# Ultra 4 includes two free years of satellite SOS, Messages and Find My

Source: https://idevice.com/ultra-4-gets-two-free-years-of-satellite-and-no-price-after-that
Published: 2026-09-11

> Satellite is one of the few things Ultra 4 has that a Series 12 owner cannot add later, and Apple has published no price for the service once its included years end.

Apple is giving existing iPhone 14, iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 owners another free year of its satellite features, a change it put in a footnote to the iPhone 18 Pro press release rather than on stage. Per [MacRumors](https://www.macrumors.com/2026/09/09/apple-extends-free-satellite-access/), this is at least the third extension for iPhone 14 owners, whose free period was first set to end two years after the phone launched in November 2022, and iPhone 16 owners are covered for the first time. Apple has still not said what it plans to charge once free access ends.

[The Mac Observer went through Apple’s comparison pages](https://www.macobserver.com/tips/round-ups/apple-2026-satellite-features-two-free-years-lineup/) and found satellite listed on [Ultra 4](https://idevice.com/smart-watches/apple-watch-ultra/roadmap) and marked absent on Series 12, Series 11 and SE 3. On Ultra 4 that means Emergency SOS, Messages and Find My via satellite, run through Globalstar and free for two years from the activation of an Ultra 3 or later. Satellite is one of the few things in the $400 step from Series 12 to Ultra 4 that cannot be added later, and for now Apple has priced it for two years and said nothing about year three.

## Sources

- [MacRumors](https://www.macrumors.com/2026/09/09/apple-extends-free-satellite-access/) (MacRumors)
- [The Mac Observer](https://www.macobserver.com/tips/round-ups/apple-2026-satellite-features-two-free-years-lineup/) (The Mac Observer)