iPhone 14 satellite messaging is now available in the US and Canada

iPhone 14 owners in the United States and Canada will be able to use the emergency satellite messaging system starting November 15.

This feature will be released in France in the following months. German iPhone 14 owners in Ireland and the UK will be able to use it. It is a feature that can be used to request emergency help in places where there is no phone line or Wi-Fi network. It is connected to the satellite service company Globalstar Inc. Last week, Apple announced a $450 million grant from the Apple Advanced Manufacturing Fund to Gloablstar Inc. to help support the satellite messaging system.

More than 300 Globalstar employees will support the Apple service, and all iPhone 14 models will be able to use this feature.

The service will communicate directly with the satellite through custom-designed hardware and integrated software. Users will be able to access the service through an interface that helps them connect to the satellite and answer short questions about status and location.

The Emergency SoS service does not support voice calls due to the lack of a large antenna to connect the phone to the satellite. Instead, Apple uses a Text Compression Algorithm that can reduce the size of text messages by up to 300%, and is designed to send messages faster. In clear weather conditions, it will be possible to send and receive messages between satellites within 15 to 30 seconds.

The Verge also reported that when the fog is thick and the sky is not clear, it can take more than 1 minute for a message to arrive. The Emergency SOS satellite system can be used on this year’s iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max with iOS 16.1 and above, but Hong Kong, China and Macao will not be able to use this service, he said.

Another thing is that this service will not work above 62 degree latitude. Apple will provide satellite SOS service on the iPhone 14 series for free for 2 years, after which monthly fees will be charged.