iMessages Sent to iPhone Ditchers Stuck in Limbo

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Former iPhone owners are reportedly unable to receive texts sent over Apple's iMessage service, and a clear fix to the problem has not yet been found.

Apple's proprietary iMessage service allows iPhone owners to enjoy free texting between one another, but those conversations could evaporate if you make the switch to an Android phone or other non-Apple device.

Former Lifehacker Editor-in-Chief Adam Pash wrote a personal blog post about the issue, noting that he stopped receiving text messages from iMessage users after switching from iPhone to Android. According to Pash, messages sent from iMessage users to former iMessage users will be marked as delivered, but the non-iOS recipient will never actually get them.

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While he was able to dissasociate his phone number with his Apple ID, Pash still wasn't receiving texts from anyone on iPhone. Pash spoke with an Apple tech support agent, who noted that lots of users are experiencing this problem and that Apple doesn't have a set solution at the moment. Keep in mind that Apple charges $20 for over-the-phone tech support unless you have a supported device.

Apple's iMessage isn't limited to the iPhone, as anyone with a Wi-Fi connection can use the service on an iPad, iPod Touch or Mac device. However, until Apple provides a solid fix for those who switch away from iPhone, former iOS users could have tons of incoming text messages lost in a digital limbo. 

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Michael Andronico
Michael Andronico

Mike Andronico is Senior Writer at CNNUnderscored. He was formerly Managing Editor at Tom's Guide, where he wrote extensively on gaming, as well as running the show on the news front. When not at work, you can usually catch him playing Street Fighter, devouring Twitch streams and trying to convince people that Hawkeye is the best Avenger.

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • jonathan1683
    the senders iphone tells them it doesnt go through and it gives them the option to send as a normal text message. people are just too stupid.
    Reply
  • Alec Mowat
    the senders iphone tells them it doesnt go through and it gives them the option to send as a normal text message. people are just too stupid.

    That's not true, it sends normally and it does not give you the option to switch back, it's a bit of a pain.
    Reply
  • G tarak
    Hai
    Reply
  • drapcioo
    There is an option in settings->messages for iPhone users that enables sending iMessages as text if iMessage isnt avaiable. It is turned off by default so it needs to be turned back on (it used be on by default but one of the ios updates must've changed it). Had the same problem recently after my sister switched from iphone to a samsung galaxy. Simple solution
    Reply
  • gadget_hero
    There is actually a better option to fix this, I had a iPhone 5S and swapped back to my Nexus 5 and used this to fix my issue. Go to (supportprofile.apple.com) login with your Apple ID, it should have listed all your iOS devices that have been activated on that Apple ID. Just delete the phone that you ditched and you are good to go.
    Reply