Here’s how the Pixel 9 phones talk to satellites
We hope you never need to use Satellite SOS, but we're glad it's there, all the same.
JoriPress
- Satellite SOS on the Pixel 9 is being implemented with the help of Non-Terrestrial Network company Skylo.
- Skylo licenses spectrum from satellite operators, who relay your signals back down to ground base stations.
- By using standards defined in 3GPP Release 17, the Pixel 9’s modem can talk to satellites without any specialized hardware.
Google just delivered a powerful new safety tool today with the launch of the Pixel 9 series, the first Android phones to support the company’s Satellite SOS service. With it, Pixel users in need of help can send messages to emergency services even when they’re without a cellular or Wi-Fi signal, all through the help of overhead satellites. But how exactly is that all happening?
To connect the Pixel 9 with satellites, Google turned to Skylo, which operates a Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN). That’s a company you might recognize if you’ve been following earlier experiments with smartphone satellite connectivity, as Skylo is the firm that worked with Bullitt on its satellite offerings like the Motorola Defy Satellite Link.
