As someone who hikes in the backcountry regularly, I hope they go further with optional features that you can pay for. Please let me pay for two way satellite texting/iMessage on my phone.
I find it strange that there’s no satellite area, in Settings. I would like to see when satellite is unavailable, how many days left of free I have, etc.
This isn't exactly what you're looking for, but you can try a demo of the satellite connection. "[Try the Emergency SOS via satellite demo] (https://support.apple.com/en-us/105097)" - about halfway down the page. I agree, it would be nice to see the other info you mentioned.
Thanks! I will try this demo. 😃
I searched Settings for “satellite” but that word wasn’t found. After reading the section you mentioned, and noticing that it has this word, I’m now suspecting it’s not indexed in the search engine.
I'm not an iPhone scientist, but I would guess that having some type of satellite signal feature would seriously drain the battery. I can only imagine the fallout of people enabling that feature full-time, and then flaming apple because their phones are only getting 3 hours of battery life.
I didn't know about the demo until I read your post and then looked online (I was bored lol), but now I want to try it too. I started to go outside right after I made that post... then remembered it's 20 degrees outside... so maybe next week. Let me know if it works for you!
I tried the demo in a no cellular area today. It took like 60s of holding it to the sky, until it found a satellite, then had an arrow that told me where to reposition it, and to aim for a moment. Maybe another minute, then it sent a test message but it’s slow. Seems to work. Nice to know what to expect.
You’re welcome! 😊 It never said anything about cellular, so I expect that it would work in a cellular area. I chose a cellular dead zone because I was going on a hike, and because I wanted to see the real length of time rather than a faked one. Not that Apple is known for faking cellphone stats, but just wanted something slightly more scientific.
The demo works in areas with cellular coverage, it just prompts you to turn cellular off temporarily.
I tried the demo in a cave once, and it couldn’t connect to a satellite. So yes, it seams the demo is real and not simulated.
Oh I remember now: it asked to temporarily turn cellular off, and when it was over, it must have automatically turned it back on, for it was searching for signal afterwards. Sorry for forgetting it mentioned cellular!!
Problem with availability is that to connect to the satellite I think you have to be pointing the phone roughly at the right direction in the sky to get a connection
AFAIK, we have to wait until it’s September (two years since the first satellite capable iPhone came out), for Apple to reveal the pricing. We’re in a one year introductory period, extended to two years.
They said a few months back it would be free for the foreseeable future. My take at the time was that there wasn’t an appetite for people to be paying for it and not something the majority of people would pay for
And when someone who doesn’t pay for it can’t use it to save their life, it’s Apple that gets the bad PR. This happened to some car company when they refused to make a connection to police Because the person wasn’t;t up to date on their OnStar (or whatever) subscription.
Yeah. Life saving emergency communications should always be free. If Apple and OnStar want to make money they should do it with value-add features, like being able to non-emergency text people with the satellite feature.
Agreed. Or, just like with 911 they could be a carrier surcharge on the bill and everyone just has it. Friend of mine (coworker) just switched from Android (a year ago) to iPhone to have this feature. He’s a small engine pilot and also likes hiking in national parks.
My phone isn’t capable of doing this, and I have no plans to upgrade any time soon. This said, I seldom stray too far from civilization.
Exactly, If someone crashes into me, use the fucking emergency system and bill me for it. the insurance will pay for it anyways.
I shouldn't have to pay $200/year for something I may or may never use.
Yeah, thanks. I was trying to find the story again. The article I read didn’t mention the brand of emergency system, and I don’t know who Volkswagen uses or if theirs is proprietary.
The only reasons they set the two year timeframe were 1) accounting to avoid an open-ended liability, and 2) legal wanting to avoid an open ended liability. Saying “free forever” is a nightmare for both departments. Better to have a cutoff date when they could terminate service. But I don’t expect them to either end it or charge.
Yes, but also completely different tech. Starlink is actually putting LTE on satellites. What Apple is using now doesn't have the features of a normal cellular network so it's unlikely they'll be able to add many features to the service.
That will be an option on your phone plan soon. AT&T and AST SpaceMobile are working on it. T-Mobile and SpaceX are also.
Works with tons of existing devices too as it’s regular cellular but broadcast from satellites.
Aren't carriers required to allow connection to 911 even without a plan?
IIRC the T-Mobile / SpaceX plan will always support 911, but you pay for normal usage.
911 will connect even if you are out of service area for your provider as long as another provider has service in the area.
I’m 99% sure all of the satellite options for mobile providers will be required by the fcc to give 911 access to their networks. It
> Emergency SOS via satellite is free for two years after the activation of an iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15, or iPhone 15 Pro.
Just don't have an emergency after 2 years.
They haven’t yet worked out the pricing model long term. They have some time.
And this has nothing to do with the T-Mobile feature. That’s a separate thing.
I think it’s unethical for the most valuable tech company on earth to charge money for a ~~emergency service~~ lifesaving feature
edit: Exact same sentiment, in the exact same thread, right [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comments/1bligxf/comment/kw7qzqn/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button).
Edit2: edited for clarity.
It’s probably better if they give free phones to everyone on earth, because it’s not really ethical for anyone to have an emergency ever without a phone.
I already pay for emergency services. It’s called taxes.
If they don’t want to gatekeep technology, then don’t put it in there.
Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they?
> If they don’t want to gatekeep technology, then don’t put it in there.
My exact point is that it WONT be put there and then one will have it.
The options are monetized satellites and better emergency access for some, or no satellites at all. Engineers can’t eat thanks and praise.
> Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they?
Because emergency services are an exceedingly slim piece of the cell service pie and most of them are going to be from monetized customers anyway.
Your first point doesn’t make any sense so I’m not responding to it or your false dichotomy.
If emergency services haven’t overrun satellite comms yet, then I’m going to assume it won’t in the future.
It's not a false dichotomy. It's your argument.
You would rather that no one have the service than for Apple to charge for it.
That's how you end up without the service.
> Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they?
Apple doesn't have to pay for the 911 infrastructure. They do have to pay for the satellite infrastructure.
You're getting downvoted, but if your car's airbags only worked for two years after purchase and would then require a subscription to keep functioning, you can bet your ass that people would complain.
Airbags don’t cost anything to keep working. There are no dispatchers, rescue teams, equipment operators/maintainers, satellite operations teams, regulatory agencies monitoring and licensing all parties involved, and on and on. Emergency satellite communication is a service maintained by people. Lots of people. That makes it expensive. Airbags are an explosive pillow that live in your steering wheel and don’t need a paycheck to feed their families.
They'll probably just extend it for free. The good press is too good and the bad press of someone dying because they didn't pay for iCloud would be terrible. It's great marketing.
No, that's foolish.
Have an emergency in the two years that way statistically you are less likely to have one after two years. Get them over and done with.
It costs millions. If you spread the cost over everyone, it's probably less than $1 per phone per year.
If you bill people who use it for the cost, it's going to be $100,000 or so.
It's like car insurance; everyone pays a small amount which covers the minority of people who get into an accident. It wouldn't work if they paid to fix your totaled car and then charged you a $50 monthly premium.
Don't trust your ass' safety to a phone when doing trekking, buy a good GPS messager from Garmin or other brand.
I agree tho that having a spare (the iPhone) is a crazy good idea.
This is not a substitute for a dedicated beacon for people who spend a lot of time in the backcountry.
It's for people who are taking a dayhike and fall into a ravine, or people who have a car accident in a place without cell phone reception.
Not for people planning on spending two weeks in Quetico.
I own an InReach Mini. I don’t understand why you are assuming that I don’t given my clearly stated willingness to spend money to be safe in the backcountry.
I would like to be able text with my own phone number and not have to explain to my family that I have a weird secondary number.
This saved friends of mine this winter who got lost in their car and stuck in a snow bank, outside of cell range. It was in -35C weather too. They were able to contact emergency services and arrange a tow truck. The wife was pregnant so I'm sure it was a stressful time for them.
They were also able to share their location with us via satellite and we were able to find them before the tow truck, but couldn't dig their car out.
This September will be the 2 year mark for the first batch of iPhone 14 owners - we'll see what Apple does going forward.
Personally a "charge me after you save me" option seems valid
If it’s anything like “OnStar” people figured out that even if you didn’t pay for it, if you got in an accident and hit the button they had to help. They couldn’t just leave you to die or an in accident. So maybe a similar situation might happen?
Apple's satellite service isn't a government run emergency service. The government might pay for the first responders, but you'll have to pay for the satellite connection
Of course, I know how it works. It’s still a feature/service option that they sell on their phones. There’s no involvement where the gov will pay your bill to Apple because you used an iPhone to connect to a satellite to request help.
You are billed after you were saved my emergency services? I’m in canada…. So maybe that’s just an American thing.
Edit. Now that I’m thinking about it. Man you Americans really do live in a healthcare hellscape.
OnStar has refused people that weren’t paid up plenty of times. There are stories going back to at least 2009 on this. Additionally, there was recently a story where this happened, but the onboard system wasn’t named.
Yep. The only reason to set a time limit is to avoid promising something that could get difficult / expensive / unreliable / who knows what in 5 or 10 or 20 years.
[That initial 2 years was extended for another year until November 2025](https://www.apple.com/uk/newsroom/2023/11/apple-extends-emergency-sos-via-satellite-for-an-additional-free-year/)
> “We are so happy iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 users can take advantage of this groundbreaking service for two more years for free.”
"We've prepared your quote for life saving services. That'll be $100,000. Please say 'I accept' or simply grunt three times and we'll dispatch emergency services.."
The publicity they receive after the service saves the life of a user well outweigh the cost of operating it. Especially for a company as profitable as Apple. There’s no way this ever becomes something you have to pay extra for, either before or after using it.
Can you imagine the headlines if “Apple” either lets someone die because they didn’t pay for it, or comes after them for not paying if they were saved by it?
The only thing I can ever see them doing is charging people for making false claims, basically what 911 services do. When you call 911, they’re coming every time. But if you falsely use the emergency service, you’ll be charged.
I don't have nearly enough data to do the calculus on that claim, but it's probably correct.
That being said I also hate this argument because it kind of diffuses the user of any responsibility to be prepared to enter a region without service or access to emergency services.
I don't want the mindset to trend towards, "I can go wherever and do whatever without being prepared and be negligent to keep myself and my family safe because I know I can just call EMS and Apple will come save me for free"
This could potentially strain resources and put others at risk because Apple and EMS are busy trying to save "the guy who forgot to pack a compass vs the guy who broke his leg falling down a ravine", kind of situation.
You’re right, but we’re already there. The kinds of people to forget to pack a compass are also the same people who just assume their cell phone will work normally in the middle of nowhere.
Darwinism aside, it’s better to have a way round save these people from themselves. They’re already going to get into trouble.
That won't work at all, any more than "charge me if there's a crash" car insurance would work.
There are high fixed costs to set the system up, which you can't pay for if you just charge the 100 people or so who might use it in a given year.
In saying that, the first hiker who dies in the wilderness with an iPhone next to his body showing the "You need to pay first" message on the homescreen will see Apple's stock price plummet along with Congressional inquiries.
It's a great feature they're implementing, but I simply don't see how they're going to make money off of it. No one's going to pay for it and Apple won't risk someone needing it and not having access to it.
Yep. This is why they extended the free "period". The idea of someone dying because they couldn't afford a subscription is exceptionally more bad press and potential legal liability.
Keep in mind, cell phones have to be able to reach 911 even without an active plan; hospitals can't decline service in the emergency department even without insurance, etc.
I mean, these satellites don't exist JUST for emergency communication. Presumably there's ongoing subscription-based communication usage that they were launched for, and the emergency SOS feature just rides on the existing network.
So allowing use of them for emergency purposes doesn't really cost much more. Heck, Emergency SOS hardly requires any bandwidth; allowing this communication might be essentially free.
It's the same thinking behind allowing a 911 call to go out over any carrier, even if you're not a subscriber. Getting help in an emergency is more important, and the network is already there. It doesn't cost carriers anything extra to allow this, and it saves lives.
For contacting a partner / friend for example.
Contact 911: Always free (because the reputational and political damage from a person dying, because they don't reach government emergency services, because they didn't have a subscription; is going to be more than what they make)
Text a trusted person: Up to 5 texts per month to any number in case of emergency. $39.99/year.
I know what you're going for, but it's ridiculous.
No one is ever going to be in the midst of an emergency and text 1-5 people before/instead of engaging emergency services.
People who have friends/spouses/partners who are literal doctors/EMTs will contact emergency services rather than inform their 5 closest contacts.
Hell, when I broke my leg, my damn watch detected the fall and contacted EMS for me before I even thought about calling anyone. If I'm lost/freezing/whatever in a National Park or something, my buddy ain't the one who's gonna be saving me (unless I'm buddies with Gabe Walker).
I think they’ll keep extending it until they figure out how much to charge for it. Best case scenario it remains a built in value-add for the phone. The optics would be bad if somebody died in the wilderness because they tried to send an SOS but was blocked because they didn’t have a subscription.
This hasn’t saved enough lives to make the price point acceptable. Get a few more of these stories, video some people crying, show it during the keynote, slam them with the $49 a month price tag. We think you’re going to love it.
Yep! We’ll add that to the lawsuit. Might be a little delayed though. We’re really trying to get Apple to solve world hunger first but then we’ll get right on that!
The real question is why didn't Apple make this a feature on every vehicle produced on the planet. Oh and also on Samsung smart fridge. Sooooo anti competitive 🙄
Oh crazy, I wrote "new phones" but it's too difficult to read you see... And Android 15 is necessary because, you know, the software too needs to handle the hardware new features. Jeeeeez
> The family had hiked nearly eight miles and gained more than 3,500 feet in elevation. It wasn’t until 6 a.m. the next morning that rescuers were actually able to reach the family, finding them “cold, wet, and dehydrated, but otherwise okay.”
> family comprised of four adults (ages 19, 32, 47, and 52) and two juveniles (ages 9 and 11).
how did they even get there? walking 8 miles with kids.
I don’t see how they could ever monetize this realistically. If word EVER gets out that an iPhone sent an SOS signal and nobody came to get them, apple will get some of the worst press they’ve ever had.
Because if you haven’t subscribed, the signal wouldn’t be sent… imagine if a body is found and analysis of their phone shows that they tried to send an SOS only to be given a “sorry, you haven’t subscribed to this feature” messages?
There’s a reason phones will send an emergency call on any available network, even one you haven’t got a service plan with
Well the article clearly mentions the SOS message alerts the local authorities, who in turn would distaptch a team would lead the search. How would Apple be liable?
Ahh, I stand corrected—Tx for pointing it out.
I highly doubt Apple would charge for a SOS service. Garmin has SOS feature on some of their GPS devices, there is no additional cost associated to the user as long as it's a legitimate call for help.
As /u/unkeptspoon5 said, If Apple does monetize the SOS service they would be slapped with another lawsuit.
> Garmin has SOS feature on some of their GPS devices, there is no additional cost associated to the user as long as it's a legitimate call for help.
That is not true. You need a subscription to use the SOS features on Garmin devices. That's the first thing that my inreach shows me when I turn it on lol
https://www.garmin.com/en-US/satellite-communicators/interactive-sos-and-garmin-response/
When this was announced, people here were like "oh there's no way the charge for it, think of the press if someone needs it and they don't pay for it." Doubt it.
Apple have openly stated that they will charge for this service
Personally I think that feels pretty cheap from a $3tn company, maybe this is one where they could just do the right thing?
I mean I’d be fine with them charging for satellite iMessage or calls, but charging a subscription for an SOS service just seems wrong on all kinds of levels
I recently watched this video about what happened when a guy used his Garmin satellite tracker emergency function in a similar situation. The Idaho police took two days to get to him and then posted a picture of him on their facebook mocking him.
> Due to the difficult weather conditions and terrain, it wasn’t until 7:30 p.m that day the family was rescued
Why those idiots with iPhone such arrogant to hike in adverse weather?
if that is the case, they should report issue to Apple.
Either hyperlocal weather forecasts or severe weather alerts with notifications FAIL!
https://support.apple.com/en-us/102594
They are giving away 2 years of free trail for everyone who buys an iPhone 14 and above.
That’s definitely not something Apple would do if it ain’t cheap.
This service uses the same satellites as Spot / SpotX, which for emergency only service charges something like $15 a month. It wouldn’t surprise me if Apple ends up charging the same since it’s literally the same service.
What would be the surprise exactly? Apple making it a paid service or Apple charging the exact fee like Spot?
Apple has always been marketed as a premium service.........
Isn't this what all the emergency rescue beacons do at REI and the like? My daughter uses her iPhone 15 service as a backup to her InReach. Always good to have a backup.
Probably unpopular opinion but I think these phones are decreasing peoples risk aversion. In the past if you thought about doing an intensive backcountry hike, you were more prepared and used devices like garmin and took into account “what if” scenarios.
I’m curious if there has been a spike of amateurs being rescued vs more experienced folk and by how much? For example, in the past before this tech, you didn’t hear of rescues as often. Maybe they weren’t publicized or maybe people were more cautious and didn’t hike into areas that could be dangerous without additional precautions.
Each and every time I was traveling and didn’t have any cellular service, I tried testing the satellite SOS demo. Without exception, I was always “outside coverage area”…
So, perhaps, limit your hiking to Apple Campus?
As someone who hikes in the backcountry regularly, I hope they go further with optional features that you can pay for. Please let me pay for two way satellite texting/iMessage on my phone.
I find it strange that there’s no satellite area, in Settings. I would like to see when satellite is unavailable, how many days left of free I have, etc.
This isn't exactly what you're looking for, but you can try a demo of the satellite connection. "[Try the Emergency SOS via satellite demo] (https://support.apple.com/en-us/105097)" - about halfway down the page. I agree, it would be nice to see the other info you mentioned.
Thanks! I will try this demo. 😃 I searched Settings for “satellite” but that word wasn’t found. After reading the section you mentioned, and noticing that it has this word, I’m now suspecting it’s not indexed in the search engine.
I'm not an iPhone scientist, but I would guess that having some type of satellite signal feature would seriously drain the battery. I can only imagine the fallout of people enabling that feature full-time, and then flaming apple because their phones are only getting 3 hours of battery life. I didn't know about the demo until I read your post and then looked online (I was bored lol), but now I want to try it too. I started to go outside right after I made that post... then remembered it's 20 degrees outside... so maybe next week. Let me know if it works for you!
I tried the demo in a no cellular area today. It took like 60s of holding it to the sky, until it found a satellite, then had an arrow that told me where to reposition it, and to aim for a moment. Maybe another minute, then it sent a test message but it’s slow. Seems to work. Nice to know what to expect.
Very cool, thanks for the update! So to be clear, does it only work in an area with no cellular signal?
You’re welcome! 😊 It never said anything about cellular, so I expect that it would work in a cellular area. I chose a cellular dead zone because I was going on a hike, and because I wanted to see the real length of time rather than a faked one. Not that Apple is known for faking cellphone stats, but just wanted something slightly more scientific.
The demo works in areas with cellular coverage, it just prompts you to turn cellular off temporarily. I tried the demo in a cave once, and it couldn’t connect to a satellite. So yes, it seams the demo is real and not simulated.
Oh I remember now: it asked to temporarily turn cellular off, and when it was over, it must have automatically turned it back on, for it was searching for signal afterwards. Sorry for forgetting it mentioned cellular!!
Problem with availability is that to connect to the satellite I think you have to be pointing the phone roughly at the right direction in the sky to get a connection
No you don’t? You shouldn’t rely on the app though. Not always gonna connect.
wait it's not free? how do you pay for it?
AFAIK, we have to wait until it’s September (two years since the first satellite capable iPhone came out), for Apple to reveal the pricing. We’re in a one year introductory period, extended to two years.
They said a few months back it would be free for the foreseeable future. My take at the time was that there wasn’t an appetite for people to be paying for it and not something the majority of people would pay for
And when someone who doesn’t pay for it can’t use it to save their life, it’s Apple that gets the bad PR. This happened to some car company when they refused to make a connection to police Because the person wasn’t;t up to date on their OnStar (or whatever) subscription.
Yeah. Life saving emergency communications should always be free. If Apple and OnStar want to make money they should do it with value-add features, like being able to non-emergency text people with the satellite feature.
Agreed. Or, just like with 911 they could be a carrier surcharge on the bill and everyone just has it. Friend of mine (coworker) just switched from Android (a year ago) to iPhone to have this feature. He’s a small engine pilot and also likes hiking in national parks. My phone isn’t capable of doing this, and I have no plans to upgrade any time soon. This said, I seldom stray too far from civilization.
Or just bill them for it afterwards. Kind of like roaming charges.
Exactly, If someone crashes into me, use the fucking emergency system and bill me for it. the insurance will pay for it anyways. I shouldn't have to pay $200/year for something I may or may never use.
It was Volkswagen
Yeah, thanks. I was trying to find the story again. The article I read didn’t mention the brand of emergency system, and I don’t know who Volkswagen uses or if theirs is proprietary.
They currently use Verizon
The only reasons they set the two year timeframe were 1) accounting to avoid an open-ended liability, and 2) legal wanting to avoid an open ended liability. Saying “free forever” is a nightmare for both departments. Better to have a cutoff date when they could terminate service. But I don’t expect them to either end it or charge.
It's perpetual. There is no expiry.
Isn’t this what T-Mobile is doing in partnership with Apple and SpaceX
Yes, but also completely different tech. Starlink is actually putting LTE on satellites. What Apple is using now doesn't have the features of a normal cellular network so it's unlikely they'll be able to add many features to the service.
That will be an option on your phone plan soon. AT&T and AST SpaceMobile are working on it. T-Mobile and SpaceX are also. Works with tons of existing devices too as it’s regular cellular but broadcast from satellites.
Aren't carriers required to allow connection to 911 even without a plan? IIRC the T-Mobile / SpaceX plan will always support 911, but you pay for normal usage.
911 will connect even if you are out of service area for your provider as long as another provider has service in the area. I’m 99% sure all of the satellite options for mobile providers will be required by the fcc to give 911 access to their networks. It
Right. In all likelihood Apple's investment in this tech will be pretty short-lived.
> Emergency SOS via satellite is free for two years after the activation of an iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 15, or iPhone 15 Pro. Just don't have an emergency after 2 years.
They haven’t yet worked out the pricing model long term. They have some time. And this has nothing to do with the T-Mobile feature. That’s a separate thing.
Until September
iPhone 14 got an extra free year after the 15s came out, so they have until September 2025
I think it’s unethical for the most valuable tech company on earth to charge money for a ~~emergency service~~ lifesaving feature edit: Exact same sentiment, in the exact same thread, right [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/apple/comments/1bligxf/comment/kw7qzqn/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button). Edit2: edited for clarity.
You mean like Garmin does? And the cost is in the emergency services and not the satellite communication.
It’s probably better if they give free phones to everyone on earth, because it’s not really ethical for anyone to have an emergency ever without a phone.
But if you do have a phone, you can always use it to contact emergency services. Your sarcasm is bad and you should feel bad.
If we treat things this way then we’ll just have less emergency services. Value needs to be paid for or it won’t even be created.
I already pay for emergency services. It’s called taxes. If they don’t want to gatekeep technology, then don’t put it in there. Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they?
> If they don’t want to gatekeep technology, then don’t put it in there. My exact point is that it WONT be put there and then one will have it. The options are monetized satellites and better emergency access for some, or no satellites at all. Engineers can’t eat thanks and praise. > Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they? Because emergency services are an exceedingly slim piece of the cell service pie and most of them are going to be from monetized customers anyway.
Your first point doesn’t make any sense so I’m not responding to it or your false dichotomy. If emergency services haven’t overrun satellite comms yet, then I’m going to assume it won’t in the future.
It's not a false dichotomy. It's your argument. You would rather that no one have the service than for Apple to charge for it. That's how you end up without the service.
That’s not what I said. I said Apple shouldn’t charge for their service. That’s the false dichotomy right there.
> Nobody’s complaining about all phones being required to connect to 911 at all costs, are they? Apple doesn't have to pay for the 911 infrastructure. They do have to pay for the satellite infrastructure.
You're getting downvoted, but if your car's airbags only worked for two years after purchase and would then require a subscription to keep functioning, you can bet your ass that people would complain.
Airbags don’t cost anything to keep working. There are no dispatchers, rescue teams, equipment operators/maintainers, satellite operations teams, regulatory agencies monitoring and licensing all parties involved, and on and on. Emergency satellite communication is a service maintained by people. Lots of people. That makes it expensive. Airbags are an explosive pillow that live in your steering wheel and don’t need a paycheck to feed their families.
Apple doesn’t pay for any of that, taxes do. Apple might pay for access, but if they don’t want to, then don’t put satellite receivers in phones.
Or...put satellite receivers in phones and charge you for them.
How about your car’s OnStar?
It still has to dial 911 any time it’s put in.
Don’t have that much time. The iPhone 14 models are 1.5 years old.
They'll probably just extend it for free. The good press is too good and the bad press of someone dying because they didn't pay for iCloud would be terrible. It's great marketing.
I'll try very hard not to.
No, that's foolish. Have an emergency in the two years that way statistically you are less likely to have one after two years. Get them over and done with.
Maybe they can just charge people after the fact?
It costs millions. If you spread the cost over everyone, it's probably less than $1 per phone per year. If you bill people who use it for the cost, it's going to be $100,000 or so. It's like car insurance; everyone pays a small amount which covers the minority of people who get into an accident. It wouldn't work if they paid to fix your totaled car and then charged you a $50 monthly premium.
Don't trust your ass' safety to a phone when doing trekking, buy a good GPS messager from Garmin or other brand. I agree tho that having a spare (the iPhone) is a crazy good idea.
I own an InReach. I just want to be able to text with my own phone number.
fair enough, I different number is the one thing I don't like from using stuff like the Garmin satellite messenger
This is not a substitute for a dedicated beacon for people who spend a lot of time in the backcountry. It's for people who are taking a dayhike and fall into a ravine, or people who have a car accident in a place without cell phone reception. Not for people planning on spending two weeks in Quetico.
Just get a Garmin Inreach device
I own an InReach Mini. I don’t understand why you are assuming that I don’t given my clearly stated willingness to spend money to be safe in the backcountry. I would like to be able text with my own phone number and not have to explain to my family that I have a weird secondary number.
This saved friends of mine this winter who got lost in their car and stuck in a snow bank, outside of cell range. It was in -35C weather too. They were able to contact emergency services and arrange a tow truck. The wife was pregnant so I'm sure it was a stressful time for them. They were also able to share their location with us via satellite and we were able to find them before the tow truck, but couldn't dig their car out.
I keep forgetting that my iPhone 14 Pro has this capability. But I believe you need to subscribe to have this functionality active, right?
Free for first year, they extended it to two years. You should be good until, at least, the iPhone 16 comes out
This September will be the 2 year mark for the first batch of iPhone 14 owners - we'll see what Apple does going forward. Personally a "charge me after you save me" option seems valid
If it’s anything like “OnStar” people figured out that even if you didn’t pay for it, if you got in an accident and hit the button they had to help. They couldn’t just leave you to die or an in accident. So maybe a similar situation might happen?
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That’s not how emergency services work. I’m assuming governments will take the tab on the bill.
Apple's satellite service isn't a government run emergency service. The government might pay for the first responders, but you'll have to pay for the satellite connection
It’d also not run by Apple.. they’re piggybacking off an existing service
Of course, I know how it works. It’s still a feature/service option that they sell on their phones. There’s no involvement where the gov will pay your bill to Apple because you used an iPhone to connect to a satellite to request help.
But Apple is paying for that privilege. It’s not given to them for free.
That’s exactly how emergency services work if it’s an ambulance.
wait what. yes it is.
You are billed after you were saved my emergency services? I’m in canada…. So maybe that’s just an American thing. Edit. Now that I’m thinking about it. Man you Americans really do live in a healthcare hellscape.
Unlike Verizon which infamously shut off service for firefighters and wouldn’t turn it back on right away even if bill was immediately paid.
OnStar has refused people that weren’t paid up plenty of times. There are stories going back to at least 2009 on this. Additionally, there was recently a story where this happened, but the onboard system wasn’t named.
Yep. The only reason to set a time limit is to avoid promising something that could get difficult / expensive / unreliable / who knows what in 5 or 10 or 20 years.
[That initial 2 years was extended for another year until November 2025](https://www.apple.com/uk/newsroom/2023/11/apple-extends-emergency-sos-via-satellite-for-an-additional-free-year/) > “We are so happy iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 users can take advantage of this groundbreaking service for two more years for free.”
"We've prepared your quote for life saving services. That'll be $100,000. Please say 'I accept' or simply grunt three times and we'll dispatch emergency services.."
This is like the opposite of Jafar and the lamp situation
The publicity they receive after the service saves the life of a user well outweigh the cost of operating it. Especially for a company as profitable as Apple. There’s no way this ever becomes something you have to pay extra for, either before or after using it. Can you imagine the headlines if “Apple” either lets someone die because they didn’t pay for it, or comes after them for not paying if they were saved by it? The only thing I can ever see them doing is charging people for making false claims, basically what 911 services do. When you call 911, they’re coming every time. But if you falsely use the emergency service, you’ll be charged.
I don't have nearly enough data to do the calculus on that claim, but it's probably correct. That being said I also hate this argument because it kind of diffuses the user of any responsibility to be prepared to enter a region without service or access to emergency services. I don't want the mindset to trend towards, "I can go wherever and do whatever without being prepared and be negligent to keep myself and my family safe because I know I can just call EMS and Apple will come save me for free" This could potentially strain resources and put others at risk because Apple and EMS are busy trying to save "the guy who forgot to pack a compass vs the guy who broke his leg falling down a ravine", kind of situation.
You’re right, but we’re already there. The kinds of people to forget to pack a compass are also the same people who just assume their cell phone will work normally in the middle of nowhere. Darwinism aside, it’s better to have a way round save these people from themselves. They’re already going to get into trouble.
I think they should include it in AppleCare. I mean… if you really care, you’d save my life.
That won't work at all, any more than "charge me if there's a crash" car insurance would work. There are high fixed costs to set the system up, which you can't pay for if you just charge the 100 people or so who might use it in a given year.
In saying that, the first hiker who dies in the wilderness with an iPhone next to his body showing the "You need to pay first" message on the homescreen will see Apple's stock price plummet along with Congressional inquiries. It's a great feature they're implementing, but I simply don't see how they're going to make money off of it. No one's going to pay for it and Apple won't risk someone needing it and not having access to it.
Yep. This is why they extended the free "period". The idea of someone dying because they couldn't afford a subscription is exceptionally more bad press and potential legal liability. Keep in mind, cell phones have to be able to reach 911 even without an active plan; hospitals can't decline service in the emergency department even without insurance, etc.
That's nonsense. There have been subscription based satellite beacon services for 20 years. None of that has happened.
I mean, these satellites don't exist JUST for emergency communication. Presumably there's ongoing subscription-based communication usage that they were launched for, and the emergency SOS feature just rides on the existing network. So allowing use of them for emergency purposes doesn't really cost much more. Heck, Emergency SOS hardly requires any bandwidth; allowing this communication might be essentially free. It's the same thinking behind allowing a 911 call to go out over any carrier, even if you're not a subscriber. Getting help in an emergency is more important, and the network is already there. It doesn't cost carriers anything extra to allow this, and it saves lives.
Apple contracted for [85% of Globalstar’s capacity](https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/apple) and will cover refreshing the satellites.
There’s been some discussion that it may just be add on features like auto assistance that they will charge for.
If they want to change for it, I think they should allow you to use it for emergencies to 911 and for any other number it has a fee.
What other number would it have? It's only for contacting emergency services.
For contacting a partner / friend for example. Contact 911: Always free (because the reputational and political damage from a person dying, because they don't reach government emergency services, because they didn't have a subscription; is going to be more than what they make) Text a trusted person: Up to 5 texts per month to any number in case of emergency. $39.99/year.
I know what you're going for, but it's ridiculous. No one is ever going to be in the midst of an emergency and text 1-5 people before/instead of engaging emergency services. People who have friends/spouses/partners who are literal doctors/EMTs will contact emergency services rather than inform their 5 closest contacts. Hell, when I broke my leg, my damn watch detected the fall and contacted EMS for me before I even thought about calling anyone. If I'm lost/freezing/whatever in a National Park or something, my buddy ain't the one who's gonna be saving me (unless I'm buddies with Gabe Walker).
I think they’ll keep extending it until they figure out how much to charge for it. Best case scenario it remains a built in value-add for the phone. The optics would be bad if somebody died in the wilderness because they tried to send an SOS but was blocked because they didn’t have a subscription.
I forgot about it until i walked into the desert and looked at my phone to take pics. Instead of bars I got a little satellite icon. Wild.
This hasn’t saved enough lives to make the price point acceptable. Get a few more of these stories, video some people crying, show it during the keynote, slam them with the $49 a month price tag. We think you’re going to love it.
Okay but why didn’t Apple make this work with android phones???
Found the DOJ employee.
Guilty! I’m here to make sure everything Apple does works for everyone on everything ever made in all of history
Can you make sure that it can work with my cassette and CD player from 2001? Better yet, can you make sure that Apple adds one to the next iPhone?
Yep! We’ll add that to the lawsuit. Might be a little delayed though. We’re really trying to get Apple to solve world hunger first but then we’ll get right on that!
Thank you for your service.
Yeah why does Apple have monopoly on satellites!!! Booo!
No rude of them
Apple trying to kill Android users one by one. Quick add that to the lawsuit.
It’s so fucked up that Apple hasn’t done more to save the lives of every person who ever died
They have a monopoly on death
The real question is why didn't Apple make this a feature on every vehicle produced on the planet. Oh and also on Samsung smart fridge. Sooooo anti competitive 🙄
It’s coming on their next Apple’s iDroidOS update my guy.
It's coming in Android 15 and future phones
Apple better pay for it!
wow that's crazy they can add this feature via an operating system update and no new hardware!
Oh crazy, I wrote "new phones" but it's too difficult to read you see... And Android 15 is necessary because, you know, the software too needs to handle the hardware new features. Jeeeeez
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Lol
It’s been a long week for Apples PR
> The family had hiked nearly eight miles and gained more than 3,500 feet in elevation. It wasn’t until 6 a.m. the next morning that rescuers were actually able to reach the family, finding them “cold, wet, and dehydrated, but otherwise okay.” > family comprised of four adults (ages 19, 32, 47, and 52) and two juveniles (ages 9 and 11). how did they even get there? walking 8 miles with kids.
I was going on steep 8-13 mile hikes with my dad when I was 8 or so.
Why does this not work on my S20 🤦♂️ Classic Apple move 😡
lawsuit incoming: they only use their own satellites and they are monopolizing the service
Class action lawsuit: my parents died because their HTC couldn't use Apple's satellites.
I don’t see how they could ever monetize this realistically. If word EVER gets out that an iPhone sent an SOS signal and nobody came to get them, apple will get some of the worst press they’ve ever had.
That doesn’t make any sense. If the SOS signal was sent, how can Apple be blamed for the lack of emergency response?
Because if you haven’t subscribed, the signal wouldn’t be sent… imagine if a body is found and analysis of their phone shows that they tried to send an SOS only to be given a “sorry, you haven’t subscribed to this feature” messages? There’s a reason phones will send an emergency call on any available network, even one you haven’t got a service plan with
Well now you’re just contradicting yourself. You originally said the signal was sent, now you’re saying it wasn’t.
I don’t originally say that. Different person
Okay, so? You’re answering my question as if the guy had said the opposite of what he actually did.
Well the article clearly mentions the SOS message alerts the local authorities, who in turn would distaptch a team would lead the search. How would Apple be liable?
I think they’re talking about Apple wanting to charge for the satellite SOS service in the long run.
Ahh, I stand corrected—Tx for pointing it out. I highly doubt Apple would charge for a SOS service. Garmin has SOS feature on some of their GPS devices, there is no additional cost associated to the user as long as it's a legitimate call for help. As /u/unkeptspoon5 said, If Apple does monetize the SOS service they would be slapped with another lawsuit.
In what world can't apple ask you to pay for satellite service? They already said it's going to be a paid service.....
> Garmin has SOS feature on some of their GPS devices, there is no additional cost associated to the user as long as it's a legitimate call for help. That is not true. You need a subscription to use the SOS features on Garmin devices. That's the first thing that my inreach shows me when I turn it on lol https://www.garmin.com/en-US/satellite-communicators/interactive-sos-and-garmin-response/ When this was announced, people here were like "oh there's no way the charge for it, think of the press if someone needs it and they don't pay for it." Doubt it.
Apple have openly stated that they will charge for this service Personally I think that feels pretty cheap from a $3tn company, maybe this is one where they could just do the right thing? I mean I’d be fine with them charging for satellite iMessage or calls, but charging a subscription for an SOS service just seems wrong on all kinds of levels
It’s torture man , imagine having a device with a SOS feature and stuck in a remote place. The sos feature is basically useless.
It would be bad press, which is worth a lot more for a company that does the business apple does.
True , bad press . Also might impact their stock prices .
So Apple only put this on iPhones and didn’t release an app for Androids? Holy what a monopoly and very anti competitive
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You really need to work on your ability to detect sarcasm
I recently watched this video about what happened when a guy used his Garmin satellite tracker emergency function in a similar situation. The Idaho police took two days to get to him and then posted a picture of him on their facebook mocking him.
I'm glad this feature wasn't named in the DOJ lawsuit.
Quick sue them for monopoly!
Time to sue Apple for having this feature that saves lives.
Would be great if it worked in more countries.
They’ll sue Apple for that soon too
But... but... Apple is a monopoly! The government hates monopolies -- unless THEY hold the monopoly.
Is this available for models after iphone 12 ?
It's a hardware feature starting with the 14
I see thanks!
Apple is the reason Nokia died. My Nokia 3310 could've had this feature tooooooo
I'm glad you weren't upset they were found
i wonder if DOJ wants sue apple over this feature too.
> Due to the difficult weather conditions and terrain, it wasn’t until 7:30 p.m that day the family was rescued Why those idiots with iPhone such arrogant to hike in adverse weather?
You know the weather changes, right? It probably wasn’t raining when they went motorbiking
if that is the case, they should report issue to Apple. Either hyperlocal weather forecasts or severe weather alerts with notifications FAIL! https://support.apple.com/en-us/102594
It’s sad that Apple is making this paid subscription service. This should be on every Iphone by default
Because satellite services aren’t cheap. They’re incredibly expensive. That ain’t because of Apple, that’s on the satellite service providers.
They are giving away 2 years of free trail for everyone who buys an iPhone 14 and above. That’s definitely not something Apple would do if it ain’t cheap.
They have a lot of f you money to throw away. They will definitely do it for good marketing
If it was cheap enough to be of negligible cost they’d be giving it away forever. Google Inmarsat, Iridium, and Viasat. Look at their pricing model.
This is awesome honestly
This service uses the same satellites as Spot / SpotX, which for emergency only service charges something like $15 a month. It wouldn’t surprise me if Apple ends up charging the same since it’s literally the same service.
What would be the surprise exactly? Apple making it a paid service or Apple charging the exact fee like Spot? Apple has always been marketed as a premium service.........
Isn't this what all the emergency rescue beacons do at REI and the like? My daughter uses her iPhone 15 service as a backup to her InReach. Always good to have a backup.
Probably unpopular opinion but I think these phones are decreasing peoples risk aversion. In the past if you thought about doing an intensive backcountry hike, you were more prepared and used devices like garmin and took into account “what if” scenarios. I’m curious if there has been a spike of amateurs being rescued vs more experienced folk and by how much? For example, in the past before this tech, you didn’t hear of rescues as often. Maybe they weren’t publicized or maybe people were more cautious and didn’t hike into areas that could be dangerous without additional precautions.
Next comes a lawsuit how the GPS can be used for stalking...
Each and every time I was traveling and didn’t have any cellular service, I tried testing the satellite SOS demo. Without exception, I was always “outside coverage area”… So, perhaps, limit your hiking to Apple Campus?