New Samsung communications

The company introduced the 5G Nonterrestrial Network Modem (NTN) so that smartphones can communicate by satellites anywhere in the world. The company’s goal is to integrate this technology into its own Exynos chip, which is used in Samsung smartphones.

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“Samsung aims to take the lead in advancing terrestrial-NTN hybrid communications ecosystems worldwide in preparation for the arrival of 6G”. With this, Samsung follows in the footsteps of Apple, which launched satellite connectivity on the iPhone 14 and 14 Pro for off-network connectivity. The company first made this technology available in the U.S. and Canada, and then expanded it to France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK. Apple relies on the Globalstar satellite network.

“This milestone builds on our rich legacy of wireless communications technologies, following the introduction of the industry’s first commercial 4G LTE modem in 2009 and the industry’s first 5G modem in 2018,” said Min Goo Kim, vice president of communication processor development at Samsung Electronics. in a prayer. Currently, this satellite communication technology promises two-way texting and emergency calls. However, the company says future versions of its technology will also be able to send photos and videos.

Samsung has announced that it now has 5G satellite communication for direct communication between smart devices. The company plans to integrate this technology into its Exynos modem.

NTN communication, currently implemented by Apple in its SOS emergency service, allows smart devices to connect to satellites or other nonterrestrial vehicles to provide connectivity in remote regions, the Android Authority says.

“By meeting the latest 5G NTN standards defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project, Samsung’s NTN technology will help ensure interoperability and scalability between the services offered by global telecom operators, mobile device manufacturers, and chip companies,” says Samsung in a press release.

Samsung’s satellite connectivity technology works on its Exynnos 5300 modem to connect to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. The South Korean firm ensures that its future Exynos modems will support two-way communication, similar to what Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Satellite does.

As you can imagine, devices equipped with these modems will be able to send and receive text messages, images, and videos through this type of technology. What is unclear is when Samsung will implement this communication on their devices. The latest flagship of the South Korean firm, the Galaxy S23 family, has no satellite communication, for example.

Of course, many other companies can benefit from Samsung’s satellite communication, since they carry their modem. For example, the Tensor G2 of the Google Pixel 7 Pro is equipped with the Exynnos 5300 modem.Samsung also ensures that it is developing solutions to eliminate the need for a separate high-power wireless antenna chip within its smart devices, providing mobile device manufacturers greater design flexibility.

Samsung design

Samsung announced its solution for satellite communication on smartphones. The company introduced the 5G non-terrestrial network (NTN) modem so that phones can communicate with satellites in places where there is no cellular network connectivity.

The company said its goal is to integrate this technology into its own Exynos chip, which is used on many Samsung smartphones, but not on the current flagship device, the Samsung Galaxy S23. The Korean tech giant describes this technology as using “satellites and other nonterrestrial vehicles” to provide connectivity in remote areas.

The move follows Apple, which launched satellite connectivity with iPhone 14 and 14 Pro for offline connectivity. The company first made this technology available in the U.S. and Canada, and then expanded it to France, Germany, Ireland, and the UK. Apple relies on the Globalstar satellite network.

“This milestone builds on our rich legacy of wireless communications technologies, following the introduction of the industry’s first commercial 4G LTE modem in 2009 and the industry’s first 5G modem in 2018,” said Min Goo Kim, vice president of communication processor development at Samsung Electronics. in a prayer.

“Samsung aims to take the lead in advancing terrestrial-NTN hybrid communications ecosystems worldwide in preparation for the arrival of 6G”. The current generation of satellite communication technology promises two-way text messages and emergency calls. But Samsung says future versions of its technology will also be able to send photos and videos. Last month, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Qualcomm announced a partnership with Iridium to bring satellite communication to Android phones with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

Satellite

During the last CES, Qualcomm’s big ads largely revolved around automotive news. There’s probably some of that too this week, but the company just announced an upcoming mobile feature in this downtime between Snapdragon Summit and MWC.

Southern California’s chip maker is partnering with Iridium to bring satellite messaging to selected Android devices, starting with those running its new flagship SoC, Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. The technology uses 5G Modem-RF systems on Qualcomm hardware, along with the Iridium satellite constellation to send emergency messages, following the recent footsteps of Apple and T-Mobile.

Garmin is also in the mix here, adding support through its Response function built on the Iridium network for emergency messages in remote locations where operator coverage does not exist. That technology was created with hikers in mind, although there are certainly many other scenarios where such SOS functions could be a literal lifeline.

“Garmin Response admits thousands of SOS incidents every year and has probably saved many lives in the process,” says Brad Trenkle, Garmin’s vice president, in a statement, “and we look forward to working with Qualcomm Technologies and Iridium to help people connect to emergency services. no matter where life takes them”.

Applications include bidirectional text messages and emergency messages beyond SMS, using the Iridium L-band. With today’s news, Qualcomm opens access to function to OEMs. The first batch of smartphones to get the feature will arrive this year. I would anticipate some more concrete announcements on that front around the MWC.