Galaxy S25 or Pixel 9 owners on Verizon US can now text from anywhere outside of network range via satellite

Starting today, Verizon is offering satellite texting capabilities for some of its customers in the US to allow for texting "any other customer device" even when no service is in range for the texter. The company is claiming this as a first in the US from any major cell provider.

The announcement comes several weeks after Verizon made public its plans to eventually support video calls via satellite and so satellite texting is only the first step towards ultimately reaching >99 percent of the US population through satellite connectivity.

The catch, however, is that the satellite texting service is only available for Samsung Galaxy S25 series or Google Pixel 9 series owners at an additional cost to their plans. The announcement makes no mention of other smartphones including those from Apple, but we suspect that more models will be supported over time.

Beyond expanding its potential customer base, the ability to text from almost anywhere gives Verizon an edge over competitors in emergency situations. Even frequent campers or travelers who are more likely to run into dead zones may find value in the feature.