Apple’s safety service Emergency SOS via satellite is available starting today in Australia and New Zealand on all iPhone 14 models. The technology enables users to message with emergency services when outside cellular and Wi-Fi coverage. Additionally, if you want to reassure friends and family of your whereabouts while traveling in an area with no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage, it also works with Apple’s Find My service.
The entire iPhone 14 lineup — iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max — can connect directly to satellite through a combination of custom-designed hardware components and deeply integrated software. Emergency SOS via satellite builds on Emergency SOS, Medical ID, emergency contacts, and Find My location sharing.
Apple says the connects users to relay centres staffed with Apple-trained emergency specialists who are ready to contact emergency services call centres on the userʼs behalf to get them the help they need. Since launching last year, Emergency SOS via satellite has already helped save lives in the 12 countries where it has been available. The service is free for two years starting at the time of activation of a new iPhone 14 model.
How Emergency SOS via Satellite Works
iPhone can call emergency services if a user is in need of help, even if they are unable to dial 000, by pressing and holding the side button with one of the volume buttons until the Emergency SOS slider appears. With Emergency SOS via satellite, an easy-to-use interface appears on iPhone to get the user help utilising a satellite connection if they are not able to reach emergency services because no cellular or Wi-Fi coverage is available. A short questionnaire appears to help the user answer vital questions with a few simple taps, which are transmitted to dispatchers in the initial message, to ensure they are able to quickly understand the userʼs situation and location.
Following the questionnaire, the intuitive interface guides the user where in the sky to point their iPhone to connect and send the initial message. This message includes the userʼs questionnaire responses; location, including altitude; iPhone battery level; and Medical ID, if enabled. The transcript with relay centre specialists can also be shared with the userʼs emergency contacts to keep them informed.
Satellites move rapidly, have low bandwidth, and are located more than a thousand kilometres away from Earth, so it can take a few minutes for even short messages to get through. Apple designed and built custom components and software that allow iPhone 14 to connect to a satelliteʼs unique frequencies without a bulky antenna. A text compression algorithm was also developed to reduce the average size of messages by 3x, making the experience as fast as possible. With Emergency SOS via satellite, users can send and receive messages in as little as 15 seconds in clear conditions.
There’s a demo mode so you can test the feature out without contacting emergency services.
Users who go out of cellular or Wi-Fi range but aren’t in an emergency can share their location via satellite with Find My. In the Find My app, users can open the Me tab, swipe up to see My Location via Satellite, and tap Send My Location. The satellite connection on the iPhone 14 lineup also works with other safety features available on iPhone and Apple Watch, including Crash Detection and Fall Detection.
Anthony is the founder of Australian Apple News. He is a long-time Apple user and former editor of Australian Macworld. He has contributed to many technology magazines and newspapers as well as appearing regularly on radio and occasionally on TV.