When to Expect the Emergency SOS via Satellite Feature to Launch on iPhone

[bmustaf]

This doesn't seem to be a Garmin replacement because you can't actually text people other than emergency services right? Or am I missing something?

It is not a Garmin replacement *yet*. The iPhone was not a BlackBerry replacement at first or the first few years, either. Neither will the Apple Watch Ultra be a Garmin killer (yet), but, Apple has made their intent and direction exceedingly obvious with these beach head products and history does not bode well for non-integrated, silo'ed companies with horrible UI/UX like Garmin.

 

[ifxf]

This Emergency SOS service should be a FREE SERVICE FOR A LIFETIME. We are already paying premium prices for the iPhones & cellular carriers.

It should cost something. Free will encourage people to go into unserved areas unprepared, causing risks and costs to the rescuers who are frequently volunteers.

 

[littlebobbytables]

Wow, the “Emergency SOS via satellite” video is a bunch of emotional marketing BS (hadn’t watched it until now).

The user indicated they were “Lost or Trapped”. Nothing implies imminent threat to life, unless you assume the cowering baby in the video was dying.

Don’t expect a SAR helicopter night (or even day) rescue unless the situation is dire AND conditions allow for a safe extraction. Thunderstorms will ground a SAR helicopter, so at best a ground team might be immediately dispatched to your location ONLY if someone is dying. If there is no imminent danger to life or limb you’ll be spending the night out there - at best you can expect a reply with obvious safety tips like: “Move to a lower elevation when lightning strikes are observed in the area (duh)”. SAR reality: If you can afford an iPhone 14, you can afford the 10 essentials. You can take care of yourself until a SAR ground team is dispatched the next morning. If you’re physically able to walk out, you will be expected to.

Hundreds of people die in the woods every year

 

[switz]

I see folks going intentionally going off the beaten trail to be like the drunk brain trust at Sturgis who says "Hey ya all, watch this". The ambulance of course could get there for the remaining parts. If one goes into the wilderness, then they should be prepared for an emergency just like they bring food and water.

Old saying: the cure for stupid is often fatal.

As quite a few have posted here, there are speciality PLO devices with a proven track record.

I carried a SPOT for years on my motorcycle handle bar and rode with it energized and tracking turned on. I shifted to a Garmin InReach device and carry it in the car as my motorcycles are long gone.

The device is not just for me, but for some incident involving others where this Garmin could be a life saver.

I certainly would not place all the eggs into the Apple basket.

 

[LogicalApex]

True, but iPhone Emergency SOS via satellite is NOT a 911 call.

I didn’t imply it was…

The post I responded to was saying there is no rule that cell phone companies allow 911 calls to be routed irrespective of the phone’s subscriber status. That post is categorically false. The FCC does require that 911 calls are routed and terminated if the phone can pick up a cell phone tower from any carrier — with or without a sim card or account status.

There was a time when cell phones didn’t terminate 911 calls if the phone wasn’t an active subscriber for the carrier the phone was connected to…

Will they same be required for Satellite providers? I have no crystal ball so I can’t say.

 

[compwiz1202]

Can’t wait for the YouTubers to test this one out.

But if it fails, will they ever be able to report

 

[LogicalApex]

It should cost something. Free will encourage people to go into unserved areas unprepared, causing risks and costs to the rescuers who are frequently volunteers.

You could make the same argument about 911. Many areas are staffed with volunteer fire departments and other emergency services.

Does access to 911 make people take more risks? I don’t know, but even if it did that wouldn’t mean we shouldn’t have 911.

There is pathways we, as a society, could take if people started to abuse the services.

 

[citysnaps]

It is not a Garmin replacement *yet*. The iPhone was not a BlackBerry replacement at first or the first few years, either. Neither will the Apple Watch Ultra be a Garmin killer (yet), but, Apple has made their intent and direction exceedingly obvious with these beach head products and history does not bode well for non-integrated, silo'ed companies with horrible UI/UX like Garmin.

Outstanding post and spot-on.

As Apple is a major investor in Globalstar's future, paying 95% of the costs for their next generation satellite constellation, you can bet Apple has significant plans for space-based communication going forward, far beyond emergency SOS texts.

 

[compwiz1202]

You could make the same argument about 911. Many areas are staffed with volunteer fire departments and other emergency services.

Does access to 911 make people take more risks? I don’t know, but even if it did that wouldn’t mean we shouldn’t have 911.

There is pathways we, as a society, could take if people started to abuse the services.

Heck even cellphones in general made people more adventurous. There was a time when being away from a landline meant you were totally disconnected. Which was good and bad

 

[FoxyKaye]

99% of iPhone users will never need to use feature and…

99.9% of MacRumors users will never need to use this feature.

Speaking as someone who actually might use this feature, largely due to the amount of off-piste and backcountry gated skiing I do, I've been loosely following this (I already have an avalanche transponder and multiple Recco-tagged items) - my real question is: Don't the iPhone 13 "Pro" models also have some version of this underlying technology as well by virtue of the modem chip they're using? Thinking about a future satellite subscription service that seems like it would be an inevitability.

 

[cmothafingj]

Maybe Apple can fund the service with ads after the 2 years are up.

Each SOS sent also has an ad attached for the 911 responders to see. 🤣

Emergency SOS via Satellite is for no service meaning out in the middle of nowhere where you can’t connect to any towers. Regular Emergency that you see now will not change.

 

[developer13245]

Speaking as someone who actually might use this feature, largely due to the amount of off-piste and backcountry gated skiing I do, I've been loosely following this (I already have an avalanche transponder and multiple Recco-tagged items) - my real question is: Don't the iPhone 13 "Pro" models also have some version of this underlying technology as well by virtue of the modem chip they're using? Thinking about a future satellite subscription service that seems like it would be an inevitability.

Ski rescue scenarios are great examples of why a dedicated satellite messenger is better. My Garmin has a physical SOS "button" that can be activated quickly to initiate EMS contact, which will continue "hands free" while you perform other rescue tasks, including using an avalanche transceiver to locate a buried skier.
I've taken AIARE Avalanche training, which included actually using my avalanche transceiver to perform searches in actual backcountry ski terrain on real snow while on actual skis. I passed the class.
I've also actually used the training to search for a person during an actual rescue. I found the person in a tree well.
So I'm speaking from actual experience. Hope you have or will get avalanche training. Having a transceiver is good, but the training is worth it.
My larger concern is with the Globalstar system. As I said in an earlier post, I've used satellite tracking on both Spot (Globalstar) and Garmin (Iridium) in the same ski areas and have found Garmin (Iridium) to be much better.

 

[_Spinn_]

I’m thinking it will be nearer the end of the month.

 

[FoxyKaye]

Ski rescue scenarios are great examples of why a dedicated satellite messenger is better. My Garmin has a physical SOS "button" that can be activated quickly to initiate EMS contact, which will continue "hands free" while you perform other rescue tasks, including using an avalanche transceiver to locate a buried skier.
I've taken AIARE Avalanche training, which included actually using my avalanche transceiver to perform searches in actual backcountry ski terrain on real snow while on actual skis. I passed the class.
I've also actually used the training to search for a person during an actual rescue. I found the person in a tree well.
So I'm speaking from actual experience. Hope you have or will get avalanche training. Having a transceiver is good, but the training is worth it.
My larger concern is with the Globalstar system. As I said in an earlier post, I've used satellite tracking on both Spot (Globalstar) and Garmin (Iridium) in the same ski areas and have found Garmin (Iridium) to be much better.

100% Agreed - I usually ski in groups where one or more persons have Avalanche training, including a couple former pro racers who seem to have a propensity for finding ice cliffs with no alternate routes down, lol. I haven't done it yet, personally, but totally see the value it adds - I think it will largely depend on whether or not I continue to focus on backcountry, or go in the direction of skiing in-bounds runs like Corbet's or Big Couloir. Interesting info re: Globalstar vs. Iridium though: I did PR for Globalstar years ago when it launched, and was surprised that the hardware itself hasn't changed substantially since then. Iridium is a newer network, as far as I know, so it makes sense that it would have better tracking coverage.

 

[Robert.Walter]

What’s better than no device? An iPhone with satellite…

So many people just so eager to jump in and say…this dedicated device is better. Yes…we all know. But you know what might be better for average people than 50 devices is one amazing device that can do many of those functions.

This is why Swiss Army and a Leatherman tools are a thing.

 

[developer13245]

It is not a Garmin replacement *yet*. The iPhone was not a BlackBerry replacement at first or the first few years, either. Neither will the Apple Watch Ultra be a Garmin killer (yet), but, Apple has made their intent and direction exceedingly obvious with these beach head products and history does not bode well for non-integrated, silo'ed companies with horrible UI/UX like Garmin.

The Garmin Inreach SOS UX/UI is a million times better than the iPhone SOS: It’s one tactile button that can be activated using one finger - just flip the cover open and press the button and help is on the way. I use the Inreach Explorer+, which has a color LCD + tactile button UI appropriate for a “hardened” dedicated device. And, it supports multi platform mobile apps that can be used for followup messaging via a bluetooth connected device.

 

[bmustaf]

The Garmin Inreach SOS UX/UI is a million times better than the iPhone SOS: It’s one tactile button that can be activated using one finger - just flip the cover open and press the button and help is on the way. I use the Inreach Explorer+, which has a color LCD + tactile button UI appropriate for a “hardened” dedicated device. And, it supports multi platform mobile apps that can be used for followup messaging via a bluetooth connected device.

These are all things people said about BlackBerry and you do have a point for now, which is why I said "yet".

I have and use the Garmin tech, it is more feature/function and is more suitable for rugged environments and use. But relying on those (relatively niche, and I live deep in the mountains, in a very remote area, hunt, fish, run, climb, back country ski, etc at least 75% of the year and 5min from my house in any direction there is no cell service for an hour, so I am most certainly a "niche" user and I still see the writing on the wall).

I'm not talking this year or next, but those who think Garmin is going to retain a hold on the market on some rounding-error of an application or niche are ignoring the economics and history of the reality here.

In a few years, an iPhone or Apple Watch in an Otterbox-like ruggedized casing will make all that such a small niche that Garmin won't be able to sustain a viable presence in the market.

 

[developer13245]

These are all things people said about BlackBerry and you do have a point for now, which is why I said "yet".

I have and use the Garmin tech, it is more feature/function and is more suitable for rugged environments and use. But relying on those (relatively niche, and I live deep in the mountains, in a very remote area, hunt, fish, run, climb, back country ski, etc at least 75% of the year and 5min from my house in any direction there is no cell service for an hour, so I am most certainly a "niche" user and I still see the writing on the wall).

I'm not talking this year or next, but those who think Garmin is going to retain a hold on the market on some rounding-error of an application or niche are ignoring the economics and history of the reality here.

In a few years, an iPhone or Apple Watch in an Otterbox-like ruggedized casing will make all that such a small niche that Garmin won't be able to sustain a viable presence in the market.

Cell phones cannot replace the full functionality of a dedicated GPS device due to antenna physics. There are multiple reports of iPhone users testing the SOS feature who were not able to find a satellite. Again, this is the limitation of the Globalstar system -and- a device (iPhone) with an insufficient antenna. My Garmin InReach SOS UX/UI is “fire and forget”, using one finger activation - this is possible due to the antenna and the overall device design.

A “ruggedized” cell phone case will not somehow overcome antenna physics “in a few years”.

Also, the iPhone GPS message system is limited to (a very limited) SOS-only feature set, and has ZERO non-emergency tracking, or 2-way messaging services. So the iPhone cannot even be considered a direct competitor to dedicated devices.

Again, the effectiveness of an iPhone satellite SOS system will be demonstrated by incident data. But such data will not be reliable for several years.