Turn Your Smartphone Into a Satellite Phone With Iridium GO!
Cell coverage has become so widespread these days that we sometimes take it for granted. Still, there are thousands of square miles of the wild west out there – areas where you can’t get a single bar. Now, it’s great to be disconnected from time to time, but there will be times when you want to go somewhere without any cell coverage but you absolutely need to have reception. What to do then? Short of getting a satellite phone, there’s not much you can do.
With this new piece of tech, you can actually have a satellite phone without having to purchase a stand-alone sat phone. You just need that smartphone you already have with you at all times.
Thanks to the Iridium satellite constellation, you can turn your existing smartphone into a satellite phone.
How does it work?
Iridium has a network of satellites orbiting the earth about 485 miles up high. They provide access to their network anywhere you are in the world. Through the Iridium satellite constellation, you can have global access to phone and data services.
They’ve got a number of packages on offer, but what’s interesting for us mere mortals is the Iridium GO Package.
Admittedly, it does not come cheap BUT it still gives you what you need when you need it, without needing another phone. All you need to get access to phone and data even in the middle of the Sahara is the Iridium GO base station.
Basically, it’s like having a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot – which you probably already have for when you travel to avoid roaming fees.
The Iridium GO Package comes with the base station, a charger (with a travel adapter that allows you to use it with any type of socket), and a carry case.
The “turn your normal smartphone into a satellite phone” device has 15.5 hours of standby battery, and it has 5.5 hours of talk time. That should be enough for urgent calls when you drop out of the grid.
More than making phone calls, you can also use your smartphone for your everyday activities:
- Text messaging
- Email access
- Weather updates
- Customized third-party apps
- Emergency alerts (SOS)
- Photo sharing
- GPS tracking
- Posting to Facebook/Twitter
Iridium GO can connect up to five smartphones or tablets, so if you’re going on a camping trip with friends, you all can update your Facebook status or Instagram feed.
The starter kit costs $699 (it’s on sale; normal price is $999), but you can get it at $65 per month if you sign up with Affirm. As we said, it does not come cheap, but avid adventurers and outdoors people will find it handy.
