Qualcomm Collaborates With Global Smartphone Brand Launch Satellite-Based Communication

JAKARTA - Qualcomm Technologies has just announced collaboration with a number of global smartphone brands to develop satellite communication capabilities.

This collaboration is a two-way messaging solution by utilizing the Snapdragon Satellite. As for Honor, Motorola, Oppo, Vivo, Xiaomi and Nothing that are included in the ranks of the global brand.

Announced in Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2023, the Snapdragon Satellite is the world's first bi-directional satellite-based messaging solution for smartphones.

Offering global coverage of one pole to the pole and can support two-way messaging for emergency use, SMS, and other messaging apps.

This service is useful for various purposes such as emergencies or recreation in remote, rural and offshore locations.

The solution is supported by low-Earth orbiting (LEO) and a fully operational constellation of Iridium satellites, allowing for low-power and low latency satellite connections using weather-resistant L-band spectra.

"Our longstanding relationship with Honor, Motorola, Nothing, OPPO, Vivo, and Xiaomi is rooted in innovation and provides an extraordinary experience of connectivity to consumers," said vice president of product management at Qualcomm Francesco Grilli in a statement.

By combining Snapdragon Satellite into next-generation devices, our partners will be able to offer satellite messaging capabilities thanks to the global LEO constellation that is mature and commercially available, allowing customers around the world to communicate outdoors with emergency service providers, as well as family and friends. "he added.

It is not yet known for sure what device will be launched by the newly announced Qualcomm satellite smartphone partner.

The Snapdragon satellite will be available on all upcoming Modem-RF 5G systems and Snapdragon Mobile Platform levels (from levels 8 to 4) as the ecosystem matures.

Beyond smartphones, Snapdragon Satellites are set to expand to other device categories in the computing, automotive, and IoT segments.

As ecosystem growth, OEM and app developers will be able to differentiate and offer unique branded services by leveraging satellite connectivity. The Snapdragon satellite is planned to support 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN), as NTN's satellite infrastructure and constellations are available.

For information, satellite-based communication is growing quite rapidly. Not long ago, Apple also launched Emergency SOS and location tracking services that use the constellation LEO Globalstar. Now available on iPhone 14 models in the US, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.