Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, said that his company had “promising talks” with Apple about using Starlink connectivity for the new satellite feature that was introduced in the latest line of iPhones just one day after Apple’s “Far Out” event on Wednesday, where the company introduced the iPhone series 14 for the first time.
Furthermore, to make this new feature possible, which is “Emergency SOS via Satellite connectivity,” possible, Apple has to partner with a satellite company. With this feature, users can connect to emergency services through satellite networks in places where regular cellular networks don’t work well.
Will Apple partner with Starlink for its iPhone 14 satellite feature?
We all know that Starlink is a popular satellite connectivity provider, and most people will want to believe that Apple will partner with them.
Read also: New Apple iPhone 14 may include new satellite features, but users may never use them
Elon Musk, who provided this information in a tweet in response to a statement that Apple would work with SpaceX for its satellite service, tweeted a comment a day after the iPhone 14 launch, stating that they had promising conversations about it, but it didn’t work out properly, and he also noted the preferability of Starlink.
We’ve had some promising conversations with Apple about Starlink connectivity. iPhone team is obv super smart.
For sure, closing link from space to phone will work best if phone software & hardware adapt to space-based signals vs Starlink purely emulating cell tower.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 8, 2022
In the tweet, he also said that the iPhone team is “super smart,” but the context of the tweet does not make it clear whether or not he was making a dismissive comment about them or praising their intelligence.
Although Musk’s claims have not received Apple’s validation, this will be the first time that Musk’s businesses and Apple will work together if the two companies move forward with the plan.
However, Apple has recently announced a partnership with a different satellite company called GlobalStar, which doesn’t go with Elon Musk’s Starlink. Even though GlobalStar is not very well known, Apple is thought to be GlobalStar’s biggest customer.
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When will the iPhone 14 satellite feature be available?
This satellite function won’t be made accessible for usage until November 2022, and it will only be available in the United States of America and Canada.
What is SpaceX doing now?
Amidst this, Musk’s SpaceX has already announced a partnership with US telecom provider T-Mobile to work on the same kind of satellite feature for all smartphones. This means that T-Mobile customers can send and receive text messages even when they are in remote areas by using the SpaceX satellite network.
About Globalstar
Globalstar, Inc. is an American satellite communications company that runs a low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation for satellite phones and low-speed data communications.
The Globalstar system aims to offer high-quality satellite-based phone services to a wide range of customers. It meets the needs of cell phone users who go outside their service areas and those who work in remote areas where terrestrial networks aren’t available. People in underserved areas can use fixed-site phones to meet their basic phone needs. Travellers who use Globalstar may be able to talk to each other reliably.