Apple Expands Emergency SOS via Satellite Feature to iPhone 14 Users in France, Germany, Ireland, UK

Apple’s satellite-based SOS emergency service was unveiled in September this year alongside the iPhone 14 lineup. On Tuesday, the Cupertino giant has announced the expansion of the new functionality to more regions. The feature that allows users to text emergency services when they do not have a cellular network is now available to iPhone 14 series users in the UK, France, Germany, and Ireland. Emergency SOS via satellite is already available in the US and Canada. The service is free for the first two years.

The iPhone maker on Tuesday announced the expansion of its Emergency SOS via satellite service to iPhone 14 series users in the UK, France, Germany and Ireland. The feature allows users to send emergency messages while outside of cellular and Wi-Fi coverage. It also lets users share their location via satellite through the Find My app on their iPhone units.

Apple’s Emergency SOS via Satellite feature is available to iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max models running on iOS 16.1 and newer versions in supported countries, according to the company.

With Apple’s satellite service, if a user is not able to reach emergency services due to a lack of cellular or Wi-Fi coverage, an interface appears on iPhone to get the user help utilising a satellite connection. A short questionnaire will be shown to help the user answer vital questions that will be transmitted to dispatchers in the initial message, to ensure they can understand a user’s situation and location.

Following this, the intuitive interface will guide the user to connect and send messages. This message includes the user’s questionnaire responses like location, altitude, battery level, and medical ID, if enabled. The questionnaire and follow-up messages are relayed directly via satellite to relay centres staffed by technicians who can call for help on the user’s behalf. It can be also shared with the user’s emergency contacts.

iPhone 14 users can also share their current location in the Find My app using satellite connectivity. Other safety features on Apple devices including Crash Detection and Fall Detection also work with satellite connection. 

The Emergency SOS via satellite feature first debuted in the US as well as Canada in November and is free of cost for the first two years. Apple has associated with Global Star to provide satellite connectivity on iPhone 14 models.