If you have an iPhone 14 or later, you can send text messages via satellite where cellular service is unavailable. This can be particularly valuable in emergency situations like the Los Angeles wildfires, where cellphone masts have been damaged or destroyed.
T-Mobile and Starlink have now teamed up to offer the same capability to owners of phones without this feature …
Apple’s Emergency SOS via Satellite service launched back in 2022, allowing iPhone 14 owners to contact emergency services in areas with no cellular coverage. With iOS 18, the service was extended to allow owners of any compatible iPhone to send text messages to family and friends also.
The service requires a satellite radio chip only fitted to the iPhone 14 and later, so there’s no way to make it available to owners of older iPhones.
In response to the devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area, T-Mobile and Starlink have now teamed up to make the same features available to any smartphone on the T-Mobile network. SpaceX today made the announcement on X.
For those in the Los Angeles area, the @Starlink team and @TMobile have enabled basic texting (SMS) through our Direct to Cell satellites. You can now text loved ones, text 911 and receive emergency alerts.
At least 10 people have been killed and more than 1,000 buildings destroyed in the LA wildfires, with five separate fires currently burning, and being fanned by high winds.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said the fires were heartbreaking, and said that the iPhone maker was making a donation to assist with relief efforts. The company is also allowing Apple Card users in affected areas to postpone repayments without interest charges or penalties.
One thing that hasn’t helped is an evacuation warning being accidentally sent to all iPhone users in Los Angeles, instead of just those in Calabasas and Agoura Hills.
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