Verizon is giving these Android phones satellite texting for free – Google and Samsung models included

After introducing satellite texting last fall, Verizon is expanding the service again.

In an announcement today, Verizon says its customers will be the first in the US to send text messages to any other Verizon customer’s device using satellite texting — starting with the Samsung Galaxy S25 and Google Pixel 9 series smartphones. 

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Satellite texting is all the rage now, with virtually every carrier scrambling to support it. Unlike other providers that rolled out satellite texting through beta or test programs, Verizon is introducing it all at once. Upgrades enabling this service will begin today and continue over the next two weeks. The service will be powered by Skylo, the same company that handles satellite texting for Pixel phones. 

Satellite texting lets you send a message when you’re out of reach of traditional cell towers. It’s a convenient and potentially life-saving feature if you travel through remote areas or enjoy hiking or camping in areas without a cell connection. Verizon started offering this service for emergency situations and location sharing, but now it’s coming to any text message. 

One caveat with satellite texting is that you must be completely out of cell range for the satellite option to kick in. If you have a minimal signal that makes texting slow or difficult, your phone will keep trying to send the text the traditional way. 

The company is also working on satellite-based calling that would let you make a call without a cell signal. However, this isn’t expected to be available until later this year or even next year. 

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Verizon stated earlier that there won’t be any additional charge for satellite texting. Other carriers charge as much as $20 monthly for the feature. (Google has committed to keeping the feature free for two years on Pixel phones.) Apple debuted its satellite texting feature with a similar free period.

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