Issue link: https://bluemagazine.uberflip.com/i/25040
Text: Hans Johnson Illustrations: Lucas Irwin I' One World, One Phone? Is the Iridium the only phone we'll ever need? Iridium's obstacles lie in the marketing and political arenas. Each new technology revolution seems to add a new gadget to the panoply of ways for people to keep in touch: telefax at home, cell phone and pager in hand, calling card in the wallet. Starting in September. the new tele phone Iridium could consolidate the communications load-and allow you to be reached any time anywhere. Designed by Motorola. the consortium known as Iridium promises global voice. fax. pager and data communications. The three phone models, which weigh 100 to 400 grams. can be thrown in a pack and the pager worn on a belt. Users will have one phone number and a single phone bill computed in their local currency. Think of Iridium as a seamless cellular/satellite phone. Without any flipping of switches. calls will be routed automatically to the cellular system if the user is within range of a cell tower. or to a satellite if he or she is not. With current cell phones it's already no big deal in the United States. which shares a standard cellular protocol. But it is a feat beyond American border, for exam ple in Europe. where the typical American cell phone is incompatible with European protocols. Iridium is compatible with any cellular system thanks to "cassettes" which contain various cellular protocols. Iridium users will be able to simply insert the appropriate cassette into the phone and talk away. But what if you're tracking wildlife in Namibia? Up to now. phones have been using communications satellites that orbit very high above the earth so those headed for remote destinations have had to lug around a telephone the size of a briefcase. The heavy pre-Iridium phone can't be used at all in polar regions-the satellites don't reach them. Iridium calls will zip out to one of 66 satellites flying in a low earth orbit which then routes calls to a ground station. That's the theory. but will it work come Iridium's inaugural this September? After all. this is a complicated system. with scores of satellites and a dozen �round stations. Industry insider� qon't for�see any te,;hnological glitches. 'If you can see the sky, Indium will work, says John Nitzke. senior analyst with the consulting firm Forrester Research. Want to get connected Www "The most challenging part of Iridium will be selling it: says Ian Gillott. vice president with IDC. a consulting company. Iridium will market its phone through local service providers, yet some, such as Bell Atlantic Mobile, are refusing to stock the phone, which they see as a competitor. The $2,000 to $3,000 price tag per phone isn't cheap. but it's not prohibitively expensive for all-access communications either. And "Our calls will be only 25 to 30 percent higher than other wireless alter natives: says Michelle Lyle. Iridium's senior manager for corporate communications. Still. the US is not the only market and Iridium. seeing its potential in emergency situations, has a program called NOMAD (National Ownership Mobile Access Disaster Relief) in which it offers developing nation governments discounts on equipment and services. A longer-term hurdle to true global use: Iridium needs an agreement with the local telecommunications authority of every coun try, So far 60 nations-from canada to Micronesian island states-are on board and negotiations with another 80 countries are in the works. Only' 99 more to go. "Some countries may withhold permission unless they get something in return: says John Nitzke. In countries that haven't cleared Iridium use. a person could get into legal trouble for making a phone call. And locations such as the high seas and Antarctica are still a legal gray area. Although aimed primarily at the international business traveler, Iridium also has implications for outdoor recreation. "Iridium could increase access to remote areas: says Leslie Taylor, a satellite communi cations consultant and hiker. The phone gives longer leash to people who love the outdoors but have family and business commitments. One day adventure outfitlers may even provide an Iridium phone as a safety feature or as a devise to lure more customers who are reluctant to be out of touch. With future generations of Iridium phones possibly including a GPS chip, Taylor imagines a scenario where backcountry explorers may have to carry an Iridium pager one day. This would allow authorities to quickly pinpoint those in bona fide emergency situations. One world. one phone is just around the corner. Whether Iridium offers greater freedom to enjoy the outdoors or provides just another way to work anywhere is up to us. Lyle sums it up: "You don't have to take the phone with you or tum it on: . com 61