Sending pictures via iMessage

Forums › Spark New Zealand › Sending pictures via iMessage

Brunzy

679 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 65

Trusted

Topic # 236152 20-May-2018 11:38

Can anyone confirm that they get charged ( or not ) for sending pics via iMessage?
I wa under the impression that anything via iMessage was data only and not part of your text plan, Spark confirmed that and even sent a test pic from their shop,but I always get charged for them

1 | 2 | 3

4757 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1041

Moderator

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

Reply # 2019307 20-May-2018 11:42

5 people support this post

iMessage to iMessage is data. iMessage to SMS/MMS is standard SMS/MMS charges. iMessage only works on Apple devices, so if you're sending a message from iMessage to an Android device, it goes as SMS/MMS and is charged accordingly.

Linux

3591 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 2062

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

Reply # 2019311 20-May-2018 11:59

2 people support this post

@Brunzy iMessage is not a MMS / PXT and will only use mobile data / home broadband data

If you are getting charged then the handset is 110% sending them via the mobile carrier MMSC / PXT platform and not iMessage

Install WhatsApp and then no confusion and also far more users including Android users

John

Ex JohnR VodafoneNZ 17 years 4 days

Behodar

6289 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1069

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

Reply # 2019312 20-May-2018 12:00

You can double-check this by disabling MMS via Settings/Messages.

josephhinvest

1198 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 152

Trusted

Reply # 2019318 20-May-2018 12:15

One person supports this post

Also for your information, messages sent to another iOS device using iMessage service will show as blue, and SMS/MMS messages will show as green regardless of the flavour of device at other end.

Benjip

548 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 172

Subscriber

Reply # 2019320 20-May-2018 12:19

3 people support this post

josephhinvest: Also for your information, messages sent to another iOS device using iMessage service will show as blue, and SMS/MMS messages will show as green regardless of the flavour of device at other end.

This.

If you want to check (before sending an image), just type their number into the new message field, and if their number/name turns blue, they have iMessage, and you won't be charged for sending anything (other than data if you're on 3G/4G). If it's green, the image will be sent via MMS.

Brunzy

679 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 65

Trusted

Reply # 2019343 20-May-2018 14:41

Thanks for your replies.
To clarify , I understand sending to Android, via SMS etc and would expect to be charged.
I’m talking about texts between IOS devices, always in Blue so iMessage, but pics are charged.I’m trying to ascertain if this is correct.

gehenna

4757 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1041

Moderator

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

Reply # 2019367 20-May-2018 15:17

One person supports this post

It is not correct

corksta

2082 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 218

Trusted

Subscriber

Reply # 2019395 20-May-2018 16:25

Does sending standard iMessage texts (no pictures) work correctly without charging you or is just pictures?

Have you got ‘Send as SMS’ in Settings turned off? I’m wondering if somehow your iMessage isn’t set up correctly and it defaults to sending it as a MMS if iMessage fails?

Have you tried turning off iMessage then turning it back on again?

gehenna

4757 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1041

Moderator

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

Reply # 2019411 20-May-2018 16:55

One person supports this post

@corksta has good advice. Disable MMS and Send as SMS for a while. Test a message to a usual recipient. Send as SMS means if your phone can't see data for whatever reason, or if sending over data fails, it'll fall back to a standard SMS/MMS. Again this should appear as Green instead of Blue in your chat history. If disabling these doesn't work, turn off iMessage and let it deregister completely then enable it again to register properly... Try again and if it's all good, turn on MMS/Send as MMS again and test again. But you might not need those turned on, it's up to you whether you want them - usually only useful if you have a few people not on iPhones that you communicate with, or if you don't care if some iMessages get missed and you can just try them again later rather than falling back immediately to MMS/SMS.

surfisup1000

3780 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1227

Reply # 2019420 20-May-2018 17:14

2 people support this post

Brunzy: Thanks for your replies.
To clarify , I understand sending to Android, via SMS etc and would expect to be charged.
I’m talking about texts between IOS devices, always in Blue so iMessage, but pics are charged.I’m trying to ascertain if this is correct.

Both phones need to have imessage enabled. Not just the sending phone.

As far as I am aware, imessages with images cannot not even be collected by the mediation devices. Therefore it should also be impossible to even bill them.

The best way is to ask your telco to check the usage types on those billed messages.

Brunzy

679 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 65

Trusted

Reply # 2019438 20-May-2018 19:04

corksta: Does sending standard iMessage texts (no pictures) work correctly without charging you or is just pictures?

Yes

Have you got ‘Send as SMS’ in Settings turned off? I’m wondering if somehow your iMessage isn’t set up correctly and it defaults to sending it as a MMS if iMessage fails?

Yes

Have you tried turning off iMessage then turning it back on again?

Yes

RunningMan

5114 posts

Uber Geek
+1 received by user: 1643

Reply # 2019439 20-May-2018 19:09

Are you sending to single or multiple recipients?

Brunzy

679 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 65

Trusted

Reply # 2019449 20-May-2018 19:29

This is the test pic sent by someone from Spark Willis St, he said everything worked as it should but when the bill arrived I was charged.

I called in again a few weeks later , spoke to two guys who weren't really interested and said" Its obviously Apples fault , "

Last year when I was in the US I had a local Sim card, sent quite a few pics and was never charged , so that statement shouldn't be correct.

Any "Sparkies" here willing to help ;-)

Brunzy

679 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 65

Trusted

Reply # 2019450 20-May-2018 19:30

@Running man

Single

JoshWright

353 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 96

Reply # 2019495 20-May-2018 19:43

One person supports this post

If the messages are going over the iMessage network I really doubt you're being charged for them.

If you turn Airplane mode on, and then connect to Wi-Fi (so you're not connected to Spark's network), do the messages deliver properly? They should if you're using iMessage.

1 | 2 | 3