In 1999, years before I wrote my first words for CNET, life found me behind the wheel of a 16,000-pound Mitsubishi delivery truck making overnight drops for a local bakery chain in Milwaukee. To feel safer driving by myself, especially during Wisconsin winters, my boss got me a cell phone, the Qualcomm QCP-860, to call him, or roadside assistance, in an emergency. I felt more comfortable driving the route five nights a week, knowing I could call someone if I needed help.
Fast forward 25 years later, and our phones still provide a similar sense of security, but they can do even more to help keep us safe. Google’s Pixel 9 series has a new feature called Satellite SOS, which uses a satellite to contact emergency services when you don’t have a cellular signal or Wi-Fi access. The service has had an impact on Pixel owners, despite just launching in August.
“We’ve already started getting stories from users who have been able to use the feature successfully, which is really great,” Stephanie Scott, group product manager for Pixel phones at Google, told CNET. “For myself, I actually like knowing it’s there when I’m doing things like walking, especially in coastal areas where you don’t always have good reception.”
Satellite SOS is part of Google’s broader portfolio of safety features, which includes Fall Detection and Car Collision Detection. Google is the latest company to embrace smartphone satellite connectivity, joining Apple, T-Mobile and SpaceX. The goal is to give people a way to stay connected, get help, and feel safe.
Google’s Satellite SOS feature is both one of the most important parts of the Pixel 9 line and one that we hope you’ll never need to use. To get a better idea of ​​how it works, I went to Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, to try it out for myself.
Check this out: In-depth hands-on: I tried Google’s Pixel 9 Satellite SOS
How Pixel 9 Satellite SOS works
If you have no reception and a 911 call fails, you will be greeted by these screens to begin the process of connecting to a satellite.
The first thing you should know about Satellite SOS is that you don’t need to know anything about it.
“The moment you try to call 911, when you’re in a place without service, you get that request [for Satellite SOS]” said Aisha Sharif, product manager for Pixel software at Google. “We try to make it incredibly easy and accessible for users to find this in those moments when you need it most.”
This application guides you through the process of connecting to a satellite. I tested the service on a Pixel 9 Pro in a yard, under the helpful guidance of Google’s Party Pallerlamudi, a technical program manager for modem verification, and Arvind Ramesh, a Pixel test engineer.
On the left is the shielded case we put the Pixel 9 Pro inside to lose its signal. On the right is a computer we used to view the Pixel’s screen and interact with it when the case was closed.
Since we didn’t want to accidentally call 911, they asked me to put the Pixel 9 Pro in a shielded case so that radio signals wouldn’t reach it — the idea was to simulate a situation where your phone loses reception. The Pixel 9 Pro was in the box for the first part of the demo, and was connected with a USB-C cable connected to a computer to mirror the phone’s screen.
When the Pixel 9 Pro lost cellular connection, a small satellite icon appeared in the top right of the screen where I would normally see a UC 5G symbol. Then I tried to make a call to 911, but it didn’t go through. Instead, a new Satellite SOS button appeared at the bottom of the dial pad.
I took the Pixel 9 Pro out of the protective case and tapped the Satellite SOS button, launching a multiple-choice questionnaire to assess my situation and needs. The questionnaire is designed to send an effective message of data to an emergency responder. There are six options to choose from: Illness or injury; Vehicle or watercraft; Lost, misplaced or stranded; Crime; fire; Something else.
Here are screenshots of the questions I had to answer after choosing Fire as my emergency.
Different follow-up questions appear depending on what you choose. For example, I selected Fire and received a follow-up question asking if anyone was injured or in immediate danger. After I answered, I was asked what was in the fire. At the bottom of the questionnaire is an option to share my answers with my emergency contacts. If you don’t have emergency contacts on your Pixel 9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, or 9 Pro Fold, I highly recommend setting them up.
After the questionnaire finished (it took me a few seconds to complete) a message appeared that read, “Preparing to send” and advised me to be outside with a clear view of the sky. Remember, this isn’t like connecting to Wi-Fi or even trying to squeeze an extra bar out of your cell signal. Satellites travel at 17,000 mph and you are trying to connect to one to send a questionnaire. Buildings, telephone poles and trees can cause connection problems.
Here is the interface Google gives you to connect to a satellite. Each screenshot shows a step in the process.
After a few seconds and another progress screen, a new window displayed an animation of a hand holding a Pixel phone emblazoned with a satellite icon. The interface looks like the clock widgets you can add to your phone’s home screen on Android 14 or later. The animation prompted me to turn right to center the satellite icon in the circle.
Although I was in an open courtyard, there were nearby buildings (four to five stories) that interfered with the connection. So I walked about 30 meters away from the structures to the parking lot and continued to follow the directions. I found that holding the phone flat in my open palm (parallel to the ground with the screen facing up) helped.
My Pixel 9 Pro connected to a satellite in about 30 seconds — though it can take a few minutes to connect, depending on where you are and how clean your environment is. Satellite SOS is intended as an option to get help, but due to the limitations of the satellite/smartphone connection, there may be situations where you are not outside or able to have a clear view of the sky to get the service working .
After logging in, a text message appeared saying that the information from my questionnaire had been sent to the emergency services – more on that in a bit. You may receive follow-up messages asking for more details. When I replied, it took about 15 seconds for the message to be sent. Sending a text message to emergency services can take much longer due to the connection, depending on where you are and how clear your vision is.
It was enlightening to go through the demo. I didn’t need any real help, but I was impressed by how straightforward the process was.
Pixel 9 modem and special partnership
Satellite SOS works on Pixel 9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL and 9 Pro Fold. It won’t work on older Pixels because the Series 9 has a modem with the ability to send messages back and forth to a satellite.
Google partnered with several companies to operate Satellite SOS. During my demo, I noticed that I received SMS replies from Garmin Response, which is on the receiving end of SOS emergency messages. Garmin Response is a 24-hour response service that helps analyze a person’s problems and contact emergency services.
Google’s other partner is satellite service provider Skylo, which provides satellite connectivity when you’re out of regular cellular range.
Satellite SOS is only available in the continental US and works when Google Messages is your default app. It’s free for the first two years, but Google didn’t say how much it would cost after that, or whether it would be more widely available to other Android phones that have the necessary satellite hardware.
If you own a Pixel 9 series phone, you can try a mini Satellite SOS demo that lets you connect to a satellite without actually calling 911. Open Settings, tap Security and Emergency, then press SOS satellite and follow the instructions.
Final thoughts
As a tech journalist, I’m excited to see a security feature like satellite connectivity come to Pixel phones. It’s not just Google: Apple offers a similar service for the iPhone, which like Google is available for free for two years — though Apple hasn’t said how much it will cost after that time. With the release of iOS 18, iPhone 14 and newer models can also send SMS via satellite.
US carriers are starting to get into the satellite game as well. After Hurricane Helene, the Federal Communications Commission granted T-Mobile and its partner SpaceX temporary emergency authorization to enable their Direct-to-Cell satellite service. T-Mobile subscribers in North Carolina who lost cellular coverage were able to receive emergency notifications and SMS via satellite.
Google’s SOS Satellite Services is a far cry from the nights I drove a truck full of wedding cakes through icy Wisconsin roads with a cell phone at my side. As impressive as the service is currently, we’re still in the early days of smartphone satellite connectivity. I can only wonder how we will be using this technology in just a few years from now.
The Pixel 9 Pro XL’s new design is one of my favorite things about it
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