| Manufacturer | BAC Consulting KFT |
|---|---|
| Type | Pager |
| Form factor | Taco |
| Dimensions | 73 mm × 50 mm × 27 mm (2.9 in × 2.0 in × 1.1 in) |
| Mass | 133 g (4.7 oz) |
| Battery | Removable Li-ion battery |
| Data inputs | 4 buttons |
| Display | LCD display 164 x 64 px, 64 ppi, 4 lines |
| Sound | Monophonic ringtones |
The Gold Apollo AR924 is an alphanumeric one-way pager in a taco form factor sold under the brandname of the Taiwanese company Gold Apollo.[1][2] The main function of the AR924 is to allow fast, direct and efficient communication through text alerts. The ability to receive signals at a distance is used strategically by users who need to communicate where the signal from telephone devices does not reach.[3]
In September 2024, some 5,000 AR924 pagers exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon killing 12 people and injuring about 3000.
According to a statement published by Gold Apollo on their web page on 18 September 2024, they are not the manufacturer of the device and had instead licensed the brand to the Hungarian company BAC Consulting.[4][5]
The PC-programmable and hand-programmable pager is equipped with 4 buttons with two-way scrolling, a 4 lines LCD screen, and a removable lithium battery, rechargeable via a USB-C connector, and lasting up to 85 days with 2.5 hours of charging.[1]
The AR924 allows the user to store up to 30 messages with a maximum length of 100 characters. Its data transfer rate is 512/1200/2400 bit/s for POCSAG.[6]
The AR924 model is not available for sale in Taiwan nor the United States. More broadly, direct exports of Gold Apollo-manufactured pagers from Taiwan amount to some 260,000 sets between the start of 2022 and August 2024 (including over 40,000 between January and August 2024), mostly to the United States, Hong Kong and Australia, according to Taiwan's Ministry for Economic Affairs.[7]
The ministry's figures recorded no direct exports of any Gold Apollo-manufactured pagers from Taiwan to Lebanon during the same period, however indirect exports via third parties could not be ruled out.[8]
Israeli intelligence personnel manufactured the pagers, with the versions shipped to Hezbollah included with explosives in the battery in 2024 Lebanon pager explosions.[9]
On 17 September 2024, some 5,000 AR924 pagers exploded almost simultaneously in Lebanon and parts of Syria, at around 3:30 pm local time, killing 12 people and injuring over 2,750.[10] The explosions appeared to be a co-ordinated attack against the Lebanese Shia political party and paramilitary group Hezbollah.[11][12][10] Reportedly, some 500 Hezbollah members lost their eyesight in the explosions - however, no further elaboration on this number was provided.[13][14]
Initially-circulated photos of the damaged pagers showed components displaying the logo of Gold Apollo, leading to feverish online speculation that the pagers involved had originated from its factories in Taiwan.
The following day, Gold Apollo founder Hsu Ching-Kuang told reporters in Taiwan that the company did not manufacture the pagers involved in the explosions, but that they were made by its long-term partner, the Hungary-based company BAC Consulting KFT,[15] under a licence that had been in place for three years.[16][14][17] BAC Consulting KFT cooperated with Gold Apollo and represented many of its products.[18] However, Gold Apollo did not provide any evidence of the contract.[19] DW which investigated BAC's official address in Budapest could not find any employees, resulting in speculation of it being a shell company.[20] Cristiana Bársony-Arcidiacono, the CEO of BAC Consultancy denied they manufactured the devices claiming them to be intermediaries.[21]