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Android’s response to Apple’s Emergency SOS will be powered by Snapdragon Satellite

Compared to landlines, mobile phones were a great improvement, and smartphone satellite connection might be the next big thing. Now that the iPhone 14 can send out an SOS signal via satellite, it looks like we’re on the right route. Now, at CES 2023, Qualcomm has revealed Snapdragon Satellite, a two-way satellite communication system for the highest-quality Android handsets that isn’t limited to emergency notifications.

Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Satellite will be the enabling hardware component for future devices, beginning with flagships based on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 platform and its 5G Modem-RF system, as announced in September by Android SVP Hiroshi Lockheimer. Company plans call for Snapdragon Satellite to offer two-way SMS messaging via satellite, expanding its current capabilities beyond Apple-style, one-way SOS pleas from far-flung areas.

For global coverage, Qualcomm and Iridium Satellite Communications have teamed so that Qualcomm may use Iridium’s L-band spectrum LEO satellites. In the future, when satellite infrastructure is better developed and more satellites circle the Earth in constellations, Snapdragon Satellite intends to enable 5G NTN. This is what Iridium CEO Matt Desch had to say.

Our network is tailored for this service — our advanced, LEO satellites cover every part of the globe and support the lower-power, low-latency connections ideal for the satellite-powered services enabled by the industry-leading Snapdragon Satellite. Millions depend on our connections every day, and we look forward to the many millions more connecting through smartphones powered by Snapdragon Satellite.

Satellite-enabled gadgets, according to Qualcomm, will become available in the second half of 2023. Once a result of this collaboration, Garmin is on board with the hopes of bettering services like Garmin Response SOS as Snapdragon Satellite is released. Tablets, laptops, networked autos, and Internet of Things (IoT) software are just some of the potential future recipients of this technology.