSP-1600 was positioned as providing “redundancy communications when cellular networks were down or unavailable”. Users could activate the satellite function via the “Automatic System Select” by opening up the satellite antenna, at which point the phone automatically started trying to connect to the Globalstar network. The device had impressive battery life. When in Globalstar satellite mode, the phone offered up to 3.75 hours of talk time and 19 hours of standby time. When used as a cellular phone on an AMPS (IS-41) network it provided 2.8 hours of talk time or 15 hours of standby time. Reflecting the target market for satellite phone users the device was built for extremes with the handset being capable of operating between -20ºC to +55ºC. One notable quirk of this device was the orange-coloured tip of the satellite antenna. This was a deliberate design decision, primarily for the US market, to ensure that when the phone was held with the antenna open it did not look like a gun. In February 2002, Globalstar filed voluntary petitions under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. The company was restructured and continues to exist. It had numerous issues with its first satellite network with the premature failure of several in-orbit satellites.