The Defy Satellite link gives any Android or iPhone an instant upgrade with the ability to send and receive text messages via satellite, solving the problem of mobile dead zones for emergencies and wilderness adventures.
Announced ahead of Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and produced by British phone maker Bullitt under the Motorola brand, the satellite link connects to a regular smartphone via Bluetooth and uses an app to send not just SOS messages, but also chat. General two-way via text messaging. .
The lightweight, credit card-sized disc will ship from around April, costing £99 on its own or £149 when combined with 30 messages a month and an SOS helpdesk from focus point for the first year. It connects to geostationary satellites via a new MediaTek chip to send SMS to regular phones with replies sent via the cross-platform Bullitt Satellite Messenger app. A button on the side can also send an SOS alert with location without connecting to a smartphone.
Satellite phones have been available since the 1990s, usually at a high cost to purchase and use. Now, advances in radio technologies have enabled the integration of some basic satellite functions into traditional smartphones. Apple’s iPhone 14 can send SOS messages via satellite, while chipmaker Qualcomm recently announced a similar service would be available for high-end Android phones in the second half of 2023.
But both options require buying new phones at high cost and cannot be shared within a family, a market Bullitt hopes to capture with its next-generation device that lowers the cost of satellite services, making them more accessible.
“The Motorola Defy Satellite link, combined with the Bullitt Satellite Messenger service, brings accessible and affordable satellite messaging to everyone’s current smartphone,” said Bullitt co-founder Dave Floyd. “This is the definition of democratizing satellite communications.”
Alongside the puck, Bullitt also announced the Cat S75 rugged smartphone, which has the same satellite communications system built in, retailing for £549. The Android is the continuation of Bullitt’s long-running rugged phone business aimed at first responders. , farm workers and off-grid hobbyists.
