Google Pixel phones may soon get Satellite SOS for emergencies
Google's commitment to bringing satellite support to Android 14, as promised back in 2022, has not been forgotten. The company's recent moves indicate that a critical emergency SOS feature leveraging this satellite connectivity may be on its way to Pixel phones.
In a recent update to Google's "Adaptive Connectivity Services" app (version p.2024.08), the Google News channel on Telegram spotted references to a "Satellite SOS" feature, designed to send emergency messages using satellites when cellular and WiFi networks were not available. This feature will reportedly be enabled through the operating system's Settings menu, under the "Safety and emergency" section. Within that section, you will be able to find a new Satellite SOS page that offers a clear explanation of how the feature will work. There is even an option to try a demo or to test it in real mode.
In a recent update to Google's "Adaptive Connectivity Services" app (version p.2024.08), the Google News channel on Telegram spotted references to a "Satellite SOS" feature, designed to send emergency messages using satellites when cellular and WiFi networks were not available. This feature will reportedly be enabled through the operating system's Settings menu, under the "Safety and emergency" section. Within that section, you will be able to find a new Satellite SOS page that offers a clear explanation of how the feature will work. There is even an option to try a demo or to test it in real mode.
Google's "Satellite SOS" settings as hidden in the code of the "Adaptive Connectivity Services" app on a Pixel | Source: Google News (Telegram)
There is also a section where a partnership with Garmin is revealed, possibly for search and rescue and global emergency response coverage. Garmin's network covers over 150 countries across all continents, which is a good sign that support may be global.
However, as this feature is not yet available nor has it been officially announced, at this time there is no way of knowing if it'll be released first as a Pixel-exclusive. Hiroshi Lockheimer, SVP at Google, confirmed that this was in the works for Android 14, but judging by the impactful nature of launching a new feature like this, Google may just save this announcement for the next. Google I/O or Made by Google event.
Wild to think about user experiences for phones that can connect to satellites. When we launched G1 in '08 it was a stretch to get 3G + Wifi working. Now we're designing for satellites. Cool! Excited to support our partners in enabling all of this in the next version of Android!
— Hiroshi Lockheimer (@lockheimer) September 1, 2022
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