Author Topic: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?  (Read 4059 times)

MGBball11

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Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« on: April 21, 2017, 08:42:02 PM »
I've been using Airvoice for the better part of 2 years with my paid-for iPhone. Looking all over and still can't figure out a way to make MMS work. I'm not so concerned about it, but it'd help my wife enjoy the cheap service a bit more if we could figure out how to make it work.

I've tried installing and reinstalling Unlockit profile, doing the setup from Airvoice's website, and apnchanger.org. Anyone had success with this?

Thanks!

livrocentral

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Re: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« Reply #1 on: September 12, 2017, 01:02:10 PM »
Same question here -- I had heard MMS just doesn't work on iPhones using AT&T MVNO carriers, but had hoped this might change at some time.

My wife moved to a Tmobile MVNO because of this issue but would like to find a plan with unlimited MMS because her group messages are chewing through data pretty fast these days.

Undecided

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Re: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« Reply #2 on: September 12, 2017, 09:57:54 PM »
I've been using Airvoice for the better part of 2 years with my paid-for iPhone. Looking all over and still can't figure out a way to make MMS work. I'm not so concerned about it, but it'd help my wife enjoy the cheap service a bit more if we could figure out how to make it work.

I've tried installing and reinstalling Unlockit profile, doing the setup from Airvoice's website, and apnchanger.org. Anyone had success with this?

Thanks!

It's been a while, but after trying all sorts of stuff to fix this for my wife, I have up and switched her number to Cricket, where MMS/group messaging works fine.

catccc

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Re: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« Reply #3 on: September 13, 2017, 12:50:21 PM »
I asked Airvoice Support about this and they basically said it wasn't compatible.  Anyone have any other AT&T or T-mobile MVNO suggestions?  I'm on the Airvoice $10 plan right now.

Daley

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Re: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« Reply #4 on: September 13, 2017, 10:35:48 PM »
This has been a known issue for years now... like since at least iOS7. There's been dozens of threads on these forums about it. It's basically walled garden buffalo biscuits from Apple and AT&T dictating to you how you have to use your overpriced phone and with whom. It's the same reason why you have to use a fargin' third party service like unlockit.co.nz just to change the internet APN settings instead of just being allowed to edit the infernal settings directly in the first place LIKE EVERY OTHER PHONE ON THE PLANET... but I digress.

The bad news is that Apple has locked down iOS to the point that you cannot edit or change the MMS APN settings with AT&T providers, MVNOs included. This means that Apple dictates which providers you can and cannot successfully use with an iPhone on the AT&T network if you don't want a core mobile service to fundamentally break (here's their blessed carrier list - there's only two AT&T providers on there that I'd actually recommend, and that's Consumer Cellular and Truphone, and Truphone is not for people needing anything more than basic PAYGO.

All phones need MMS support to handle 160+ character count SMS messages, group messages, and multimedia messages. By locking you out of MMS settings on your phone, Apple has given themselves the option to break a core and increasingly necessary mobile communications protocol between all phones if they don't approve of the carrier you pick. Naturally, iMessage still works over data with other iPhone users (given you utilize a third party service to switch your internet APN settings on your iPhone over to your AT&T MVNO of choice after every single iOS upgrade) and you have that network connection available... but good luck getting any communications sent through MMS with anyone using literally any other phone. Of course, if you can survive without MMS, go for it... but if you're looking at an "unlimited" plan anyway, you're not likely in a position to be able to swing that.

If T-Mobile coverage without roaming is a viable option for your area, the fool device would probably work reasonably well with US Mobile.

My wife moved to a Tmobile MVNO because of this issue but would like to find a plan with unlimited MMS because her group messages are chewing through data pretty fast these days.

There's no such thing as "unlimited" MMS without both "unlimited" data and SMS service on the account as MMS utilizes both. For what it's worth, you don't technically need MMS to do group texting. Read here for more info.



Bottom line, they're always some of the most expensive smartphones ever sold... and Apple makes it very clear that you don't own the device, they own you. This isn't really uncommon with smartphones in general, but at least Google and Microsoft have never been so callous and grubby about this point, and at least try to uphold the illusion that you actually own the device and can use it however you best see fit.

catccc

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Re: Has anyone figured out MMS on iPhone with Airvoice?
« Reply #5 on: September 14, 2017, 10:55:54 AM »
I'm going to try US mobile.  DH uses Tmobile (still on a family plan) so I know coverage is decent.  I can get 100 minutes, 300 texts, and 100 MB for $10.  Converted at Airvoice rates (0.04/min, 0.02/text, 0.066/mb), that's $4, $6, and $6.6, so the same usage with Airvoice would cost me $16.60.  More min/text/mb for less $$ at $10 with US mobile.  Chatted with customer care, they were nice and helpful and they say my total after fees and taxes will be $10.09.  I can handle 9 cents.

I wish I had more detailed usage #s with airvoice so I could really know if that plan is sufficient, since I can't say which I use most.  But I use talkatone for nearly all outgoing calls, imessaging for most "texting" and I'm almost always in wifi.  Maybe once I year I need to refill my airvoice $10 plan earlier than the auto renew due to a low balance.

Because I get away with so much free "texting" with imessaging, I can stand to put up with Apple's silly games.  I know there are other free texting apps out there, but I don't want to hassle friends and acquaintances to use them, and most people I know have iphones.  So it's worth it for me to stay with apple.

My airvoice renewal is on 9/24, and I have still have $11 to burn. I had my once a year extra refill kinda recently, in July.  I guess I'll wait a little to run that down, maybe not ration data so much when out and about.  I put in my unlock request with AT&T just this morning and they've already approved it.  (Bought AT&T locked iphone SE on ebay in Feb.)

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!