iPhone owners using the UK’s O2 network can now access satellite connectivity when cellular service is unavailable.

The technology, which is available from today, May 28, for O2 Pay Monthly customers with compatible iPhones, uses Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites to connect users if and when they find themselves needing to use their phones in a mobile blackspot.

O2 Satellite supports messaging and data services across a selection of widely used apps, but it means only these apps will be able to connect when a satellite connection is in use.

The service is only available to pay monthly customers and costs £3 per month as an O2 Bolt On that customers can add to their bills. Anyone with an iPhone O2’s Ultimate Plan tariff will have the service from today at no extra cost.

All iPhone models released since and including the iPhone 13 series from 2021 are compatible, apart from the 2022 iPhone SE.

The apps that O2 Satellite will successfully work with are AccuWeather, AllTrails, Apple Compass, Apple Fitness, Apple Maps, Apple Messages, Apple Music, Apple Weather, BBC Weather, Google Maps, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, X and Yahoo Mail.

“Earlier this year, we made history with the switch on of O2 Satellite. Expanding the service to iPhone users is a major step forward in making this new, groundbreaking technology accessible to more customers,” said Chris Bournes, Commercial Director, at Virgin Media O2.

“Whether you’re hiking, travelling or in a remote part of the UK, O2 Satellite helps ensure you can stay connected when you need it most.”

The firm also said the service would serve as “an additional layer of resilience” in case of a cellular network outage or even a natural disaster.

Virgin Media O2, which owns the O2 network, said the switch on of O2 Satellite has expanded O2’s coverage of the UK’s landmass to 95 percent, “delivering a coverage uplift equivalent to an area around two thirds the size of Wales”.

Smartphones including the iPhone and Samsung’s Galaxy S25 and S26 as well as the Google Pixel 9 and 10 have satellite compatibility built in, but it is up to mobile network providers to offer the connectivity before people are able to take advantage of it.

Without services such as O2 Satellite, smartphones’ satellite services are restricted to contacting emergency services. A worthwhile addition, but without a commercial service, you won’t be able to send messages on WhatsApp or check your email without a cellular signal.