Saving Lives in a Click: Using SMS Feature for Urgent Emergency Location Sharing
Learn how to quickly and easily use the SMS feature to share your location in an emergency. An effective and essential solution to ensure your safety with ease!
Why texting your location is essential in an emergency
In an emergency situation, every second counts. Whether it’s a car breakdown in the countryside, a fall while hiking, or a situation where you feel in danger, transmitting your location quickly and accurately can make all the difference. Rather than trying to describe your location over the phone, using SMS to send your location saves valuable time.
Compatibility and ease of use
Whether you’re using an iPhone or Android smartphone, texting your location is incredibly simple and effective. Messaging apps on these devices are typically bundled with mapping services like Google Maps or Apple Maps, making it much easier to send your exact location coordinates. Good news: this feature is compatible between different types of mobiles. You can therefore send a location SMS from an iPhone to an Android, and vice versa.
Prerequisites for sending your location
There is only one condition to meet for this feature to work: your device must be connected to a 3G/4G/5G or Wi-Fi network. Without this connection, geolocation data cannot be transmitted. So make sure your phone is connected to a network before attempting to send your location.
How to send your location on Android
To send your location to an Android device, simply follow these steps:
- Open the texting app and start a conversation with the person you want to send your location to.
- Touch the button + to the left of the message input field.
- Tap the icon Location.
- If necessary, allow the app to use your exact location.
- Tap the small arrow at the bottom right of the screen to send the SMS with your location.
How to send your location on iPhone
Sending your location from an iPhone is just as easy:
- Open the Messages app and start a conversation with the person concerned.
- Touch the button + to the left of the message input field.
- Tap the icon Position.
- If necessary, allow the app to use your exact location.
- Press on Send a mark to share your location.
- Add, if necessary, a text message to explain the situation before sending the SMS.
Display of the location received
If your correspondent uses the same type of mobile as you, the map showing your location will be displayed directly in the messaging application. Otherwise, they will receive an invitation to open the message in their web browser or in the corresponding mapping application. This flexibility ensures that your location can be viewed without additional complications, regardless of the type of device used.