Send SMS message from iPhone/iPad to Android & vice versa

I'm shopping for a tablet. I can't decide between an Android or an iOS tablet.

I want to be able to send & receive text messages between iOS & Android.

I don't want to install 3rd party software on either phone or tablet.

My sister has an Android phone, but my cousin has an iPhone. When my cousin sends my sister a text message, iMessage breaks up the text message & my sister receives several text messages one after the other. Each text message that my sister receives is 1 or 2 lines of text.

I watched a YouTube video & the narrator explained that iMessage uses a wireless connection, but SMS uses a cellular connection. The wi-fi connection is unlimited & there's a cap on the cellular data plan. He explained that one goes into Settings & enables "Send as text message". According to the narrator, "send as SMS" is used if iMessage is unavailable. iMessage is turned on by default & "send as SMS" is turned off by default.

I don't have either an iPhone or an iPad. I have an Android phone that I'm stuck with until October 2016. Then maybe I'll get an iPhone.

Well, here's the situation. I'm sitting in my apartment near the router & I send a text message on my iPhone or iPad to my sister who has an Android phone. According to the Youtube video, the iPhone/iPad will use iMessage. Then my sister receives several text messages instead of one. I suppose that I have the option to turn off iMessage so that the iPhone/iPad is forced to send the text message as SMS.

This is a major consideration for me. It determines whether I will get an iPhone & iPad or stick with Android. If I'm going to have problems sending & receiving text messages between iOS & Android, I'll stick with Android.

So, is turning off iMessage & forcing the iPhone/iPad to send SMS a viable option?

iMessage flat-out doesn't work with Android. Period, the end. It is an Apple program that only sends text-style messages between iOS devices and Macs. If you want to send messages to Android devices, SMS is your only option other than third-party programs like WhatsApp, which of course then everyone you want to contact has to have as well (this is why I've never liked such apps).

You do not need to enable or disable anything. The iPhone, iPad, or Mac will see if the owner of the receving device registered with iMessage (ie, has a qualifying iOS or Mac) and send it as an iMessage only if that condition is met -- otherwise, it sends as an SMS (unless the device doesn't have cellular -- then the message cannot be sent/received -- SMS relies on both parties having cellular data.

Hope that helps!

I guess I'm confused because my Sister in Law owns a Galaxy Android and I and my wife both own an iPhone 5c. We send messages back and forth from my phone and my wife's phone without any difficulty at all. I even receive her messages with my iMac message app. As far as I'm aware, I have done nothing special in settings on both of our phones. It just works. I also naturally receive messages from friends who own iPhones.

Edit: What chas_m said. ;D

Just to clarify: the Messages app on iOS and Mac devices can send and receive both iMessages (blue) or SMS messages (green). It is the one and only app you need on Apple gear to send and receive to fellow Apple users (blue, free, international, unlimited) and non-Apple users (green, cost, local, sometimes limited).

Android users don't have something built-in like iMessage simply because lots of different companies who don't work together build Android devices. Third-party solutions can work well in places where "everybody" uses the same solution (WhatsApp is popular in developing regions, I am informed) but the main line of communication between different mobile platforms is either SMS or Facebook Messenger.

The reason your long messages are split on an Android device.

SMS messages are limited to 160 characters - max - whether on an iPhone, any Android device, Blackberry or any other device you can name that gets SMS text messages via your phone carrier. (Some apps have smaller limits - Twitter as 1 example, has a 140 character limit.)

The iMessage service is not bound by that limit, because: it uses data via the internet, not the phone's carrier.

If you go to sending a message using the Messages app with more than 160 characters, it is going to be received in multiple texts by any device that is receiving them via SMS - whether an Android or an iPhone - any iPhone not currently connected to the internet will be receiving texts via SMS if the user has not turned that option off.

If you go to send a message with more than 160 characters from an iPhone that is not connected to the internet, it will send that message in multiple texts because it will auto switch to sending via SMS.

If texts are being broken up into 1 or 2 lines, I would be looking at the carrier having imposed some smaller limit on the size of their SMS service. This has nothing to do with the device itself, but with the carrier.

I have an iPhone and my son has an Android phone. Both phones are on unlimited text plans. He says my text do not get split unless they are really long.

I know if I send a text to an iPhone from my iPhone, it will be sent by iMessage. If it is to go to an Android phone it goes by test message. If iMessage using data is a problem it can be turned off and you can still sent text messages. I tested it by turning off iMessage, sent a text and they got the text.

What iMessage does so well is connect all your apple devices. I can be on my iPad or MB Air or Mac Pro and receive a text/iMessage and answer it. I can even do that on my Apple Watch now. I have no idea if that is offered on an Android device.

The iPhone/iPad versus Android phone & tablet is really a personal decision. There are pros and cons to both. I had a Samsung Note II and a Samsung Android Tablet prior to my jump to apple. I changed because I had decided to change my computers to Macs. I like the integration Apple offers and less malware issues (with OS X that is.) I also like the simple clean look of the iPhone's iOS. But as I said, it is a personal preference.

One last thing - I live in a poor cell signal area. Both my husband and I have iPhones. The iPhone is the first phone my husband and I have had that does not need an in-house service booster. And for me - that says it all.

Lisa

Wow! A lot of responses!

I grew up in the Windows world. I've had PCs since Windows 3.1. I had a laptop with Vista. (It's Ok. You can laugh.) I was in the market for a new PC. I went to a Best Buy & tried out Windows 8. I'm not a noobie. Microsoft shot itself in the foot when it came out with Windows 8. I didn't like it at all. So, I went over to the Apples & tried out a Mac. I basically understood it. Anyway, I bought a Mac mini in June 2013 & in September 2013 I bought a 15" MacBook Pro. So, I've been in the Apple family for only about 2 years. I'm on 2 Apple forums. I still am asking a lot of questions.

The basic reason why I'm hesitating on buying an iPhone & an iPad is because I'll be locked into a 2-year contract on Verizon. My sister & I send a lot of text messages back & forth. She has an Android phone. If I have an iPhone &/or an iPad, I want to be able to send & receive text messages between iOS & Android devices.

I use an iPhone and am currently on Verizon. I don't send a lot of texts but many of the people I send to are on Android gear. Most often they send short messages but I just checked some I've gotten from my brother.

Messages between us are SMS and looking at longer messages from him and others it seems that messages over about 150 characters get broken into two or more parts (150 characters each). Unless one of us is having network issues the parts arrive in quick succession ( second part arrives immediately / before I finish reading the first part).

dcs.79c said:

I want to be able to send & receive text messages between iOS & Android devices.

Click to expand...

You can do that, it will just use your SMS allowance on your contract. I don't know what the situation in the US is, but here in the UK most mobile contracts give unlimited text messages anyway now.

Like Lisa says, the real advantage with iMessage is that it can be sent from any device you are logged into iCloud with.