Hello, I just made the switch from iPhone to the Galaxy about a month ago. So far, I really like the Samsung. However, the fact that I can no longer see group messages is really starting to frustrate me. Basically, my phone is telling me that all group texts will be sent/received as MMS messages and this is extremely inefficient for me because I will receive a message but I won't be able to actually download it and see it. All of my family and friends are iPhone users. Not sure if it makes a difference or not, but I changed my number as I switched from AT&T to T-Mobile and I am also currently stationed in Germany. Again, it is only group messaging that is a pain in the *** because I will be notified of a message just to see "No subject - Message Size: #KB" and an arrow to download the message, yet very rarely download. I literally woke up to 117 messages and could not download a single one. If you guys could help me out I would greatly appreciate it!
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Help Help! Cannot receive group texts from iPhone users
- Thread starter Xavierray
- Start date
Having changed number certainly is relevant, since the commonest problem of this sort is Apple still thinking you have an iPhone and hence sending as iMessage (which only works to iOS devices). In principle that could still be a problem if ATT "recycled" a phone number that Apple think is an iPhone, but the fact that you are seeing MMS makes me think this isn't the problem for once.
It's always possible that the iPhones are not sticking to standards, but let's start by debugging MMS at your end. Can you receive MMS from anyone? If not (or if you don't know) then check your APN settings (Access Point Names, in the mobile network settings). I don't know ATT, but some carriers use different APNs for MMS and data, so if the MMS APN settings are not right you can find yourself unable to download MMS even though mobile data still works.
Another idea: install a different message client, in case it's the Samsung message app. Try Textra - most people find that handles MMS well.
Being in Germany might make a difference: most carriers I know keep MMS and data distinct (so you can receive messages without turning on data roaming), but I don't know how ATT work (being British I've never used them other than roaming onto their network when stateside).
It's always possible that the iPhones are not sticking to standards, but let's start by debugging MMS at your end. Can you receive MMS from anyone? If not (or if you don't know) then check your APN settings (Access Point Names, in the mobile network settings). I don't know ATT, but some carriers use different APNs for MMS and data, so if the MMS APN settings are not right you can find yourself unable to download MMS even though mobile data still works.
Another idea: install a different message client, in case it's the Samsung message app. Try Textra - most people find that handles MMS well.
Being in Germany might make a difference: most carriers I know keep MMS and data distinct (so you can receive messages without turning on data roaming), but I don't know how ATT work (being British I've never used them other than roaming onto their network when stateside).
chanchan05
The Doctor
This isn't really an Android problem as much as it is a problem with Apple design of a closed ecosystem and using a non-Apple device to connect to it. You'll encounter the same problem if you try to go Windows phone or any other platform that's not iOS. They refused to open the iMessage for general use across platforms and made it exclusive to iPhones/iPads. Hence the only way you can communicate with then via group message is via MMS. Receiving a message that says you need to download a message you received via MMS usually points to improper APN settings. You'd have to look into your carrier for that, as Hadron suggested.