Everything New in the iOS 18 Messages App

[Sasparilla]

I think it is not on by default as all android users are also in hands of second evil empire for long so ability to message iPhones directly may make them slowly adopt this way as well.

I was searching this out a bit. So its not just whether the Android users provider is offering RCS & setup for the Apple part, the Android user has to be using the Google Messages app. But if the users are still using the old Samsung messaging app or a 3rd party app they swear by (there are some apparently), it won't have RCS support for that Android user.

Now Google Messages is the default messaging app these days over in Androidville, but there's plenty of ways for users to not be using it and missing out on this upgrade to iPhone user messaging they have.

It’s always amazing to me how important the messaging app is to the USA, while all of us in the rest of the world keep using WhatsApp and wonder why Apple invests so much in the SMS login codes delivery app.

Its such an odd thing isn't it? My guess is it really comes from how the rest of the world (typically countries where you were much more likely to call / message outside the country since they weren't continent sized) were getting expensively billed if they called or messaged outside their country by their own phone systems - and WhatsApp came at just the right time to offer all those folks a free way to call / message over the internet - boom, almost the entire world used it.

Except the U.S. (and Canada) as the example here was so big the amount of people needing to do out of country calls was small - so the default 1st power on messaging app worked, for pretty much everyone here and still does. RCS brings the base level of messaging features from the 1990's to ~ 2008 when RCS came about. But that's a huge bump in base standards for messaging between platforms here, so its a big deal.

 

[GrayFlannel]

Just yesterday I wanted to let someone know that something had been done but it was 11pm and they'd want to know by 7. How in 2024 do I have to make the choice between texting them late and hoping they've properly set up their notifications to not wake them, vs trying to beat them to the punch in the morning?

Don’t make things complicated. If someone wants notified when something is done then just do it.

 

[GrayFlannel]

That’s interesting. I can’t imagine a scenario where I would ever schedule a text.

I can but @CarAnalogy scenario is definitely not one of them.

 

[ifxf]

I would imagine their phone's version of Android must support RCS as well. Or they must turn it on.

And both your cell phone provider and their provider must support RCS

 

[antiprotest]

I have been waiting for Send Later since I quit Android in 2019. Really annoyed it has taken them so long. I was using it on Android in 2013. And I'm not usually the guy that says that, but damn. That was way too obvious for way too long. Glad they FINALLY got around to implementing that. I don't even want to think about the long, long list of frivolous "features" they added before they finally got to that.

That said, I am very much looking forward to Math Notes in Messages. Now that is a legitimately useful, as far as I'm aware unique to iOS feature. That doesn't even require the recipient to be using iMessage to take advantage of.

Yep.

Apple folks will keep telling you Apple might be late, but they do things right.

But they are so late that an entire generation of users have already moved to the next phase of their lives and careers, all this time either happily using those features in other devices or suffering without them on Apple devices. Tens of thousands have literally died of old age and other causes meanwhile.

Moreover, Apple either doesn't do it well right out of the gate, or it's something so simple that everybody has already been doing it very well with Apple not doing it at all. It's just not a credible excuse for most things.

 

[GrayFlannel]

So, I need to schedule a message to arrive at 10 AM CST while I’m in England next week. Do I schedule for the time zone I’m sending it to (and that I’m in when scheduling it) or the time zone I’m in at the time it’s scheduled for? Anyone?

🤦‍♂️ Skip the scheduling and just send the message.

But if the free world hangs in the balance the sending time is usually based on the local time where you scheduled it. It will use UTC time.

 

[SoldOnApple]

The satellite features are so cool. This is how I naively assumed cell phones worked when I was a kid. In the movies they always show phones and devices connecting to orbiting satellites...

 

[coolfactor]

That’s interesting. I can’t imagine a scenario where I would ever schedule a text.

I, too, have wanted to send a message to someone only to stop myself because it's way too late, and I don't know if it would disturb them.

 

[shpankey]

20 euros to dollars=

…this did not work

 

[coolfactor]

So, I need to schedule a message to arrive at 10 AM CST while I’m in England next week. Do I schedule for the time zone I’m sending it to (and that I’m in when scheduling it) or the time zone I’m in at the time it’s scheduled for? Anyone?

It would be based on your device's current time. You'd need to do the conversion.

 

[coolfactor]

20 euros to dollars=

…this did not work

Which dollars? Many countries have their own dollars. Canadian dollars are different from US and Australian dollars.

 

[shpankey]

I don’t know. In the Math Notes section it says this: “You can use it by typing in your conversion, such as "20 euros to dollars" and then adding in an equals sign to get the result."

Using messages, typing this out exactly, it does not work.

However typing the other examples in the pictures provided does work.

Update: “20000 yen to dallars=“ also did not work. But "20 stone to pounds=" did work correctly. It appears this functionality is a bit buggy still.

 

[15C Driver]

That’s interesting. I can’t imagine a scenario where I would ever schedule a text.

I do it all the time (on Android). Couple buddies are Doc's and at times have to have thier phones on for

I never understood this. Most people DND as they should when going to sleep, why does it matter what time it is?

I know in the past the argument was "people dont use DND" but its been many many years that people should know by now to DND. Hell my own parents, who suck with technology and barely use their smart phones know how to put their phone in DND before bed, I have faith other people should be able to as well

In addition to the above response, I have many friends that cannot DND due to their jobs (Doc's, others on call). I can schedule a message to go when I want it to go. I travel a great deal so no matter where I am, I can be mindful of others.

 

[15C Driver]

Just send the message? I've never had a problem sending someone a text no matter what time it is. It's on the person on the receiving end to setup DND / a focus that disables notifications depending on what time it is / if they dont want to be disturbed at that given moment.

Why does it matter to you if you send the message at 11pm or 7am? Its texting, not a phone call.

not everyone can DND, depending on what they do. Also, send later has been a thing on other platforms for 10-15 years... it's about time Apple 'invented it"

 

[Sasparilla]

I don’t know. In the Math Notes section it says this: “You can use it by typing in your conversion, such as "20 euros to dollars" and then adding in an equals sign to get the result."

Using messages, typing this out exactly, it does not work.
....
Update: “20000 yen to dallars=“ also did not work. But "20 stone to pounds=" did work correctly. It appears this functionality is a bit buggy still.

I found the same. Our Euros to Dollars conversion works in the Notes app without hesitation (and the calculator as well). A little buggy in iMessage is spot on.

 

[smoker68x]

On a flight, nobody is authorized to have any kind of radio communication

So, dumb question for dumb question…

How do you think WiFi is delivered to your plane?

 

[Col4bin]

I was thrilled when I heard that RCS was coming to iOS 18 until I discovered that of all of the Android users I know only one of them actually uses RCS. My sister-in-law. That’s it. My cousin, who works for Microsoft? Nope. Any of my other cousins with Android devices? Nope. Any other brother or sister in-laws with Android devices? Nope. Any of my buddies with Android devices? No again. Their wives? Nope. Apple was right not to bother up until now. I will say it was fun to be beta testing iOS 18 and having my wife try and figure out why I could send some higher resolution, longer videos to her sister from my iPhone when she couldn’t from hers after hearing for years from her about how crazy I am for beta testing Apple’s stuff on a volunteer basis but outside of that what I thought was going to be a huge addition to iOS has turned out to be a giant nothing burger. Is it that the latest developer beta of iOS 18 / 18.1 still doesn’t fully support RCS here is the US or that so many Android users stick with the default messaging apps that come with their devices that simply don’t support it? Either way, so few of the people I know use RCS with their Android devices that RCS support is basically useless for me at this point.

Came here to basically say the same thing. No Android user I know uses RCS. What’s the point?

 

[smoker68x]

I don’t know. In the Math Notes section it says this: “You can use it by typing in your conversion, such as "20 euros to dollars" and then adding in an equals sign to get the result."

Using messages, typing this out exactly, it does not work.

However typing the other examples in the pictures provided does work.

Update: “20000 yen to dallars=“ also did not work. But "20 stone to pounds=" did work correctly. It appears this functionality is a bit buggy still.

Ran into the same issue, even when specifying “US Dollars”, “USD”, or “CAD”. It appears all currency (I also tried pesos, francs, and yen) isn’t working in the messaging part.

 

[smoker68x]

Came here to basically say the same thing. No Android user I know uses RCS. What’s the point?

I know a few people, but it’s very spotty. One person in particular has sent messages (RCS) not delivered until much later, and when I text them it bounces between RCS and SMS at seemingly random times. I know throughout the early betas, RCS sent FROM an iPhone was hit or miss, so there’s no telling where the issue is coming from.

 

[subjonas]

So far my favorite new Messages feature has been Send Later. I’ve already used it several times this summer because it’s one of the only new features that doesn’t require your recipients to also be running iOS 18. Being a hardcore night owl, I often find myself thinking of something to tell a friend or family member but it’s well past midnight and I don’t want to disturb them when they’re most likely asleep, so having that ability now is really quite handy.

Does the recipient know that it was a scheduled text? There might be situations where it would be good for them to know it wasn't a live text, like if they're expecting a live conversation but you're asleep or off grid etc. But I suppose you always have the option of telling them in the text that it is a scheduled message.

 

[subjonas]

For the love of god, when will they add the ability to more easily go to look at old text messages? We're in 2024 and the only thing you can do is search and hope you can remember what to search for, or scroll back a page at a time while it loads each page, for an hour until it crashes.

Why is there no search by date range, calendar view, etc. etc.? Why is there no way to export your message history?

What the hell are they thinking!?

It would be nice if all messages were easily viewable, but since it isn't I believe iMazing on Mac lets you see/download/archive/backup all your messages including media sent in conversations. I think it also does the same for call history and voice messages.

 

[davide_eu]

So, dumb question for dumb question…

How do you think WiFi is delivered to your plane?

With "nobody" I meant passengers...

 

[irose_57]

Is message via satellite only available in the US/Canada at the moment?

 

[JohnRckr]

Gimmick nonsense..
I am so disappointed even in the execution of these features, compared to Samsung this is so clumsy..
And of course nothing is available in Europe, why the hell would I then pay premium?

 

[Radeon85]

Anyone know if RCS messages work on the Apple Watch with OS 11? Asking because I received an RCS message on my iPhone with 18.1 B4 but on my watch I received nothing. Regular SMS/imessage is syncing fine between the two.

Wondering if this is a carrier issue which is EE for me or because the Watch an Ultra 2 is on OS 11 and not 11.1 beta. Thinking carrier issue as in though RCS was supposed to work fine in the regular iOS 18.0 and WatchOS 11.0 🤔