Owners of the iPhone 14 in the US and Canada will be able to use the Emergency SOS via satellite feature as of right now. The same will be possible for owners in France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK starting next month.
You may use the capability to contact emergency services even if there is no cell coverage or Wi-Fi available. This may be in the middle of a metropolis after a natural disaster destroyed the electrical system and communications, or it could be out in the middle of the woods.
You must fill out a brief questionnaire with important facts such as the type of emergency, how many individuals require assistance, and other information in order for this service to function. For emergency services that can receive text messages, they will be sent straight to them; for those that cannot, one of Apple’s contact centres will place a call on your behalf.
Additional communications can be sent and received to describe the situation and aid rescuers. Due to the limited capacity of satellite data, Apple created a text compression that reduces text by 300%. Even so, it takes the phone around 15 seconds to send a message (longer if the sky is obscured).
The iPhone can send your Medial ID in addition to the questionnaire if you have it set up. Your numerous medical conditions are listed here so that first responder are informed of any possible problems (e.g. allergies to certain medications).
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Additionally, you may add up to 10 emergency contacts to iMessage, who will receive a transcript of your satellite-delivered emergency message to keep them updated on the situation. You will be guided by the phone through the manual aiming required to connect with a satellite.
You can rehearse in the demo mode so that you’ll be prepared for true crises. Another non-emergency usage of satellite communication is to share your whereabouts with close ones utilizing Find My’s new capability. Available on all four models—the iPhone 14, 14 Plus, 14 Pro, and 14 Pro Max—are this and Emergency SOS.
To utilize the satellite functions, you must have iOS 16.1 or later installed. Note that certain functions are not supported by models purchased in China, Hong Kong, or Macao. Also, this might not function above latitude 62°.
You get two years of service for free if you purchased your iPhone 14 before the satellite SOS service debuted. The cost of the subscription after then is yet unknown.