Amazon Wants to Connect Your Phone Everywhere, Whether You Want Them To Or Not

You can hear me now? Darn.

Photo by: Jake Berendes

By: Jonathon Klein

Aug 5, at 8:04am ET

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I don't go anywhere in the backcountry without my Garmin inReach. After years of exploration and near death, it's the one piece of gear that is always with me, no matter what. In fact, while I was just in Iceland for Ducati's Expedition Masters program, it was attached to my hip, too. I had cell reception, sure, but there was no chance I was going to head off into the unknown glacial wilds that are Iceland's public off-road trails without it.

However, in recent years, everyone's smartphones have become more and more reliant on satellite signals, with Apple and other manufacturers now incorporating satellite communication functionality with many of their devices. While not as foolproof as a bespoke satellite communicator, they're getting better and better. Still, I break phones, and wouldn't ever entrust my safety to them fully.

Yet, I fear the era of the standalone GPS device like my inReach is coming to an end, as Amazon isn't just taking over one satellite company; it's planning on launching thousands more, all with the end goal of connecting you no matter where you are. And that, in my opinion, is both good and sort of sad. Do we really need our phones everywhere?

According to reporting by our friends over at Adventure Rider, "Amazon has recently filed a plan with the USA’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch 5,105 satellites, starting in 2028. The plan is for these thousands of satellites to offer worldwide coverage for voice, messaging, data, and emergency services connections when the user is outside cell tower range. In other words: Whether you’re deep in the woods, out in a desolate desert or tackling the wastes of the tundra, you can tune into the Internet."

For a lot of people, that'll be good news. And it sort of is. One of the most dangerous things you can do is explore the backcountry alone. Even with someone else, it can still be dangerous. And if you get yourself into a situation where you need help, having a reliable signal to help could mean the difference between life and death. Literally. So having more access, and access to something like your phone—something we all have in our pockets no matter what—and it having access to a signal anywhere, has the potential to save a lot of lives.

However, I have two concerns.

First, and the biggest, is that phones aren't made for exploration. They're cheap, flimsy, can get waterlogged, and break in ways that often render them unusable in most situations. They're not my inReach. They're not other satellite communicators. They're not built to withstand getting tossed around, thrown in creeks, run over by cars or dirt bikes, or mountain falls. Hell, my iPhone currently only half works because I kept it in my pocket and sat down weird once. Meanwhile, I've crashed about a trillion times with my inReach Mini 2, and that thing still looks basically brand new.

It would be concerning if everyone believed they were safe and then, when it came time to punch out, their phones were in pieces—which has happened to me before. So unless Amazon is going to partner with Garmin or build a phone that can withstand the rigors of the outdoors, entrusting your safety to just your phone is out of the question for me.

Secondly, do we want service everywhere? Just at a base level, the reason I go into the woods, and likely many others, is to escape the everyday realities that are phones tether us to. Having some access is fine, but at the end of the day, I don't want a screen beeping every three seconds with emails or texts about work or life to distract me from the reality I'm witnessing behind the bars of a bike, hunting big game, or just going for a ride in a UTV. I don't need service everywhere, and neither do you.

What do you think?

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That, however, likely isn't going to stop Amazon. Just like data centers, no matter the public's pushback, there's no rest in "progress," it seems. But look at it this way, when you're out in the woods, and have taken a bad fall, you can order a cast and some meds from Amazon Prime while you wait for Search and Rescue!

*sigh