Made the first ever satellite call using a regular smartphone - this is the future of communication

Satellite phones are nothing new. These large bulky gadgets are connected directly to the satellite using special equipment. Unfortunately, given the way smartphones are built, it was impossible to cram all that satellite phone technology into a regular phone. But recently everything has changed. What happened, said the publication Android Authority.

Photo: IStock

AST SpaceMobile has proven that you don't have to cram anything into your smartphone for satellite communications. The company partnered with major investor AT&T to make the first satellite call using off-the-shelf smartphones, specifically the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. AST called from Texas to a phone in Japan.

You might be thinking, “But wait, I thought the hardware for this was only in newer phones like the Galaxy S23 with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.” This is true, although it is quite different. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 supports satellite connectivity (even if Samsung hasn't done anything with it yet), but only via text messages. This system uses the Iridium satellite network and works in the same way as Garmin InReach products and its competitors. You cannot use it for phone calls.

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During this first satellite call, the signal originating from Texas went from the Galaxy S22 Ultra to the BlueWalker 3 satellite before returning to Japan on another smartphone. AT&T acted as an intermediary so the phones didn't need to be modified to make everything work. Theoretically, this can be done with any phone with LTE support.

According to the AST, this initial test confirmed what we all really want to know: BlueWalker 3 can support cellular broadband data rates. That is, this test proves that connecting with anyone, anywhere (even without expensive cell tower infrastructure) is possible, even if smartphones remain the same.

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In the future, this will allow people living in rural areas or developing countries to have a cellular connection. This will, among other things, reduce the load on traditional cell towers (or even eradicate them) when it comes to voice, text and data transmission.

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