Summary
- Android phones may soon offer emergency satellite connectivity like iPhone 14 Pro, thanks to Google’s efforts.
- T-Mobile and SpaceX partnership may enable existing Android phones to connect to satellites without additional hardware.
- Android 15 may support satellite messaging through T-Mobile’s Direct to Cell technology, allowing messaging beyond just emergency services.
Apple debuted Emergency SOS satellite connectivity with the iPhone 14 Pro series in 2023. While Android hardware makers are quick to adopt new hardware features, over 1.5 years later, the best Android phones still don’t offer an equivalent option. In recent weeks, there have been signs of Google working on adding satellite connectivity to its Pixel phones. A new report now sheds more light on how this feature will work, including the possibility of satellite SOS connectivity coming to existing Android phones without requiring additional hardware.
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Android expert Mishaal Rahman got the Satellite Messaging page to show up in the latest Android 14 QPR3 Beta 2 release and shared details on how it will work in a report on Android Authority. When your phone does not have access to a mobile network or Wi-Fi, it will “auto-connect to a satellite.” The usual satellite connectivity caveats apply: it will only be available in some areas, the sky must be clear, phone calls are unavailable, and texts can take longer to send or receive.
So, how will your existing Android phone connect to a satellite without the necessary hardware? Presumably, thanks to T-Mobile and SpaceX.
The two companies partnered in 2022 for “Direct to Cell,” enabling current LTE phones to talk to low-orbit satellites. Starlink launched the first batch of Direct to Cell satellites in February, and reportedly, T-Mobile is gearing up to announce the feature. It appears Google will add support for Direct to Cell in Android 15, as evident from the Satellite Messaging page in the latest Android 14 QPR3 beta.
Tapping the “Add satellite messaging” button redirected Mishaal to a T-Mobile satellite coverage page, further confirming that Google is working on adding support for the carrier’s satellite connectivity feature.
Another advantage of T-Mobile’s implementation is that it will allow you to message anyone, not just emergency services. On iPhones, you are limited to contacting emergency services.
There’s still a lot that is not clear about satellite messaging on Android. While all indicators currently point to the feature coming to existing Android phones without the requisite hardware to talk to satellites, this might change before its release. We could hear more about Google adding satellite connectivity support to Android 15 at I/O 2024, which should happen in around two months.
