Starting today, iPhone 14 owners in the US and Canada can use the Emergency SOS feature via satellite. Next month owners in France, Germany, Ireland and the UK will be able to do the same.
The feature lets you get in touch with emergency services even in areas with no cellular or Wi-Fi connectivity. This could be somewhere in the desert or it could be in the heart of a city after a natural disaster disrupted power grids and communications.
The way this feature works is by answering a short questionnaire with vital information: what kind of emergency it is, how many people need help, and further details. These will be passed on directly to emergency services who can receive text messages, or one of Apple’s centers will place a call on your behalf for those who don’t.
The emergency questionnaire ensures that first responders have all the important information
You can send and receive additional messages to clarify the situation and help rescuers. Since satellite data has low bandwidth, Apple developed a compression that compresses text by 300%. The phone still needs about 15 seconds to transmit a message (more if you don’t have a clear view of the sky).
In addition to the questionnaire, the iPhone can also transmit your Media ID if you have set it up. This describes various health conditions you have so that first responders are aware of any problems (e.g. allergies to certain medications). Additionally, you can have up to 10 iMessage emergency contacts, who will receive a transcript of your emergency message that is sent via satellite to keep them informed of the situation.
Your phone will walk you through the process of connecting with a satellite, which requires manual aiming. There’s a demo mode that lets you practice so you’re ready for real emergencies.
The iPhone 14 will suggest using satellite SOS if you can’t dial 911
Another way to use satellite connectivity without an emergency is to share your location with friends and family using the new Find My feature. This and Emergency SOS are available on all four models: iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max. You must be running iOS 16.1 or later to use the satellite features. Please note that models purchased from China, Hong Kong or Macau do not support these features. Also, this may not work above 62° latitude. More details here.
If you bought your iPhone 14 before the satellite SOS service launched, you get 2 years of free service. We don’t yet know how much the subscription will cost after that.
Start a new Thread