There were rumors last year that Samsung was considering equipping the Galaxy S23 with satellite connectivity for emergency calls.
In the previous year, there were rumors that Samsung was considering equipping the Galaxy S23 with a satellite connection for emergency calls and messaging, similar to the iPhone 14. However, this idea was not put into practice, and the Galaxy S23 was left without a satellite connection for emergency calls. situations. Now there is information that the next step for Samsung will be to bring satellite connectivity to its phones.
In an interview with Yonhap News, South Korea’s Minister of Science and Information and Communications Technology, Lee Jong-ho, stressed that domestic smartphone makers are likely to introduce a data transfer service between 5G smartphones and satellites next year. Given that Samsung remains the only major smartphone brand in South Korea (after LG shut down its mobile division), Samsung is expected to be the one to bring satellite connectivity to its devices in the near future.
Lee Jong Ho said in an interview, “I can’t say for sure, but I know that the local industry plans to commercialize this service next year, looking forward to preparing a standard related to satellite communications.”
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor used in Samsung’s high-end smartphones launched this year supports connection to low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites for emergency calls and messaging. However, the Galaxy S23, Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5 do not have satellite connectivity. Earlier this year, Samsung clarified that the satellite ecosystem is not yet mature enough and it will wait for things to improve before introducing a new feature. It is also known about the cooperation of the South Korean company with Iridium Communications, which has satellites in low Earth orbit for emergency communications.
Next year, Samsung is expected to release the Galaxy S24 in the first quarter. The Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+ and Galaxy S24 Ultra are expected to be available in two versions: with an Exynos 2400 chip and with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor. If the Galaxy S24 has satellite connectivity, then even the model with the Exynos 2400 chip will be able to use this feature. Samsung has developed its own two-way satellite connection for Exynos chips, which could be implemented in the Galaxy S24. At the moment, only Huawei phones have satellite connectivity in the Android ecosystem. Two-way satellite connection for emergency communications allows smartphones to connect to satellites in low Earth orbit to send calls and messages in the absence of a mobile network. This may be important in cases where
In the future, such technologies may allow regular phones to have a built-in two-way satellite connection, and even the Galaxy S22 has already been tested similar technology.