IOS 17.1.1 - no longer able to edit text messages

Why? Because Apple is awful. Can’t leave well enough alone. Always have to make things more complicated, add a far-from-pragmatic bell or whistle at the expense of something that people actually use. Always “innovating,” but really just complicating.

MidSize13 wrote:

Why? Because Apple is awful. Can’t leave well enough alone. Always have to make things more complicated, add a far-from-pragmatic bell or whistle at the expense of something that people actually use. Always “innovating,” but really just complicating.

Tell Apple:

Product Feedback - Apple

I totally agree! Why can’t Apple provide updates that don’t mess up other functions that already works properly!

Texting on Apple is now useless if you can’t edit text before sending. I am NOT going to type text messages in Notes and cut and paste into text messages. Really!

I couldn’t have summed it up better myself! This is exactly correct! Sad that it hasn’t been addressed or fixed by Apple. This is a main function that is used constantly. You can not edit, move the curser to make edits, prior to sending a text; it’s ridiculous! I’ve noticed it in typing this text and on the message function more on longer text messages. Sad to say, I’ve stopped using the text message function on my iPhone 11 Max Pro and switched to WhatsApp!

magnum09 wrote:

6. Would it not be in Apple’s own interests to embrace the feedback on this board as a way to help them improve their product relative to their competitors, or am I missing the point?

Yes, you are missing the point of these forums. This is a user-to-user support forum. Apple's participation here is limited to making sure that people obey the terms of use to which they agreed (not some sort of censorship).

If you want Apple to know your thoughts, they have provided a feedback portal just for that purpose:

Product Feedback - Apple

I can’t edit either. So frustrating. Trying and trying and the curser jumps randomly on somewhere I don’t want it. I told my elderly going blind mom NOT to update because it will make her almost not be able to use her phone. Not happy at all

I just wanted to add my voice to the complaints below. To not be able to edit texts is overwhelming for a writer, which I am. I thought I was doing something wrong till I just looked at all the complaints below. What good is an iPhone feature if you can't edit what you write???

RBcourt wrote:

I just wanted to add my voice to the complaints below. To not be able to edit texts is overwhelming for a writer, which I am. I thought I was doing something wrong till I just looked at all the complaints below. What good is an iPhone feature if you can't edit what you write???

Tell Apple:

Product Feedback - Apple

Meanwhile, I would recommend some other app than Messages for writing your novel, short story or article. You'll probably find that less stressful.

I agree that the problem seems inconsistent, and I too, have found some potential and temporary workarounds, but I am not able to determine exactly why. For example, one thing that worked today was to turn off the microphone and then suddenly I was able to edit, but I highly doubt that’s a regular workaround because I’m sure thousands of people don’t even use the microphone and still have the problem. No rhyme or reason is completely right

notice how we are all trying our very best to make it work, use temporary work around and so on.

The point is, though, that editing is STILL harder than it previously was before all this “problem” arose with an iOS update

(why is it called update baffles me when it’s less feature rich!).

I now find if I’m typing a long text I cannot collapse the text box and see other texts to/from that recipient as easily as I could previously

I also find annoying the way if I tap the screen it assumes I want to replace a word and highlights it whereas I maybe just want to insert a curser and add a word - yea, this can all be done but it’s now more tedious and not as slick as it used to be.

Santa, please can you fix this with an update on Christmas night?

I promise to be asleep and be good.

Dan

Yes, this is extremely annoying!! It worked fine before the update. Now I see something I did wrong in the text and I try to move the cursor and I can’t see what I’m deleting. It’s like I’m going into it blind. Just so annoying. Or I want to take something out and it takes forever to move the cursor there and I waste so much time on it, that I just delete the whole text and start over! Ugh! Get it right Apple!! My husbands Android is looking better and better with each Apple Update!!

This was getting so annoying. I assumed that buying a new iPhone would fix it. Nope. Have submitted feedback to Apple. I wish they’d fix it. It appears to apply to editing text in anything, not just in text messages.

YES! i’ve been having this same problem since the new IOS.

in the beginning i was also having trouble with audio messages as well.

they would zero out even if it was a 2 min audio. or just disappear. i noticed when im recording i need to silence my phone because notifications will delete my audio.

so I haven’t been having any of those problems lately

but, now the biggest issue with audios I’ve been having is it saying it’s too long and asks me if I want to edit it but there’s no way to edit it. i had this issue with the iOS 16 as well and I found it very weird because my friend and I could send super long like 30 minute audio messages to each other (don’t judge that’s just how we love to communicate lol) and now it’s a problem. and there’s no such thing as editing it. idk why they keep showing that when you can’t.

BUT!! a big problem I’m having with the text messages that I’m not seeing anybody else talk about is when I do write a long message, I can no longer see the messages sent between me and the other person. And before I was able to scroll down on the screen and it would minimize the text box and I could see the messages perfectly fine, but now I can’t so if I’m replying to some thing, I can’t review anything that they said or whatever reason I wanna look back at the messages while I’m typing a longer text and I don’t know how to fix that and it’s driving me nuts!!

Having same problem with trying to scroll up to edit higher up in a text message with my SE. Cursor won’t go up. When I try, cursor returns to end of text. Terribly frustrating. Advice, please.

Apple Techs.Please help! Can't edit messages on iPad iOS 17.1.2 — so it's of no use to me. Does the latest update fix this bug? Your updates often make the issues on IOS much worse.

Margaret

[Edited by Moderator]