Apple enabled emergency SOS via satellite on all iPhone 14 units in the US a year ago. The feature allows users to text emergency services when they have no cell service. Apple is providing two years of free access upon activating an iPhone 14 or iPhone 15. It hasn’t disclosed how much it will charge for the feature after the free period ends, but existing iPhone 14 users will receive an extra year of free access.
Kaiann Drance, Apple’s vice president of worldwide iPhone product marketing, stated that “Emergency SOS via satellite has helped save lives around the world.” Apple is extending the free access period for users just as it was revealed that Qualcomm’s attempt to offer a similar feature on Android devices has not been successful. Iridium, Qualcomm’s partner on the Snapdragon Satellite project, revealed that smartphone makers have chosen not to include the technology in their devices. The initiative’s costs may have also deterred them.
