When One NZ's much publicised text messaging service over Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink arrived late last year, it had a conspicuous hole: there was no support for Apple iPhones.
Depending on which market research company you consult, Apple iPhones hold 40 per cent to 46 per cent of the New Zealand smartphone market.
Only recent Google Android devices from Samsung and Oppo could access the service, which allows One NZ customers on eligible Pay Monthly plans to send standard, short messaging service (SMS) texts via Starlink when out of cellular coverage.
That's now been sorted out, One NZ said. Customers who have an iPhone 14 or later Apple smartphone can access the Satellite TXT service nationwide, as long as they have a clear line of sight to the skies.
Some canned quotes from Joe Goddard, One NZ's experience and commercial director:
"Our goal has always been to get satellite TXT into the hands of as many of our customers as possible, as quickly as possible. We were thrilled to be the first carrier in the world to launch a nationwide satellite text messaging service in December, and now we’re excited to announce that One NZ Satellite TXT is now available for our customers using iPhone 14 or later."
"Those customers with satellite ready plans can now send and receive text messages via satellite, at no extra charge. We’re so pleased to bring this world leading network innovation and coverage to even more customers.”
The fix for whatever issue it was that stopped iPhones from accessing Starlink's 3GPP standards based texting has not been documented, but it arrived with the iOS 18.3 update.
Satellite TXT messaging is the first step, with voice and basic data over Starlink said to arrive later this year. It can be used up to 20 kilometres out to sea, but it's not a replacement for emergency location finder beacons and similar communications devices.
Where this leaves Apple's existing partnership with Low Earth Orbit (LEO) provider Globalstar, for messaging, also remains to be seen. Apple has invested over a billion US dollars in Globalstar.
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment.
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.