Newest Iphone 14 seems to have some limited Sat Phone capabilities

[AbleGuy]

Some good news for folks wanting an extra lyer of security when out in the beyond.


“Satellite connectivity for emergency situations
While Apple did not unveil any groundbreaking new hardware products, at least one new feature could prove to be a game changer for customers — albeit in rare situations.

The new Emergency SOS via Satellite feature, which Apple said has been in the works for years, was designed and built specifically for iPhone 14 devices to connect to satellites when not near a terrestrial tower. By allowing users to point their device toward a satellite, which the phone will help locate, users will be able to send and receive information to get emergency help.

The company said it created a short text compression mechanism to condense messages that take about 15 seconds to send if a user has a clear view of the sky. (It may take a few minutes longer if something like foliage is in the way.)

Apple said local providers will be alerted to help call for help.”

(https://www.cnn.com/2022/09/07/tech/apple-september-event-highlights-trends/index.html)

 

[Beowulf]

This tech will be interesting to follow. I’m sure we’ll see increased Sat features with the iPhone 15, 16…etc. The question is not if, but which version will have full Sat phone capability

 

[donmontalvo]

As many times as i promised myself I wont keep buying new iPhone releases, the satellite feature is compelling. So is the new camera.

 

[workerdrone]

Is this feature included or will it be an additional monthly? Would be nice if true emergency use was gratis.

 

[donmontalvo]

Yeah, after looking through the details, I'm going to continue to leave my iPhone at home when I go on long trips. I'll stick to my Garmin Fenix 6 solar, and inReach.

I manage thousands of Apple devices in enterprise environments, I've tossed in the towel, they'll never have anything designed for overlanding.

 

[DRAX]

Is this feature included or will it be an additional monthly? Would be nice if true emergency use was gratis.

It's free for 2 years, then there will be a monthly fee. I haven't seen what that fee will be, though.

Yeah, after looking through the details, I'm going to continue to leave my iPhone at home when I go on long trips. I'll stick to my Garmin Fenix 6 solar, and inReach.

I manage thousands of Apple devices in enterprise environments, I've tossed in the towel, they'll never have anything designed for overlanding.

I used to alternate between Android and iPhones every 1-2 years in the early days of smartphones before sticking with iPhones from the 4S until the Xs (So 4S, 5, 6X, 7, Xs), and then I grew very tired of Apple's inability to fix simple yet frustrating bugs in their devices and services. I switched back to Android in 2020 (Samsung Galaxy S20+ 5G) and have been perfectly happy. Well, I was happy once I was able to migrate all my data off of Apple's cloud services (Talk about a nightmare. Apple makes it easy to join and nearly impossible to leave). The iPhone 14 Pro was momentarily compelling until I remembered how much I dislike Apple (I used to love Apple and their devices, but they became more and more anti-competitive or downright misleading and I wanted nothing to do with Apple as of about 2 years ago).

Getting to my long-winded point, as overlanders it's easy to go "Oooo, look, this is great for us!" until you realize this feature isn't meant for overlanding, it's meant to give people a way to get help in areas where there is no cell service. There are still a lot of places in the US with no cell service and you don't have to leave the pavement to find them. This satellite SOS feature is great for Joe User that needs help in the middle of nowhere (but not necessarily off the beaten path). Not that great for overlanders.

The same thing applies to the new Apple Watch Ultra. They say they want to compete with Garmin and yet you can't get more than 1.5-3 days of battery out of it (1.5 days of normal use, 60 hours in battery save mode). That's pathetic for an $800 watch. My Garmin fenix 7 sapphire solar goes weeks with normal use, including tracking hikes, etc. Weeks. Not days/hours.

I feel bad for anyone that still falls for the hype Apple pushes.

Will be sticking with my non-Apple goodness for the foreseeable future.

 

[calicamper]

As many times as i promised myself I wont keep buying new iPhone releases, the satellite feature is compelling. So is the new camera.

I switched to iphone when all our tech security guys pointed out they only use iPhones. The open source stuff in the other brands make them a zero secure device ?‍♂️

 

[DRAX]

I switched to iphone when all our tech security guys pointed out they only use iPhones. The open source stuff in the other brands make them a zero secure device

Eh, that's a false sense of security and a bad assumption if you think closed source means more secure. That is simply security through obscurity. There are still human coders behind everything, only with closed source you don't have the open source community able to find and fix security issues before they become a big problem. Closed source? Good luck getting a quick fix.

How many major security vulnerabilities with Apple software have been discovered in recent history? There was one just a couple of weeks ago that made the news.

How many major vulnerabilities have there been with Windows over the years?

If you look at the trends, iOS is actually becoming less secure with every new release while, on average, Android becomes more secure with every new release.

Assuming Apple or closed-source software is more secure is a bad assumption that doesn't jive with reality.

Anyway...

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[calicamper]

Eh, that's a false sense of security and a bad assumption if you think closed source means more secure. That is simply security through obscurity. There are still human coders behind everything, only with closed source you don't have the open source community able to find and fix security issues before they become a big problem. Closed source? Good luck getting a quick fix.

How many major security vulnerabilities with Apple software have been discovered in recent history? There was one just a couple of weeks ago that made the news.

How many major vulnerabilities have there been with Windows over the years?

If you look at the trends, iOS is actually becoming less secure with every new release while, on average, Android becomes more secure with every new release.

Assuming Apple or closed-source software is more secure is a bad assumption that doesn't jive with reality.

Anyway...

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

Doesn’t matter which device if your loading on free apps your giving China your info?

 

[DRAX]

Doesn’t matter which device if your loading on free apps your giving China your info?

If people just assume nothing is secure then perhaps they will be more careful with the info/data they give out. Assuming something is inherently secure for some arbitrary reason is a great way to ensure you're at risk. Nothing is secure.

 

[Todd n Natalie]

If people just assume nothing is secure then perhaps they will be more careful with the info/data they give out. Assuming something is inherently secure for some arbitrary reason is a great way to ensure you're at risk. Nothing is secure.

Sooooo....... Are you saying I shouldn't have sent my bank account info to the Prince of Nigeria?
But he seemed so legit....

 

[m(a)ce]

more info from tech crunch:

https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/07/...0ayVgv3NnkoecHhEzq9gtrJ5rxPdoWNZ_TB_IIRcCuMgo


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