Have iPhone, so gotta love iMessage. I found that iMessage is more like SMS over wifi. Is there any plan to make iMessage more like BBM - when a contact update his/her picture, it'll also update in my phone? So it's a bit more social network.
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Any plan to make iMessage more like BBM?
- Thread starter blackbirdz
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Little OT but maybe related: Oddly (maybe related to ML release) Messages has stopped sending from my Mac but sends fine from all my iOS devices. I get a red exclamation pint next to the message. Is anyone able to send a message from their Mac?
If people want to ask a question or suggest something, don't come on here it would seem!
I think Apple took a different approach, they baked imessage into the SMS function so that the user wouldn't even have to think about it. Just send it and let the system determine whether it's sms or imessage. BBM is a different approach, first of all its a separate app from sms and second there's a lot more tinkering involved by the user (setting up profile, adding picture, etc...) So I don't think Apple will be going this route, unless they decide to change their strategy down the road.
iMessage is a fancy free SMS sent to other iOS users. That's basically what it is. But iMessage and BBM are two completely different communication platforms. I like the way Apple has done it. The user doesn't have to think about adding friends or contacts, just let the iPhone choose between an SMS or iMessage. It just works.
Well given that iMessage also send pictures and videos, its more like MMS that sidesteps the network charging for text messages.
And besides, I think in iOS5, you can have your contact profile pictures updated with the current Facebook profile picture...
Why would I want an iMEssage social network? Apple tried that and failed already with Ping
iMessage on ML has things such as away messages and icons, making it feel more like AIM and BBM.
An instant messenger, as oppose to the traditional SMS type iMessage we find on our iPhones.
I would't be surprised if they ported the icon and away message feature to iOS in the future, it would certainly add to the experience.
An instant messenger, as oppose to the traditional SMS type iMessage we find on our iPhones.
I would't be surprised if they ported the icon and away message feature to iOS in the future, it would certainly add to the experience.
But I thought SMS actually worked more than 50% of the time
I must say that iMessage is a huge disappointment. It was a great idea and a great way to start chiseling away at the tyranny of SMS, but it's slow and unreliable. And it doesn't support Lion or Snow Leopard!!!
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I think Apple would take a different approach with this and build it in as part of iCloud Addressbook syncing improvements. Have a Public Me Card associated with your account so if you change any details including the profile pic it would get pushed to others who've received your card in the past. So after a iMessage/Facetime contact has been made it would ask if you want to exchange Address Cards, from then on updates would be automatic and system wide.
But I thought SMS actually worked more than 50% of the time
I must say that iMessage is a huge disappointment. It was a great idea and a great way to start chiseling away at the tyranny of SMS, but it's slow and unreliable. And it doesn't support Lion or Snow Leopard!!!
I think some of the trouble people get with iMessage is that there are certain criteria that need to be satisfied on both the sender and the receivers end. With an SMS you hit send and let the network providers servers do the rest, with iMessage it must first check that the receiver is able to receive the message, if they are not it auto retries with an SMS.
SMS reliability is only dependant on you - If you're not connected to your providers network, it ain't getting sent.
iMessage reliability is dependant on you being connected to Apple, and the recipient being connected to Apple. If either of you are not, the SMS route is attempted. There's twice as many peoples status to consider - doubling the risk of the message not being sent via iMessage.
And I thought iMessage was available on mountain lion?
EDIT: sorry, re-read your post and you didn't mention mountain lion - please ignore me...my bad :s
It's not just that. It sometimes takes 30 seconds to a minute to send an iMessage message for me, or it just fails to send. Since our family plan now (sadly) has unlimited SMS, I just use that now.
Blimey - that's a hell of a long delay. I have never had an issue like that, to be honest 90% of the time if iMessage is an option, the message is sent that way (as opposed to falling back on SMS)
I guess people have different experience of the way it works - for some it just works (I genuinely hate saying that, but sometimes it does), and for some it mostly fails to work. I think unless you were going to use the unified iPad and mountain lion experience, turning iMessage off wouldn't affect anything other than the number of texts you pay for (don't most plans include tens of thousands now anyway?), and the colour of the bubble in the messages app.
I think using your unlimited plan is definitely the way to go - plus, you've paid for it, you might as well use it!
Hey hey, although an Apple forum, there are dedicated sections to those others
Easy now, i wasn't attacking anyone