What a silly comment. You can not put a price on a human life.
Of course you can, and we do.
What if it was tens of millions of false alarms per year?
What a silly comment. You can not put a price on a human life.
That is extremely over exaggeration.What if it was tens of millions of false alarms per year?
That is extremely over exaggeration.
Ooh the arm chair, finger-wagging, Boy Scouting is strong in this thread. Fact is, none of us were there. So to start labeling these kids “idiots” is… Idiotic.
Sure, prep is important (victory favors the prepared) but even Eagle Scouts can get in over their head. **** happens. One of the most important skills, not only in something like canyoneering, but in life, is the ability to function when things go off-script. Because life is way less scripted than some may want to make it or believe.
It sounds like they had a year of canyoneering under their belts. They were heading to a specific location. They had gear; at least some rope and carabiners, materials (and skill) to make a fire, thermal blankets and - oh yeah - an SOS-capable phone. They found themselves in a situation and, with their gear, experience and maybe some good ol’ luck, they’ll live to fight another day. Sounds like THE definition of adventure., to me.
I do wonder what Apple will charge for the feature. Part of some Ultra subscription? On a per-use basis? Interested to find out.
What a silly comment. You can not put a price on a human life.
Yeah - because it's not like there are fixed costs for offering and operating the service, regardless of whether you use it or anything.I still wonder how that paid subscription will work. Will people die without a subscription although the phone could technically use the satellite service? For me it would make more sense to charge AFTER you use it. Each call could cost $50 for example. In a real emergency that would be a great deal and in European countries the health insurance would very likely pay that.
That reminds me of a story I heard where a woman's car got stolen with her kid still in the back. She had a tracking feature in the car that wasn't active because she wasn't paying for it. The car company refused to help the police until they handed over a credit card.I still wonder how that paid subscription will work. Will people die without a subscription although the phone could technically use the satellite service? For me it would make more sense to charge AFTER you use it. Each call could cost $50 for example. In a real emergency that would be a great deal and in European countries the health insurance would very likely pay that.
Why should they give away their service for free?That reminds me of a story I heard where a woman's car got stolen with her kid still in the back. She had a tracking feature in the car that wasn't active because she wasn't paying for it. The car company refused to help the police until they handed over a credit card.
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VW wouldn’t help locate car with abducted child because GPS subscription expired
VW says its Car-Net service shouldn’t have demanded $150 payment from detective.arstechnica.com
Smartarse snarkery aside... great news those involved were able to get themselves out of a potentially lethal situation. Another +1 for the Emergency SOS feature.
That said, they were fortunate the iPhone's satellite antenna system worked in that situation. Anyone going canyoning *really* should be taking a proper PLB or dedicated Satellite Communicator (InReach, etc) as deep walls can really limit the ability of a device to achieve line of sight to enough satellites to both get out messages and send an accurate location to SAR.
Having Emergency SOS on an iPhone is a great backup/secondary device, but for higher risk activities (and canyoning definitely falls into that category) it shouldn't be relied on as a primary emergency beacon-type device. Especially as PLBs are generally waterproof and very durable... and iPhones generally aren't so much ;-)
Probably like applecare.I still wonder how that paid subscription will work.
Let’s say you buy inferior climbing equipment and fall off the mountain because if it. You have to be responsible.Will people die without a subscription although the phone could technically use the satellite service?
So apple is supposed to chase you down for a payment? I doubt it. How about you prepay for a few years if you are going to use the service.For me it would make more sense to charge AFTER you use it. Each call could cost $50 for example. In a real emergency that would be a great deal and in European countries the health insurance would very likely pay that.
Ever hear of insurance? We put prices on human lives every single day.What a silly comment. You can not put a price on a human life.
Ooh the arm chair, finger-wagging, Boy Scouting is strong in this thread. Fact is, none of us were there. So to start labeling these kids “idiots” is… Idiotic.
Sure, prep is important (victory favors the prepared) but even Eagle Scouts can get in over their head. **** happens. One of the most important skills, not only in something like canyoneering, but in life, is the ability to function when things go off-script. Because life is way less scripted than some may want to make it or believe.
It sounds like they had a year of canyoneering under their belts. They were heading to a specific location. They had gear; at least some rope and carabiners, materials (and skill) to make a fire, thermal blankets and - oh yeah - an SOS-capable phone. They found themselves in a situation and, with their gear, experience and maybe some good ol’ luck, they’ll live to fight another day. Sounds like THE definition of adventure., to me.
I do wonder what Apple will charge for the feature. Part of some Ultra subscription? On a per-use basis? Interested to find out.
I guess at least they were fit enough to do the "Squeeze". Smart enough to have a way out. Literate enough to research the trail extensively before they left.And they live on to reproduce. Idiocracy world intensifies.
So you didn’t work out that they couldn’t go back. Do you actually understand this kind of trail? They did things like abseil down a rock. Do you expect them to abseil back up? Geez.I feel like these kinds of canyoneering and cave-diving rescues should lead to prison time and fines.
"Woods and another student, Jeremy Mumford, were stuck in the pool for over an hour, but they ultimately were able to get out and continue deeper. They encountered another pool where the water was chest deep, and they could not get out."
Despite being stuck one time, they did not turn around when they had the chance.
No law should prevent you from doing any kind of extreme sport, obviously.
But they didn't end up in this situation by accident, they deliberately went into it and even ignored their first setback and potential emergency situation.
At the very least, they should be paying for all the costs associated with getting them out of that situation.
IKR! F safety features! Seat belts are stupid! Helmets are dumb! Gloves? I stomp on ‘em! Don’t get me started on protective cups! Today’s baseball gloves?! Too comfy, Nancy! While I’m at it, WTF is up with clothes?! Who needs to protect their feet and stay warm?!? Psshhh!This is the problem with modern society.
There you go! Good to know I have this feature when I attempt Half Dome next month.![]()
And you've never boasted about one of your accomplishments? Apple did a great thing with their satellite SOS and this comment is showing such extreme Apple hate. I guess I'm no longer surprised by this, and that's sad.Sounds like a well written story to promote Apple. Did they have to pay for the rescue?
Do you have to pay for this in the US?The “feature is free for two years”. The rescue services bill is not. A helicopter rescue with fuel, pilots, medics, etc. is going to be very pricey…but you’re alive!!
It depends. If the rescue is performed by the Dept of Defense, Coast Guard, or other Federal Agencies, it is most likely no cost to the person(s) being rescued. it depends where you are in the US when you get rescued and who performs the rescue. For example: State regulations vs. a National Park.Do you have to pay for this in the US?
Well they had rope, carabiners, fire starting equipment, a sat phone. Not sure I’d say they were unprepared. **** happens.Question: Should I go unprepared in a treacherous area I just discovered?
Darwin: Yes.