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ZDNET Highlights
- T-Mobile’s Text to 911 service is now available.
- This option is available for free to anyone with a compatible smartphone.
- T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T customers can sign up for it.
Imagine you need medical help, but you’re in a remote and desolate location without traditional cell service. T-Mobile’s new Text to 911 satellite-based service aims to address just such a scenario.
T-Mobile was launched on Tuesday text to 911 option Available to anyone with a compatible iPhone or Android phone. Yes, this includes Verizon and AT&T customers. The service is designed to work anywhere in the 500,000 square miles in the US that is not covered by terrestrial cell towers. All you need is a clear view of the sky to receive a signal from one of the 657 low-Earth orbit Starlink satellites used by T-Mobile.
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The best part is that texting 911 is free for anyone with the right type of phone, no matter your carrier. Once you sign up, you don’t need to take any special action to use it. With sky view, your phone should automatically connect to the corresponding satellite if no terrestrial signal is available. From there, simply open your messaging app and send a standard text message addressed to 911.
911 texting requires an iPhone 13 or higher or a compatible Android phone. T Mobile T-Satellite Help Page Lists all compatible devices under the Eligible Devices section.
How to Sign Up for Text to 911
How You Connect?
T-Mobile customers should sign in to their account online or through the T-Life app, then go to the “Manage data and add-ons” section and activate the Text to 911 option. Non-T-Mobile users will need to browse T-Satellite page for text to 911 And fill out the necessary forms to obtain 911 service. Business customers are asked to call T-Mobile at 1-866-380-7511 to sign up.
“There’s a good chance you’ve seen that moment at some point in your life,” Mike Katz, T-Mobile’s president of marketing strategy and products, said in a news release. “Badly rolled ankle on a backcountry hike. Got stuck in a tree while skiing. Flat tire on a backcountry road. Or a million other situations that require access to emergency services in a location without cell service. It’s an absolutely horrible feeling that we don’t want anyone to have to feel like that again.”
“T-Mobile text to 911 with T-Satellite provides peace of mind,” Katz said. “It’s there when you need it most. And it’s so important to keep it gated. Now all wireless users with a compatible phone can sign up for T-Mobile Text to 911 absolutely free.”
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Officially launched in July after a free beta period, the carrier’s Starlink T-satellite service aims to provide connectivity in areas where traditional cellular access is unavailable. The service currently allows you to send and receive SMS and MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) text messages. You can also share pictures, voice notes and short videos. Additionally, the service enables you to use various supported apps including WhatsApp, X, T-Life, AllTrails, AccuWeather and Google Maps.
Overall, T-Satellite access is available for free to T-Mobile customers with a Go5G Next plan, Experience Beyond plan, T-Priority, or SuperMobile. Other T-Mobile customers, as well as Verizon and AT&T customers, will have to pay $10 per month to use the full service.
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