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Apple’s iPhones have been able to send emergency messages through satellites for years. Last year the service expanded to support regular iMessages but they may not hold their space-texting monopoly for long. Carriers and satellite network providers have successfully tested their own respective phone-to-space setups, bringing Android phone owners that much closer to potentially linking up to satellites in 2025.
Using satellites to send messages (and eventually video and voice calls) keeps phone owners connected beyond the range of terrestrial mobile networks, and Apple has trumpeted success stories for how Emergency SOS has secured rescues and likely saved lives for years.
Apple’s service through partner Globalstar’s network of satellites is already available in a number of countries, though it isn’t available worldwide (contrary to prior reports, Apple isn’t integrating SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network directly — instead, T-Mobile’s partnership with Starlink will let iPhone-owning customers access that satellite connectivity). On the other hand, Apple’s service is free for now and has a concierge-like Earth-based network that triages SOS messages to direct emergency responders to user locations. It’s a bespoke service that’s set a standard for how smartphone owners connect using satellites, something that we’ve seen Android phone-makers slowly copy, most notably Google with its Pixel 9 series.
Read more: I Visited Google for an Inside Look at the Pixel 9’s Satellite SOS Tool