There are freak accidents and then there are failures you can see coming from a mile away. A recent tragedy linked to an old Samsung phone sits firmly in the second category. Days ago, an Australian user in Sydney tried to call 000 during an emergency and the call never connected, even though their line was active.
His carrier was Lebara, which runs on TPG/Vodafone’s network. They confirmed that the late user had an older Samsung handset running outdated software. The TPG boss, Iñaki Berroeta, has shared the company’s condolences to the family.
The phone was supposed to hand the emergency call off to another network if its own can’t carry it. Instead, it tried to fall back to legacy infrastructure that no longer exists after 3G shutdowns. Unfortunately, the call failed and the user has been confirmed dead.
Late Aussie’s phone was almost two decades behind
The Australian user's tragedy is one to take as a lesson. There have been arguments for years about whether software updates or phone upgrades are that big of a deal. The safest answer is to treat them as non-negotiable, especially when they touch networks or security.
You don’t have to install an update the second it drops. It’s reasonable to wait a short while so early bugs surface. If it’s bad enough, the brand will always pull or patch it. But you also shouldn’t leave critical updates sitting there for months.
As for phones, it's worth upgrading to a device with the latest network capabilities and keeping the older one as a secondary option. There are many 5G compatible devices you can buy on a budget.
The late user’s phone was a 3G device. 3G first started rolling out in the early 2000s, which is a technology that’s roughly two decades old. That’s over 20 years of change in how towers operate, and too far from the latest 4G and 5G phones.
5G itself can communicate with several bands at once, combine them, and fall back to 4G when needed.
Upgrade and update your smartphone
Samsung is currently doing damage control and has advised everyone to update them immediately. If your model is so old that it cannot be fixed with an update, replace it. Money is a small price to pay for your life.
The affected devices are mainly mid-2010s phones, including the Galaxy S6 and S7 series, Note 5, and older A and J models. See the full device list on Samsung's website.
Newer phones can be patched and have shown no cause to worry about. The most they would need is a software update. Go to settings > Software updates > Check for software updates for any available ones now.
Under the Australian government’s Emergency Service Call Determination, your line can be blocked if your phone isn’t properly set up to reach emergency services. If your device ends up on Samsung's list and you ignore the warning to update or replace it, you can be cut off from all mobile networks after a 28-day window.
