Unable to send photos with my new iPhone to non-iPhone users through Messages

Hi jcm53byu,

You started from a great resource: What is the difference between iMessage and SMS/MMS?

Regarding sending media content to non-iPhone users be sure the SMS/MMS option are turned on. Navigate to Settings > Messages and under the SMS/MMS section toggle on MMS Messaging.

If needed, the article here can assist as well: Send and receive messages on iPhone

Should you continue to have an issue, reach out to your cellular provider to ensure the feature and your account are provisioned to send SMS/MMS messages.

If your carrier states all is well, follow the steps here: If you can't send or receive messages on your iPhone or iPad

Cheers.

Shellturton wrote:

I still can not send any photos or short videos to anyone that does not use an iPhone. This is ridiculous. Maybe it is time to switch to an android. It will not send via Wi-Fi or cell service. And yes my MMS is on in messages.

Actually, it’s time to contact your cellular network provider. Photos use MMS messaging, which is 100% a carrier service, and if it doesn’t work only your carrier can fix it.

Basic facts:

• SMS (text) messages use the cellular voice control channel, so you must have cellular calling for it to work
• SMS is always on for an iPhone
• MMS (picture) messages use cellular data, and cannot use Wi-Fi
• MMS must be turned on in Settings/Messages
• If you don’t see a switch for MMS in Settings/Messages that means that your carrier has not enabled MMS on your account.

But the bottom line is that only your carrier can fix it. Oh, and this is true for Android phones also.

Oh, one more thing: If your carrier is Verizon, this is a well known and widely reported problem with Verizon’s setup of some models of phones.

Correct, something seems to be clearly faulty in the backup version. Im very curious to find out what it is so i can provide it to my carrier for other users and to apple.

yes here is a list of the troubleshooting i did numerous times:

• reset network settings
• delete and install new APN settings
• esim and restart
• physical sim and restart
• two different types of physical sim and restart, hoping it would change factory settings (it did not)
• several multi hour calls with carrier where they did background coding updates and required me to reset my phone
• Testing every version of turning on/off imessage, group message, mms message, wifi, roaming, cell data followed by resets
• factory reset and backup reinstall (fail)
• factory reset and manually transferring info back to the phone (photos/videos, contacts, notes, calendar, redownloading apps etc) (success)

Sending pictures to non-iPhones uses MMS (Multi-Media Service), which is a carrier provided service. SMS and MMS are carrier-provided functions. If they don’t work they haven’t been provisioned properly and you need to contact your cellular network provider.

But first note that SMS requires an active cellular voice network service, and MMS requires that cellular data be turned on. Neither will work over Wi-Fi alone. Specifically for MMS there is a switch to enable it in Settings/Messages. If the switch is not present your network provider has not configured your account correctly. There is no switch for SMS, as it is always on. (The SMS switch in Settings/Messages is just an option to send iMessages over SMS if the iMessage cannot be sent; it doesn’t affect texts to non-Apple devices.)

Anastasia_Franco wrote:

Well, you are partially right. It is not a carrier issue nothing updated there but, I took the information you provided and applied it to the iPhone, and it worked. I mean I sent a huge file just to test it too.

These instructions worked for my iPhone 14 after updating to iOS 16.6

Step 1. Go to Settings.

Step 2. Scroll down to Messages and press the '>'

Step 3. Scroll down to MMS. If it is Off, turn it On, if it is On, turn it Off (Mine was ON already).

Step 4. Say "Hey Siri, Reboot" and press the restart button.

Step 5. Repeat Steps 1, 2, and 3. But this time making sure the end result is MMS switched to on.

Step 6. Repeat Step 4

Sucks to have to go through all of that, but makes kinda sense I guess, Apple care is always having me switch the MacBook Pro , iPhone, and Apple Watch off and on so many times I think I will need a new on/off button. I like telling Siri to turn off though LOL. Hope this helps!

Yes, that is effectively what the carrier would have done. It doesn't always work from the phone directly but some people have had it work. The problem is that even though MMS appeared to be on, it was actually off in the carrier's system. Glitches like this happen. What you did caused the feature to reset in the carrier's switch.

I have Xfinity mobile (Verizon) and called and had them reset the group messages as well as provisioning MMS

took 45 minutes and all issues were resolved. I could not reply to group texts or send photos or receive photos from any android phone. This is not an apple issue it's your provider You need to ask your customer service agent to escalate this to a tier 3 agent.

The update last August coincided with a change that Verizon made that broke MMS for iPhones. If you contact a senior tech at Verizon they could fix it immediately. Unfortunately, Verizon’s first level support were clueless.

Rarity514 wrote:

I’m also having the same issue. I’ve done everything, turned features off, back on, reset network settings, resets on the phone…nothing. I can use airdrop, but this is super inconvenient. I didn’t see a resolution anywhere. Usually Apple is pretty fast at fixing issues. Anyone know if they’re working on it???

You need to call your carrier and have them reset Group Messaging and MMS. Apple can't fix that for you.

JPK_01 wrote:

Where in Apples documentation do you find instructions to contact your carrier to correct this issue? The average Joe doesn't fully understand the difference between sms and mms. They just know they can't consistently send messages they way they want to to their non apple user friends. This is not an iPhone 14 issue. These complaints have been around since iPhone 7 and earlier.

Well, here’s one place→What is the difference between iMessage and SMS/MMS? - Apple Support

Specifically:

To use SMS/MMS on an iPhone, you need a text-messaging plan. Contact your wireless carrier for more information. 

Also, in the user manual→Send and reply to messages on iPhone - Apple Support

Why are some bubbles blue and others green?

If a message can be sent using iMessage, you see a blue Send arrow , and the message appears in a blue bubble.

If you can’t use iMessage (which happens, for example, when a recipient isn’t using an Apple device), you can use SMS/MMS. Messages sent with SMS/MMS appear in green bubbles.

For more information, see the Apple Support article What is the difference between iMessage and SMS/MMS?

Note: Content may not appear as expected when you send messages to recipients who are using non-Apple devices.

Yes, complaints have been around for 15 years. And it is ALWAYS, because there is a problem with SMS/MMS, and SMS/MMS are always managed by the carrier, and have nothing to do with Apple. And Apple can’t do anything about fixing it, either; only the carrier can fix it.

First, make sure it is set up correctly on your end:

• Go to Settings/Messages and turn on MMS (picture messages)
• If you don’t see a switch for MMS, contact your carrier and ask them to enable MMS on your phone
• SMS requires a cellular voice connection, so make sure you can make and receive phone calls
• MMS requires that cellular data be turned on; MMS cannot use Wi-Fi, it needs cellular data

If all of these needs are satisfied, contact T-Mobile tech support for further assistance.

First, make sure it is set up correctly on your end:

• Go to Settings/Messages and turn on MMS (picture messages)
• If you don’t see a switch for MMS, contact your carrier and ask them to enable MMS on your phone
• SMS requires a cellular voice connection, so make sure you can make and receive phone calls
• MMS requires that cellular data be turned on; MMS cannot use Wi-Fi, it needs cellular data

If all of these needs are satisfied, contact your carrier's tech support for further assistance.

Check your settings. To use picture texts to non-iPhones:

• Settings/Messages MMS must be on
• You must have a cellular voice network connection
• You must have cellular data turned on, because MMS does not work over Wi-Fi
• If you use VPN you may have to delete your VPN profile and app.

Anastasia_Franco wrote:

Well, I am on T-Mobile Magenta Max have both iPhones 14s and the newest Android phones, I went to them first. ....and because they claim everything is configured correctly, and I can send photos through SMS/MMS from my Android Phones to my iPhones, but not consistently the other way around, lead's me to think it's a Apple problem.

What your Android phones can or cannot do is irrelevant. Each phone is configured individually by the carrier. This is a problem that can only be fixed on the carrier side. Some people have had luck logging into their own accounts either through their carrier's website or through the app and turning off Group Messaging and MMS. Turn the phone off, turn it back on again and re-enable. It is possible that not all carriers offer this option.

Additionally, I have the same problem with my MacBook Pro M1 when using iMessages. And that's on a fiber connection. So, it's not my carrier. Ah, one last thing, the problem still exists when using my personal iPhone 14 on my high speed wi-fi too.

The reason you have the problem on your Mac as well is that your Mac can't send anything to an Android user that your phone can't. It's essentially piggybacking off your Mac. Once you get the iPhone issue resolved, the Mac issue should resolve automatically.

If resetting the settings yourself doesn't work, you're going to need to escalate the issue with your carrier. Remember, the goal of customer service reps is to get you off the phone as quickly as possible. They have quotas to meet. You can try telling them to turn off Group and MMS messaging, wait for you to power cycle your phone and then turn them back on again. They may just be willing to oblige just to get you to go away. Or, call and ask them to turn the features off. Thank them and hang up. Restart your phone. Call back and ask them to turn the features back on. They will think you are strange but so what?

Ralfyd wrote:

I hate these help forums because you’ll either get apple employees or apple fans who don’t try to help solve the problem but instead shift the blame to everybody else. “Is MMS turned on?”, “Call your provider to reset your MMS”, “maybe it’s the other person’s phone” when we all know apple made it intentionally difficult to send photos to android to sell more iPhones

Your conspiracy theory doesn’t hold water.

It is a FACT that MMS is a carrier function, and if it doesn’t work then the carrier has to fix it. As has been verified by dozens of posts in this thread, that you apparently didn’t bother to read, that said that when the user contacted their carrier the carrier was able to fix it.

The user DOES have to do a couple of things; Turn on MMS in Settings/Messages, and turn on Cellular Data, because MMS cannot use Wi-Fi, as the carrier doesn’t have access to the user’s Wi-Fi network.

calamari-chip wrote:

I agree there is some stubborn tunnel vision from those falling back on the full diversion to the carrier issue. I was on with Verizon for three hours last night and no luck.

You need to call Verizon back. Tell them you want them to turn off MMS and Group Messaging. Thank them politely and hang up. Wait 10 minutes. Restart your phone. Call them back. Ask them to enable MMS and Gropu Messaging.