Satellite phones are traditionally large devices that look more like their cellular brethren circa 1989 than cell phones of today. Satellite phones have large antennas and much larger designs than cell phones typically use.

A new hybrid satellite/cell phone that is sized to carry in the pocket may hit the market this year reports PC World. The handset will be used on the TerreStar Networks service with a mix of satellite and cellular service.

The handset for the service will be no larger than the typical smartphone available today. The device would connect via the AT&T cellular network when a network is in range and when not it would use the company’s satellite communications service. The target market is federal agencies and emergency workers. The network depends on the successful launch of a TerreStar-1 satellite set to launch this week.

[via PC world]