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jordanneo

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 29, 2012
34
4
My wife and I recently got iPhones. She doesn't have a data plan. Whenever I message her, even when she's out and not on wi-fi, my iPhone wants to send her iMessage instead of text.

I thought it would automatically shift to text, but it doesn't. I have to select Send as Text Message to get the message to go to her. Then, after a few messages back and forth, it settles on text.

Then, next time I go to message her, it's back to iMessage as default.

Is there any way I can set it up so that my phone will always send messages to her as text? I still want to use iMessage for those with data plans and non-cellular devices.

I've searched around the forum and can't find anything that works...

Thanks,

J
 

ritmomundo

macrumors 68020
Jan 12, 2011
2,021
543
Los Angeles, CA
I don't know of a way you can disable iMessages for just one contact on your end. But if your wife doesn't use data, maybe she should disable iMessages on her iPhone, so she only receives texts.
 

jordanneo

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 29, 2012
34
4
Cool. Thanks. I'll try these out.

Re: automatically sending as text after 5 minutes, I'll try again. Maybe I just didn't wait long enough...
 

The Doctor11

macrumors 603
Dec 15, 2013
5,973
1,406
New York
iMessage generally doesn't use much data look in the cellular section of settings scroll down and hit system severices it will say messaging service that's how much you used sence the last time you reset it. I think you should reset yours and use I for a few days to see for your self how much data it will be using.
 

wordoflife

macrumors 604
Jul 6, 2009
7,564
37
iMessage generally doesn't use much data look in the cellular section of settings scroll down and hit system severices it will say messaging service that's how much you used sence the last time you reset it. I think you should reset yours and use I for a few days to see for your self how much data it will be using.

iMessage doesn't use much for sending just texts, but it really adds up with multimedia messages. I think I use at least 90 MB a month for iMessage.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,377
12,325
correct me if i am wrong but don't you have to have a data plan if you have an iPhone?
In the US: postpaid, yes; prepaid, no. I reckon data plans aren't mandatory in a lot of European and Asian countries. The only reason it became somewhat mandatory in the US is because it's really meant to pay off the device subsidy.
 

Alisstar

macrumors 6502
Jul 12, 2008
359
34
Orlando, FL
Having an iPhone with no data plan is like driving a Ferrari with flat tires.

Call me an elitist if you may, but if you and/or your wife cannot afford the extra $10-$20 a month to have the most basic data plan… I just don't see no purpose, I'm sorry.
 
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