At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Qualcomm announced its partnership with Iridium. The chipmaker is developing the Snapdragon Satellite messaging system with the Virginia-based global communications systems vendor.
Snapdragon Satellite is designed for two-way satellite-based messaging on Android smartphones. Besides the Snapdragon brand weight, Qualcomm will provide the necessary hardware to support 5G Modem-RF Systems while Iridium will rope in its operational satellite constellation.
The partnership will help Android to catch up with iOS, which already has two-way SMS satellite communication, introduced as Emergency SOS via Satellite in Apple’s iPhone 14 in September 2022. While satellite communication isn’t unheard of, the functionality is yet to become mainstream on consumer electronics such as smartphones, which in remote areas with no Wi-Fi or cellular networks become expensive bricks when it comes to communication.
Snapdragon Satellite in its current form is designed only for text-based communication though there are plans for bringing support to 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) and will support various NTN satellite infrastructures and constellations when they become available.
However, even the emergency text communication is conditional, at least for now, on the device having Qualcomm’s flagship system on a chip (SoC) Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. As such, Snapdragon Satellite will feature only in premium, high-end smartphones that run on specially-crafted Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC that support the L-band spectrum.
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The feature will leverage Iridium’s constellation of 66 satellites, which were upgraded in 2019. Additionally, Garmin will also lend its satellite emergency response services for Snapdragon Satellite. Qualcomm vice president of product management Francesco Grilli was able to send a text, which was delivered in three seconds, in a demonstration of the satellite messaging tech at CES.
Iridium executive director of communication Jordan Hassin told Space News that Iridium chose Qualcomm as a partner because multiple original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) leverage Snapdragon and other Qualcomm SoCs, which would enable it to maximize its total addressable market.
Qualcomm said the partnership will go beyond Android smartphones and will bring satellite communications on laptops, tablets, vehicles, and internet of things (IoT) devices.
Emergency messaging on Snapdragon Satellite in smartphones is slated for a second half 2023 launch in select regions. In his media briefing at the CES, Iridium Chief Executive Matt Desch said the company is still working on the basis of levying charges for the satellite communication service.
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