Qualcomm unveils Snapdragon Satellite - Android

[Aushiker]

You can find the full article at TechRepublic but it sounds interesting for non-iPhone users.

While the Snapdragon Satellite solution for smartphones will utilize Iridium’s weather-resilient Lband spectrum for uplink and downlink, it will also depend on Garmin’s emergency response solutions for emergency messaging.

What this means is that more phones will connect to satellites this year. While this announcement may sound like the safety service Emergency SOS already featured on Apple’s iPhone 14, which runs on a satellite connection, there is a notable shift here. Unlike Apple, which supports satellite services only during emergencies, smartphones connected to the Snapdragon Satellite solution will be able to exchange text messages with anyone, not just during emergencies.

[Warin]

You can find the full article at TechRepublic but it sounds interesting for non-iPhone users.

My take:
Global coverage - iridium.
Garmn - so a subscription service like inreach.
"premium smartphones" $$$

It will not be cheap. For emergencies PLBs are still the cheapest reliable option.

[Son of a Beach]

It's great to see that such options will become available soon(ish). I'm an iPhone user, but I'm still really stoked to see this (non-iPhone) development. I may not be able to afford such a service even if it was available on my phone, but options are generally a good thing. I expect that the services and costs will improve over time.