(Credit: Apple)
Good news for iPhone 14 users: You’re getting another free year of Apple’s Emergency SOS.
Emergency SOS, which connects to orbiting satellites to help those in remote areas, has proven it can save lives since it launched a year ago, Apple says.
“From a man who was rescued after his car plummeted over a 400-foot cliff in Los Angeles, to lost hikers found in the Apennine Mountains in Italy, we continue to hear stories of our customers being able to connect with emergency responders when they otherwise wouldn’t have been able to,” says Apple marketing VP Kaiann Drance.
(Credit: Eric Zeman/PCMag)The Emergency SOS feature works by acting as a failsafe in the event the iPhone can’t access a cellular network, which can occur if the user is traveling in a rural area. If the iPhone has an open view of the sky, it can connect to orbiting satellites to send a text message to emergency responders to ask for assistance.
Apple has been offering Emergency SOS as a two-year free trial on iPhone 14 and 15. Now, anyone who activated their iPhone 14 in a country that supports Emergency SOS via satellite before 12 a.m. PT on November 15, 2023, will get an extra year of service.
Apple hasn't said how much it'll charge for Emergency SOS after the trials. But the company plans on spending at least $450 million building out the infrastructure in the US to support the technology. Apple’s partner on the project, Globalstar, has also signaled it’ll launch more satellites to enable additional features. So Apple is bound to look for ways to recoup its investment once its established a significant user base for the Emergency SOS feature.
In September, Apple also introduced Roadside Assistance via satellite, which is a similar concept to Emergency SOS, but it calls AAA instead of 911. It's also available with a two-year free trial.