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by randomfool 1681 days ago
They're super common now for backcountry hikers and trail runners. The plans start at $15 a month on a per-month plan (no lock in).

There has been speculation that Apple would build this into their phones, which IMHO would be a killer feature. Imagine having an emergency feature that could be used anywhere on earth. How much would you pay per text? $5 per text message would be an absolute bargain in many of these remote locations.
1 comments
shagie 1681 days ago
> There has been speculation that Apple would build this into their phones

I'm not sure how... the InReach (and similar products) are a Iridium satellite communication system that requires a bit more heft in the signal (up and down).

When you look at the iridium phones ( https://www.iridium.com/product-type/satellite-phones/ ) those aren't small things (look at the antennas).

Then you've got:

> Enhanced Battery Life Up to (4) hours of talk time, (30) hours of standby

for a non-smart phone.

I'm not sure how Apple would be able to incorporate a "no cell phone tower in sight" system... without also packing on the rest of the iridium system and making a much more bulky device.

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nickvanw 1681 days ago
There are a number of providers that have been purporting to be on the edge of offering Satellite coverage to existing cellphones:

- https://ast-science.com/spacemobile/

- https://lynk.world

The former even inked a partnership with AT&T and Vodafone: https://www.lightreading.com/ossbss/vodafone-atandt-sign-up-...

It looks like they've even successfully tested it: https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/29/lynk-demos-global-satellit...

This would likely be a very high-cost option, but it does seem to be possible. The key is that these satellites are much closer to earth than Iridium, I guess.

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nradov 1681 days ago
Garmin inReach devices are very small. They only support messaging, not voice phone calls, so the antennas are short and battery life is pretty good. It could be completely possible to integrate that functionality into a large smartphone.
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ghaff 1681 days ago
When there was speculation before the consensus seemed to be it was unlikely for technical reasons.

Also, while sure it would be nice if something were a no/low-cost add-on to a regular smartphone, the average consumer probably wouldn't pay much extra, much less an incremental subscription fee. And there's something to be said for a rugged, potentially safety-critical, standalone device that's separate from your phone.

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dfadsadsf 1681 days ago
I would absolutely pay for this feature and it will be enough of differentiator for me to pick specific phone model. I live close to major metro area and I do not have cell connection on a regular basis starting from ski resort with spotty connection (does not work at all on some runs) to walk (not even hike) in the closest state park. Ability to use Messenger withtout cell is easily $200-300 feature I would pay for.

On antenna - you can probably build purpose-specific satellites for text messaging that does not require big antenna. Iridium is 485miles high orbit - you can probably have satellites at closer to 150-200 miles elevation

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