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T-Mobile's Text to 911 service is now available.
The option is available free of charge 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. That's the sort of scenario T-Mobile's new Text to 911 satellite-based service aims to address.
Launched on Tuesday, T-Mobile's Text to 911 option is available to anyone with a compatible iPhone or Android phone. Yes, that includes Verizon and AT&T subscribers. The service is designed to work anywhere across the 500,000 square miles in the US not covered by terrestrial cell towers. All you need is a clear view of the sky to snag a signal from one of the 657 low-Earth orbit Starlink satellites used by T-Mobile.
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Best of all, Text to 911 is free for anyone with the right type of phone, regardless of your carrier. Once you're signed up, you don't need to take any special action to use it. With a view of the sky, your phone should automatically connect to a corresponding satellite if and when no terrestrial signal is available. From there, simply open your messages app and send a standard text message addressed to 911.
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