Huawei and Apple have previously released the Mate 50 series and the iPhone 14 series of smartphones. One of the highlights is that both new phones can support satellite emergency communications.
Among them, the Mate 50 series supports Beidou satellite communication, and the iPhone 14 introduces the emergency communication function of communication satellites, which further adds the function of emergency messaging outside the coverage of general telecommunications networks or Wi-Fi.
After competitors launched mobile phones that can support satellite communication, there were foreign reports, and South Korea’s Samsung was greatly stimulated.
It is also preparing to bring satellite communication capabilities to the Galaxy series of smartphones to catch up with the rest of the competition.
However, it is not clear which model will support the relevant functions first.
If Samsung is indeed developing this type of phone, it will most likely be the upcoming Galaxy S23 series in 2023, which of course only provides the most basic emergency communication functions.
As for the satellite communication function of Galaxy series mobile phones, you first need a compatible baseband chip, such as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X65, which is also the baseband chip used in the iPhone 14 series.
According to reports, the Galaxy S23 series will use the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 flagship mobile processor, because the processor is equipped with the Snapdragon X70 baseband chip and will have the same capabilities, so the system aspect is not a big problem.
Moreover, Hiroshi Lockheimer, former senior vice president of Google platforms and ecosystems, also said that he is working on connecting phones to satellites, and Google is expected to add this feature in the next Android version, which is Android 14.
However, even if the hardware and software problems of the mobile phone are solved, the biggest problem Samsung will face is to find a satellite partner.
The Beidou satellite is connected to the Huawei Mate 50 series, while Apple is partnering with Globalstar. Among them, Apple will allocate 85% of its current and future network capacity to support the iPhone 14 series and future iPhone models that may support satellite communications.
Therefore, it is unclear what kind of plans Samsung will have in this regard, and which satellite company it will choose to cooperate with.
