Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Code suggests the satellite connectivity feature on Pixel devices could be called “Pixel Satellite SOS.”
- We’ve also found a clue suggesting that the feature will be offered for free for two years, which would match Apple’s current offer on the iPhone 14 and 15 series.
Satellite connectivity on smartphones came into the limelight with the launch of the iPhone 14 series. Google is late to the party, but the company has added support for the feature to the platform with Android 15, letting apps recognize when a device is connected to a satellite. Phone makers will have to bake in support of the feature and build partnerships with terrestrial and satellite carriers to offer the service. We’ve highlighted how Google could bring emergency satellite connectivity to the Pixel 9 series, and now, we can share more information about the Pixel Satellite SOS feature.
An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
In the latest Android 15 beta 4, we’ve spotted strings referencing the satellite connectivity feature. While the feature itself is known, changes to the strings reveal that it will likely be called Pixel Satellite SOS and will likely be free for two years for Pixel devices.
Code
<string name="satellite_sos_footer_text">When you connect with emergency services by satellite, your name, email, phone number, location, device information (IMEI, language, model, battery level), and emergency contact information are shared with emergency services and satellite service providers. To use Satellite SOS, Google Messages must be your default SMS app. Satellite SOS is included at no charge for {two} years.</string>There is a chance that {two} is a placeholder term used in the strings. Apple provides Emergency SOS via satellite for free for two years after activating an iPhone 14 series or iPhone 15 series device, so Google offering the same service for the same period would let the company remain competitive against its biggest competition.
The ‘Pixel Satellite SOS’ name is corroborated through this string:
Code
<string name="overlay_title">Pixel Satellite SOS</string> <string name="available_notification_title">Satellite SOS available</string> <string name="notification_app_name_emergency">Pixel Satellite SOS</string> <string name="notification_channel_description">Point to Satellite Notification</string> <string name="available_notification_content">Your Pixel has been updated to support satellite communication</string>The strings hint that the Pixel phone will be “updated” to support satellite communication. Since the Pixel 9 series is likely launching with Android 15 out of the box, it could be read as older Pixels being updated to support this feature. However, satellite connectivity features require specialized hardware, and to the best of our current knowledge, older Pixels lack the requisite hardware to support the feature.
There’s a chance that the feature could arrive on the Pixel 9 series through a future Pixel Feature Drop, in which case, these notification strings make a lot of sense.
Are you excited about satellite connectivity coming to the Pixel 9 series? Would you be willing to pay for the feature? Let us know in the comments below!
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