.ics files - outlook meeting.ics attachment won't open

@paulfromwinnipeg You can process the appointments from your Google calendar, either the iPhone Google calendar app, or from laptop/desktop using browser to Google calendar.

If you have Google calendar embedded in your iPhone calendar, the appointments will sync and will shows as accepted not tentative once you accept them. This is set within iPhone Calendar, hit "Calendars" button and make sure Google calendar account is checked (ticked).

It is a double setup with Google calendar app and Google calendar synced to your iPhone calendar, however once you set it up you only need to use the Google calendar app once in a while, to process these appointments, or if you prefer some of the views in that calendar vs. iPhone calendar. Google calendar iPhone app has a better day view than iPhone calendar, but it does not have a "list" view.

@mlb32704 You can actually do what you say is needed on iPhone, you just have to read some of the other comments. Yes, it still needs improvement, but yes it can be done by you and other users already.

Thanks, but it turns out that in ios5, there is now native support for .ics. However, you have to add your Gmail calendar as an Exchange account, not CalDav.

It's always surprising to me how Apple takes forever to add basic functionality......

WIth my Google Contacts account ( created as I kept having issues syncing my contacts ) I turned on the calendar function and turned off my native gmail account calendar and I was good to go. Accepted my first ICS without issue. It is setup as an Exchange account, but targeting the typical m.google.com server.

I only now left bb and got my iphone because of the problems with .ics files. however, I would preffer to be able to CREATE .ics files in the iphone as well (i need to share callendar items with colleagues-spouce-friends while on the go). SO the question is: "can i share the built in calendar appointments email to others the desired .ics files?"

4 years later... iCal still givies problems opening .ics invites, in the iPhone and any OS X version 10.9. Probably time to go back to Windows, or something else.

This is the year 2014...6 years after most of these comments about iCal unable to handle .ics file correctly were posted. We have OSX v10.9 now, and still the same problems!!! What's wrong with Apple!!! I'm so frustrated!!! Time to change platform?

Guessing others are still having this problem so I thought I would throw out something that helped me.

I have a hotmail account setup on my iphone that when I receive a .ics file I get the unable to download attachment message.

I also have my icloud account setup on the phone but don't really use it.

So what I tried was when I got an email with a .ics file I simply forwarded it to my @icloud.com account, it showed up in the inbox and the .ics file was then totally clickable and added to my calendar no problem.

Hope it helps someone.

Thanks, this helped me out...I wonder why this issue still occurs when receiving invites from exchan