...renewal. If I buy a Nextel phone... Okay, my Sprint contract expired in October of 2004 and they don't offer as good of a plan anymore so I don't feel like changing it. I've bought used Sprint phones on ebay three or four times since then and never had to create a new contract or get a new plan when changing phones.

If i was to buy a phone that was labeled as Nextel (used and not tied to any plan), would this require a new contract? or could I just use it on the same Sprint service with or without the push-to-talk option? I don't have any need for the push-to-talk, but just like the phone and want to keep my old expired contract/plan.

I think it would depend on how old it is. If its more than 3 years old, it probably wouldn't work on sprint's network since the old nextel phones worked on different technology. The only way to find out is to take it to a sprint store and ask, but they would say no and try to sell you a new phone instead. After all they are in the business of selling.