Fix Problems Sending Texts Using Handoff | Text Android | WiFi Drop Issues
Follow @vsatechI love Handoff!
But it frustrates me a lot too!!
I Assumed My Handoff Problems Were All Related to Dropped WiFi!!!
But, I now think that I may have been wrong, at least partly. Recently, I find that I can’t text Android users a lot using an iPad. This problem comes and goes and it isn’t consistent from one iPad to the next, so figuring out the root causes has been tricky. Most recently I’ve resorted to first texting an Android user using my iPhone, and once that text goes through, then their name turns green, which enables me to send them more texts with my iPad.
But that sort of defeats the whole purpose of Handoff right?
So while I was researching this problem again for the umpteenth time, using every iteration of search terms I could think up I ran across this link:
25 Annoying Problems With ios 8 (And iPhone 6) And How To Fix Them
Upon reading this, I was checking to make sure that, in fact, WiFi was not checked under my iPhone settings, but I had to actually look for that setting. I couldn’t find it, and I finally figured out it’s because I use AT&T and this isn’t a feature they offer yet. I had tested out T Mobile so I knew I’d seen it in the past! But also while looking, I noticed that there were 3 settings under my phone’s text messages that weren’t correct, or at least weren’t set the way I remembered having set them initially.
Saying Yes to SMS, MMS and Group Texts
Incidentally, in prior years my husband and I have run into situations where we don’t receive each others texts…oftentimes for days. Unchecking the Show Subject field solved this problem for us, so now I always leave that disabled as shown below:
My problem’s seemed random and intermittent, and they occurred more often while using Group texts, so I suspect this is the solution for me!
The Article I Found Above Has A Lot Of Great Advice to Try
So Here are A Few More Things To Try
This article was just published and I was really happy to run across it!
These are a few more things to try if your having problems getting Handoff working for texts:
Problem FaceTime and iMessage Not Working
There are so many settings that can affect Handoff functionality and WiFi dropping is just one. Here’s another webpage from the same article that offers more ideas to try as alternatives if this problem plagues you too:
Problem WiFi Slow & Dropping Signal
What About Apple Support?
Although Handoff and Continuity worked from the outset, it was buggy and I personally saw huge improvements with each ios 8 update. Apple didn’t publish any help on actually using these features until late in November. But they finally did and this is now a great place to get started setting up your devices for using these features.
So here’s the link to Apple’s support page describing the all the steps for setting up your iPhone to enable Handoff and Continuity for texts, phone calls and general use things like Safari and emails. It also tells you how to actually use the continuously features once you have them setup correctly too.
Connect Your ios 8 Devices To Use Continuity
Just One More Thing…
I also believe I may be onto something regarding why my ios 8 devices constantly drop our WiFi, but I need to run a few tests first before I writeup that post, so stay tuned for something big if my tests prove to be conclusive.
vsatips 