Even though Apple is a famous brand in every corner of the world, there are many regions that don’t have access to all the features of Apple products. For example, the iPhone 14 introduced an Emergency SOS satellite feature last year. The US and Canada were among the first countries to support the feature. Other countries adopted the feature as well – France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK. Today we learned from Engadget that two more countries – Australia and New Zealand – will be getting the feature.
In fact, we’ve been waiting for this feature to arrive in these countries for a while now due to the large wilderness areas with no mobile coverage in these regions. The feature is free for two years after activation and works for all iPhone 14 models, such as the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, and iPhone 14 Pro Max running iOS 16.4 or later.
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How does the Emergency SOS satellite function work?
To activate the Emergency SOS satellite feature, iPhone 14 users can either press and hold the power and volume buttons for a few seconds or press the power button five times. Once done, users can send an emergency SOS via satellite. It will also tell the user where to place the iPhone to get the best signal. So once connected to a satellite, users can send messages to emergency services. The phone will also provide the user’s location. If successful, users will receive a message telling them to stay where they are because emergency services have been alerted.
In the first case of Emergency SOS via satellite, a snowmobiler in Alaska who got stuck in a very remote area and needed help was rescued.
You can also use the Find My app to share your location with family members in non-emergency cases. After opening the Me tab, click Send My Location and swipe up to see your location on a map. In fact, you can use it to find what you’re looking for. It includes features like tracking when an iPhone can’t get any signal or is off.
