Roger Fingas
A Florida woman is lucky to be alive after her car flipped into a marsh by a Tampa highway, apparently saved by a combination of her Apple Watch, iPhone, and Google Maps.
As Amanda Antonio's car began sinking into mud and filling with water, she realized that she could ping her submerged iPhone with her Apple Watch, according to a segment on NBC's "Today." This allowed her to call 911, putting her in touch with a dispatcher who tried to keep her calm while emergency crews worked to locate the car.
The search took some time, to the point that water was rising over Antonio's chest and her iPhone battery fell under 5 percent charge. She then realized she could help by loading Google Maps, which narrowed her location down to the road by an amphitheater.
It's not clear which iPhone or Watch models Antonio had, but the iPhone was likely a 7 or later, as that's when Apple began officially waterproofing hardware. The iPhone 6s had some limited sealing, but this only reduced the chance of water damage and didn't carry an IP rating.
A number of stories have emerged of Apple technology being used in emergencies, and indeed Apple itself has started exploiting them in marketing. The company has sometimes been blamed for causing accidents though, for instance by failing to prevent people from using FaceTime when driving. Apparently admitting the problem, it implemented a "Do Not Disturb While Driving" feature in 2017's iOS 11.
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14 Comments
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To be clear, this isn't an Apple problem or a Skype problem or an Android/Samsung/Google problem. This is a problem with users who are unable to use technology in a safe and responsible manner. The same people who do not use technology in a safe and responsible manner are very likely not self-aware enough to actually realize they need to turn on DND.
There needs to be more awareness of the direct safety features of the Apple Watch. If her phone had been out of reach she still could've called 9-1-1 by long-holding the side button and sliding the Emergency SOS button over. Maps is also available and with a few taps on the screen will zoom in as relatively close as possible as on the iPhone.