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macatak911

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 15, 2008
153
0
Currently have iOS 5 installed on my iPhone 4 and iPad 2. Is anyone else having trouble getting your convos on both to sync between each other? Like I'll start a convo on my phone with someone who is also running 5 but it won't show up on my iPad. However, when I start a convo on my iPad it always shows up on my phone.
 
It gets complicated.

There are two ways to send an iMessage: as a telephone number message, or as an Apple ID message. In order for your messages to stay in sync between multiple devices you must use an Apple ID exclusively, and it must be set up in the Messages settings pane of both devices. Also, ensure the "Caller ID" setting in Messages settings is the same Apple ID on both devices.

You can still send an iMessage to a phone number when you have it set up as an Apple ID, and then people will reply to your Apple ID. Sending SMS messages will work as they always have, and will obviously not appear on iPad.

One caveat: any existing text message conversations from iOS 4 are considered phone number-to-phone number, and will never sync with iPad. Even if it automatically converts the conversation to an iMessage conversation, it's still phone number-to-phone number. You'll need to start the conversations again as a new message, once you have your Caller ID set correctly as described above. Then everything will stay in sync.

In short, you need to use iMessage with an Apple ID exclusively to stay in sync. If you receive an iMessage to your phone number, start a new thread to that person so you're sure you're using your Apple ID.

Eventually, people will be converted to using Apple IDs for iMessages and all of this will be behind us.
 
They really need to make this better. Like a way for the ipad to get data from the phone via bluetooth or something. I just spent 30 min working it out so my girlfriends texts show up on both. I had to delete a convo dating back 3 years to get it to work. Now mind you this is fine for her but I dont want to bother all my convos with a random text from some email address. So after I started a new convo with her with my caller id set to an email I set it back to my phone number. Because I know my friends and business contacts are going to start updating to ios5 soon and I dont want to start texting them out of the blue on an email address so i guess ill just have to talk to them on only my phone.

There needs to be a "seamless to receiver" option. If im missing something here please let me know.
 
After reading this it seems it is still sort of pointless. We need a way to sync text messages from our phone to the iPad.
 
Because I know my friends and business contacts are going to start updating to ios5 soon and I dont want to start texting them out of the blue on an email address so i guess ill just have to talk to them on only my phone.

Why can't you just do what screensaver suggested? When a guy texts you using your phone number, just create a new thread and reply using your Apple ID. Why would that be a problem?
 
I hope over the coming days when lots more users get hands on with iMessage, someone will come up with a good work around.

As it is, it seems completely broken in terms of switching devices and picking up where the conversation left off.
 
It shows up as a seperate convo to the other person.

Ok, and? When you receive that first message from the person, switch over immediately to your Apple ID. All subsequent conversations would be using your Apple ID, so it's really just the first message that's in a separate thread. Doesn't seem like a big deal?
 
Ok, and? When you receive that first message from the person, switch over immediately to your Apple ID. All subsequent conversations would be using your Apple ID, so it's really just the first message that's in a separate thread. Doesn't seem like a big deal?

And if the person doesn't keep threads forever they have to remember to select my email instead of my phone number just so it syncs on 2 devices for me? That's foolish we need to take the other person out of it if rim can do it I'm sure apple can figure it out.
 
And if the person doesn't keep threads forever they have to remember to select my email instead of my phone number just so it syncs on 2 devices for me? That's foolish we need to take the other person out of it if rim can do it I'm sure apple can figure it out.

Exactly.

And what if they don't have your email address??

"Sorry, can you add my email address to your contacts, and when you message me, could you send it to that so I get it on my iPad too?"

Not the effortless experience I was expecting
 
And if the person doesn't keep threads forever they have to remember to select my email instead of my phone number just so it syncs on 2 devices for me? That's foolish we need to take the other person out of it if rim can do it I'm sure apple can figure it out.

They don't have to remember anything. It's just that first message that goes to your phone number. Let's say they erase all past threads and send a message to your phone again. On your reply, you just switch to Apple ID. Seems pretty simple to me.

I agree, though, that there should be a way to make this all seamless. I just think the workaround isn't all that big of a deal, if just a little inelegant.
 
And if the person doesn't keep threads forever they have to remember to select my email instead of my phone number just so it syncs on 2 devices for me? That's foolish we need to take the other person out of it if rim can do it I'm sure apple can figure it out.

Yep, tons on my friends delete messages. I have messages back to 2008.
 
They don't have to remember anything. It's just that first message that goes to your phone number. Let's say they erase all past threads and send a message to your phone again. On your reply, you just switch to Apple ID. Seems pretty simple to me.

I agree, though, that there should be a way to make this all seamless. I just think the workaround isn't all that big of a deal, if just a little inelegant.

I don't really get what you mean. My girlfriend had 2 separate convos for me. She had to switch to my email Convo all the changes I made to settings and deleting convos just made it so messages showed up on both iPhone and iPad. If someone texts my number in a new thread then they are going to have to go thru this every time if I reply on my email.

Yep, tons on my friends delete messages. I have messages back to 2008.

Yeah that pissed me off too I had a Convo between me and her back to 2007 and I had to delete it to get this to work.
 
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