Originally published at: How T‑Mobile’s New T‑Satellite Compares with Apple’s Free Satellite Features - TidBITS
In late July, T-Mobile launched T-Satellite, its Starlink-powered satellite communication service. T-Satellite roughly matches Apple’s Emergency SOS, Find My, and Messages via satellite services with support for text messaging and location sharing (see “Testing Emergency SOS and Find My via Satellite,” 21 November 2022, and “iOS 18’s Messages via Satellite Feature Is Magic,” 10 October 2024).
I haven’t subscribed to T-Satellite, and based on T-Mobile’s product and support pages, I don’t think most iPhone users will either. That’s not to say that T-Satellite is bad; it’s just hard to justify paying $10–$20 per month for features that Apple currently offers for free.
Apple and T-Mobile have taken different paths:
- Device support: Unsurprisingly, Apple’s satellite services work only on iPhones, specifically every model since the iPhone 14. T-Satellite supports over 60 phones from Apple, Google, Motorola, and Samsung, including the iPhone 13. Although most TidBITS readers likely use iPhones, Android support is a big deal for the broader market.
- User experience: Apple’s satellite services have a highly deliberate connection process that requires you to point your iPhone at the sky and manually track satellites. This makes link connectivity explicit but hard to maintain—you can only have a text conversation while the connection remains active. T-Mobile sees satellite connectivity as just another way to connect, claiming that text messages will arrive while your phone is in your pocket. In practice, you’ll still need a reasonably clear view of the sky and should expect delays and queued or batched delivery when signal quality is weak. (You’ll see a SAT icon in the status bar when connected to T-Satellite.) If T-Satellite manages even partial background delivery, it will help normalize satellite communication in a way that Apple has not.
- Emergency interaction: With Emergency SOS and Roadside Assistance, Apple provides prompts to manage the interaction. While restrictive, these prompts are likely helpful for guiding potentially stressful conversations. T-Satellite enables you to text 911, but it doesn’t connect directly to AAA or other roadside assistance services. In theory, any satellite-capable phone should be able to use T-Satellite to text 911, regardless of carrier or subscription status, but it’s impossible to know in advance if it will actually work.
- Location sharing: Apple allows you to update your Find My location via satellite, but this feature is only helpful for people with whom you’ve already shared your location. You cannot send your current location to just anyone through Messages via satellite. T-Mobile says that T-Satellite shares your location using your native messaging app.
- Messaging features: Apple’s Messages via satellite is text-only. T‑Satellite also supports photos and short voice clips in Google Messages on Android, with promises of broader device and app support. T-Mobile has also said it plans to pursue voice and data next. If T‑Mobile brings richer messaging features to the iPhone, that will put pressure on Apple to expand beyond plain text.
- Cost: Although Apple plans to charge for its satellite services eventually, they have so far been offered under a two-year free plan, with an extension for iPhone 14 users whose time ran out (see “Apple Extends Free Emergency SOS via Satellite for iPhone 14 Users for Another Year,” 15 November 2023). Apple will need to extend the free usage option or come up with a payment plan before November 2025. T-Satellite is included with T-Mobile’s Experience Beyond and Go5G Next plans, and Experience More customers who were part of the beta get it for free through the end of the year. T-Mobile subscribers on other plans can subscribe for $10 per month for a limited time; T-Mobile initially said the price would be $15 per month. Interestingly, AT&T and Verizon customers with compatible phones can also subscribe to T-Satellite for $20 per month.
- Coverage: Apple relies on the Globalstar network—a low‑Earth‑orbit constellation of 24 or 31 satellites (sources vary)—that Apple has been financially supporting, with an additional 50 satellites on order. T-Satellite uses Starlink, boasting that it includes over 650 satellites. While the satellites may provide global coverage, business realities limit coverage. Apple’s Emergency SOS via satellite is available fairly broadly, with coverage in the US, Canada, Mexico, Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. However, Roadside Assistance is limited to the US and UK, and Messages via satellite is only available in the US, Canada, and Mexico. T-Satellite currently covers the continental US, plus Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and parts of southern Alaska.
For most people, T-Satellite doesn’t offer enough of an improvement over Apple’s satellite services to justify its monthly cost. The main exception would be someone who is frequently out of cellular range but wants text messaging to stay active in the background. If T-Mobile were to offer voice or data, that would change the equation.
However, Apple has released a new satellite service with each iPhone model since the iPhone 14, so I would be surprised if the upcoming iPhone 17 launch isn’t accompanied by some sort of satellite announcement. Perhaps Apple will be able to match T-Satellite’s background connectivity, or even add voice or limited data. We’ll find out in a month.
