News

Sprint Introduces Katana® Eclipse X by SANYO With Easy-to-Use One Click Interactive User Interface Allowing One-Step Access to Favorite Content, Including Google Search

Newest One Click device continues Katana legacy of reliable and affordable devices that are attractive and packed with must-have features

OVERLAND PARK, Kan., and CHATSWORTH, Calif. – Nov. 3, 2008 – Combining Sprint’s award-winning One Click user interface with the graceful style of the Katana line of wireless devices, Sprint (NYSE: S) and KYOCERA SANYO Telecom, Inc. today announced the availability of Katana Eclipse X by SANYO. Katana Eclipse X by SANYO brings customers the speed, simplicity and exclusive access of Sprint’s Now Network in a convenient and attractive form factor.

Katana Eclipse X by SANYO is available now in all Sprint retail channels, including www.Sprint.com and 1-800-SPRINT1, for just $99.99 with a two-year subscriber agreement and $50 mail-in rebate. There are two color options – Nightlife Black and Hypnotic Pink.

Katana Eclipse X by SANYO enhances the original Katana Eclipse by SANYO that was introduced in August with the addition of One Click. Like the original, it combines unique lighting effects with the blazing fast data speeds and exclusive content available on the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network. The innovative and fun illumination capability allows the user to assign lighting effects to specific callers as well as alerts and messages.

One Click gives users of Katana Eclipse X by SANYO the ability to access the phone features used most in just one step. As simple to use as speed dial, One Click allows users to personalize their home screen and bring the Now Network right to their fingertips by selecting and organizing features and content such as text messaging, Google search, Sprint Navigation, email, favorite Web sites, music and call log.

One Click allows a user to access Google on a home screen and take advantage of the ultra-fast speed of the Now Network to search the Internet and access other Google services in just one step. Customers can use One Click to add shortcuts to their favorite Internet sites so they can be accessed directly from a home screen. Sprint customers have the ability to download applications and services from the Web without restrictions. 

Scrolling through One Click’s customizable carousel-style menu on the home screen provides instant information related to each feature. For example, when a customer with text messaging on the home screen scrolls to that feature, the number of new messages appears. A single click takes the user directly to the feature selected.

One Click makes it easy for Katana Eclipse X by SANYO users to access a host of advanced features, including Sprint TV^® with an extensive selection of live and on-demand programming, Sprint Music Store^SM with over-the-air downloads of full-length songs, Sprint Radio with more than 150 channels and a built-in MP3 player with MicroSD card slot supporting up to 8 GB (256 MB card included). Sprint Navigation with GPS-enabled audio and visual turn-by-turn driving directions and Sprint Mobile Email for access to POP3 email, including AOL, Yahoo!, Windows Live and Gmail as well as corporate email, are both just one-step away through the One Click interactive carousel.

Additional features of the device include a built-in speakerphone, stereo Bluetooth^® technology, external music navigation controls and a 1.3-MP camera with 12x zoom and video camcorder. It also has a high-quality speakerphone, Wireless Backup to manage contact lists in the event that the phone is lost, stolen or damaged and Restrict and Lock to allow the user to set limits on when and how the device is used.

To take advantage of all the great features available on Katana Eclipse X by SANYO without worrying about additional monthly charges, Sprint customers can sign up for the $99.99 Simply Everything^SM plan, which includes unlimited domestic calling, messaging, email, Web surfing, GPS navigation, Sprint Music Premier, Sprint TV^® Premier, NFL Mobile Live, Sprint NASCAR Cup Mobile, Direct Connect and Group Connect on compatible phones.   Existing customers to switch to this plan without extending their contract.  New lines of service require a two-year agreement.

Customers purchasing Katana Eclipse X by SANYO at Sprint retail locations can experience Ready Now, a revolutionary customer experience announced in September. Ready Now is designed to provide customers one-on-one tutorials on their new devices and on applications before they leave the store. Sprint’s Ready Now program is a first in the industry -- no other wireless company offers its customers a similar program. Sprint retail associates will work with customers to explain, set up and demonstrate the features and applications of their device. With Ready Now, customers can virtually eliminate their learning curve before they leave the Sprint store.

ABOUT SPRINT NEXTEL

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two wireless networks serving nearly 52 million customers at the end of the second quarter 2008; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.

About KYOCERA SANYO Telecom, Inc. (KSTI)

Based in Chatsworth, CA, Kyocera Sanyo Telecom, Inc. oversees the development, marketing, sales and support of SANYO-branded mobile phones in North and South America. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kyocera International, Inc. (KII) of San Diego. For more information about SANYO mobile phones, please visit www.sanyowireless.com.

About KYOCERA

San Diego-based Kyocera International, Inc. (KII) is the North American headquarters and holding company for Kyoto, Japan-based Kyocera Corporation. Kyocera Corporation (NYSE: KYO), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of advanced ceramics. By combining these engineered materials with metals and plastics, and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of telecommunications equipment, semiconductor packages, electronic components, laser printers, copiers, solar energy systems and industrial ceramics. In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, the company's consolidated net sales totaled 1.29 trillion yen (approximately $12.9 billion). For more information please visit http://www.kyocera.com.