If you have an iPhone 14, this is going to come in handy.
On Tuesday, Apple announced that its new Emergency SOS via satellite is now available for all iPhone 14 models within the United States and Canada.
The feature allows iPhone 14 users to be able to contact emergency services without a cellular or Wi-Fi connection. The service will also arrive to France, Germany, Ireland and the UK this December.
Apple had announced that the feature would arrive sometime this month, and came to fruition via a $450 million investment in U.S. infrastructure.
Along with the service, users will also be able to notify their friends and family of their off-the-grid whereabouts in thanks to the Find My app. Users will need to open the Find My app and share their location through satellite.
Apple’s Greg Joswiak offered the following statement:
“Some of the most popular places to travel are off the beaten path and simply lack cellular coverage. With Emergency SOS via satellite, the iPhone 14 lineup provides an indispensable tool that can get users the help they need while they are off the grid. Our teams worked tirelessly to tackle a new set of technical challenges to bring this service to life, in addition to building a reliable on-the-ground infrastructure. Emergency SOS via satellite is a breakthrough service available only on the iPhone 14 lineup, and a new innovation that we hope will provide our customers some peace of mind.”
The new feature now allows emergency call centers, or Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) to have the ability to connect with even more users that may be involved in an emergency. Users will either be able to connect directly with services that are able to receive text messages, or users will be able to contact “Apple-trained emergency service specialists” that can relay the message to PSAPs.
Once the feature has been activated, their iPhone will then ask them a series of questions which emergency services will receive. These questions will help responders get more context for a user’s situation and location.
Via The Mac Observer and Apple