You Won’t Get Emergency SOS Via Satellite If You Buy An IPhone 14 In These Regions

Emergency SOS via satellite, or satellite calling/messaging, is one of the biggest safety features on the iPhone 14. Apple left no stone unturned in building an infrastructure for this feature. However, the iPhone 14 Emergency SOS via satellite won’t be available in some regions.

It also means that if you buy an iPhone 14 model from these regions, your phone won’t have the equipment to connect to satellite. According to Apple Support, you won’t get Emergency SOS via satellite if you buy your phone in China Mainland, Hong Kong, or Macao.

Other than the above-mentioned regions, satellite SOS won’t be available in Guam or American Samoa. The support page also says that the service is only available in the U.S. (including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and Canada.

What is emergency SOS via satellite?

Apple’s Far Out event was full of action references, including the launch of the Apple Watch Ultra. But if you tend to go where no man has gone before, you can get lost too. That’s where the satellite SOS feature comes in.

Using this feature, your iPhone 14 can send emergency messages via satellite in case you’re in a no-network zone. While the feature is available in limited countries for now, Apple could eventually expand its reach.

Do international iPhone 14 models support emergency SOS via satellite?

Yes, if you buy an iPhone 14 from any other country other than the above-mentioned ones, it will have the necessary equipment to connect to the satellite. However, you can only use this feature in the U.S. and Canada for now. Seeing that Apple has a strong global audience, the feature could eventually make it to other countries.

The Apple website also says that emergency SOS via satellite needs to be used in clear skies. Dense foliage, tall structures, or other obstructions can block its signal. It also says that the feature may not work in places above 62° latitude, such as northern parts of Canada and Alaska.

Is emergency SOS via satellite free on iPhone 14?

If you buy any iPhone 14 model, you get two years of emergency SOS via satellite for free. However, after two years, Apple eventually will make it a paid add-on. The service will start rolling out later in November 2022. However, Apple hasn’t disclosed how much the service might cost after the two-year free plan.

You can read our in-depth coverage of the iPhone 14 launch and the iPhone 14 Pro launch. We’ve also done a thorough comparison between the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13, so you can get a clear idea of which one to choose from.

Want more? Here are four things Apple should’ve done but did not do at the Far Out event. If this article helped you, do let us know in the comments, and share it with others so they can also know all about Apple’s latest self-safety features.