I have an iPhone 4S running iOS 6.1.3 and I'm on the Sprint network.
To preface, way earlier this summer I sent out a message to several people, all with iPhones with iMessage enabled. Turned out that the contact info I had for one of the contacts on my phone, let's call him Friend 1, was wrong (I somehow had an 8-digit phone number for him, I guess I had just entered the information incorrectly and never texted him before). The texts were obviously going to everyone except Friend 1. So I corrected his contact info with his correct number, made a new group thread, and all was better.
Then two days ago, another one of my friends (Friend 2) in the same group thread turned off his iMessage because he's got a different bug on his phone that makes it freeze up every time he sends an iMessage. Anyway, as I expected, every message I send in the group thread is now green, being sent as an SMS. But everyone else in the thread is still able to send iMessages to it, which Friend 2 receives, despite having turned off iMessage on his phone.
However, whenever I try to send a message, I'm almost always only able to send an SMS. One of my other friends (Friend 3) informs me that all my SMSes sent since Friend 2 turned off his iMessage have been going to a different thread, the one from months ago with Friend 1's number entered incorrectly. I can see every message that everyone else sends in the thread, including those of Friend 1, whose contact info is still correct. Occasionally when I open the thread I'll be able to send an iMessage, which everyone receives, but most of the time I'm only able to send SMSes, which go to the broken thread that everyone except Friend 1 can see. On my phone, though, it looks like I'm sending and receiving every message in the same thread with all the info correct, and every message that any of my friends send in either thread comes into the one thread on my phone with Friend 1's number entered correctly.
Whenever I text Friend 1 individually or in any thread that doesn't have Friend 2 (who turned off iMessage) in it, everything works perfectly. I have no problem in any other iMessage conversation. But the thread with all of us in it together presents these problems where any time I'm not able to send iMessages, the SMSes appear to me to be sent in the same thread, but for everyone else (except Friend 1 who can't see them at all) they go into the old broken thread.
To clarify, whether or not I'm able to send iMessages seems to turn on and off arbitrarily between texts, that is to say, it doesn't seem to be corrolated to whether or not anyone in the thread is or isn't connected to the network. I'll send a few SMSes in the thread, which go to the broken one, and then my phone will be able to send one iMessage, and I can wait as long as I want to send it- the capability doesn't go away with time, but as soon as I send the one iMessage I can't send any more. That iMessage goes to the good thread, and then it'll turn back to SMS for either a random period of time or a random quota of SMSes sent, I can't tell.
Basically I can't understand how this could be happening. I don't get how I could be sending these texts to a number that I don't have in my phone. I don't get why iMessage seems to turn on and off arbitrarily for me alone in this one group thread. I also don't understand how someone (Friend 2) with iMessage turned off can be receiving iMessages in a group thread but can't send them himself or receive them when someone texts him alone, but that's not a problem, just a related curiosity.
I know this is a massive explanation, but I just wanted to be as thorough as possible. If any clarification is needed just let me know. Thank you guys for any help you can provide
To preface, way earlier this summer I sent out a message to several people, all with iPhones with iMessage enabled. Turned out that the contact info I had for one of the contacts on my phone, let's call him Friend 1, was wrong (I somehow had an 8-digit phone number for him, I guess I had just entered the information incorrectly and never texted him before). The texts were obviously going to everyone except Friend 1. So I corrected his contact info with his correct number, made a new group thread, and all was better.
Then two days ago, another one of my friends (Friend 2) in the same group thread turned off his iMessage because he's got a different bug on his phone that makes it freeze up every time he sends an iMessage. Anyway, as I expected, every message I send in the group thread is now green, being sent as an SMS. But everyone else in the thread is still able to send iMessages to it, which Friend 2 receives, despite having turned off iMessage on his phone.
However, whenever I try to send a message, I'm almost always only able to send an SMS. One of my other friends (Friend 3) informs me that all my SMSes sent since Friend 2 turned off his iMessage have been going to a different thread, the one from months ago with Friend 1's number entered incorrectly. I can see every message that everyone else sends in the thread, including those of Friend 1, whose contact info is still correct. Occasionally when I open the thread I'll be able to send an iMessage, which everyone receives, but most of the time I'm only able to send SMSes, which go to the broken thread that everyone except Friend 1 can see. On my phone, though, it looks like I'm sending and receiving every message in the same thread with all the info correct, and every message that any of my friends send in either thread comes into the one thread on my phone with Friend 1's number entered correctly.
Whenever I text Friend 1 individually or in any thread that doesn't have Friend 2 (who turned off iMessage) in it, everything works perfectly. I have no problem in any other iMessage conversation. But the thread with all of us in it together presents these problems where any time I'm not able to send iMessages, the SMSes appear to me to be sent in the same thread, but for everyone else (except Friend 1 who can't see them at all) they go into the old broken thread.
To clarify, whether or not I'm able to send iMessages seems to turn on and off arbitrarily between texts, that is to say, it doesn't seem to be corrolated to whether or not anyone in the thread is or isn't connected to the network. I'll send a few SMSes in the thread, which go to the broken one, and then my phone will be able to send one iMessage, and I can wait as long as I want to send it- the capability doesn't go away with time, but as soon as I send the one iMessage I can't send any more. That iMessage goes to the good thread, and then it'll turn back to SMS for either a random period of time or a random quota of SMSes sent, I can't tell.
Basically I can't understand how this could be happening. I don't get how I could be sending these texts to a number that I don't have in my phone. I don't get why iMessage seems to turn on and off arbitrarily for me alone in this one group thread. I also don't understand how someone (Friend 2) with iMessage turned off can be receiving iMessages in a group thread but can't send them himself or receive them when someone texts him alone, but that's not a problem, just a related curiosity.
I know this is a massive explanation, but I just wanted to be as thorough as possible. If any clarification is needed just let me know. Thank you guys for any help you can provide