How can you switch between text message and iMessage on a specific contact?

This is actually easy. When you are in iMessage click new messages and start typing in the persons name. You will see iMessage as one of the options for that person on the right (if they use iMessage) then just click that. It will switch the chat you already have to use iMessage instead.

iMessage uses the last used method you use with that contact, even if used on the iPhone. This is why the contact is grouped on the computer, and on your iPhone messages you will see each type in it's own thread.

I was sending a text as iMessage but it wasn't sending so I sent it as a text message. I was also trying to figure out how to get it back to iMessage. Once the person texted me back it automatically went back to iMessage because that person has an iPhone. So maybe just waiting for the person to text back will help. Hope this helps.

I haven't found a way to switch on a single contact, but you can switch on a per-conversation basis. Here's how:

1) Send a regular iMessage.

2) After you hit "send", touch and hold on the message balloon for the outgoing message.

3) When the popup menu comes up, select "Send as text message."

Once you've done that, it seems to remember that setting, at least for the next few messages.

Hey, to resolve this: just touch the phone icon, touch the contacts tab, select desired contact, go to the bottom of the page and push on send message >> to send as imessage: click on the e-mail address (if there is no email you have to add one) to send as sms click on the number. P.S. : if you click on the number and it takes you to send as an imessage>> send it, then hold the message bubble and then select "send as text message". KEEP IN MIND IMESSAGE SHOULD BE ALWAYS ON !! that's all.🙂

Here's How To Fix It!

Step 1) Go To Settings

Step 2) Go To Messages

Step 3) Turn Off IMessage And MMS

Step 4) Go To The Go To Messages And Refresh It Or Remove It From Your Recent Tabs

Step 5) Go To The Messages And See It Worked!

Hey everyone, it's so simple to disable it on enable it, just go the the Setting, then Messages, after that switch off the iMessage which is the first one.🙂

The only way to switch that contact back to iMessage once you've switched it to SMS is to erase the history (delete the entire name from the text message list) and then recreate it again.

Worked perfect, thanks!

This did not work for me. Using iOS 5.1.1

Send out the message as iMessage, after that click on the text just sent and a baloon will be shown asking if you wish to send as SMS!

Just an additional tip, you have to be quick and click on message before it has been sent, I mean, before you get the log as delivered.

The issue is not with the contact setup on your device, but rather that the person you are sending too did not disable iMessage before they stopped using their iPhone.

Is that the only way to fix this? Can Apple not deactivate it?

Thanks abhijit1001 on page 2 . Your solution fixed my problem

This works. Thank you!