How To Enable Your Mac To Send And Receive SMS & MMS Text ...

Did you know you can enable SMS and MSS correspondence on your Mac with Messages? You can.

But first, a little background.

SMS vs. MMS vs. iMessage

SMS is an abbreviation for Short Message Service. Basically, it’s a text message. However, an SMS message contains only text (no pictures or videos) and is limited to 160 characters.

MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging Service. With an MMS, you can send a message including pictures, video, or audio content to another device. It also requires a data package.

This is different than iMessage (or Messages) on your iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch.

iMessage is Apple’s own instant messaging service that sends messages over the Internet, using your data. You must have an Internet connection to use the service. To send iMessages, you need a data plan, or you can send them over WiFi. If you use WiFi, there’s no cost, but if you use your cellphone’s data, it’s deducted from your data plan.

iMessage also syncs with your iCloud account, so if you lose your iPhone or get a new one, you can take your messages with you. Plus, if you have more than one Apple device, you can get your messages on your Mac, iPad, and Apple Watch.

However, SMS messages may not sync across your devices. But you can set up your iPhone and Mac so that the latter can send/receive SMS messages.

Receive and Send SMS and MMS Messages on Your Mac

To receive and send SMS and MMS messages on your Mac, your iPhone must have iOS 8.1 or later, and your iPhone and Mac must be signed in to Messages using the same Apple ID. If you’ve got this set up, then:

1) On your iPhone, go to “Settings > Messages.”

2) Tap Text Message Forwarding. If you don’t see Text Message Forwarding, make sure you’re signed in to Messages using the same Apple ID on both your iPhone and your Mac.

3) Enable your Mac in the list of devices. In the graphic below, you can see that I’ve enabled both my iMac and my MacBook Pro.

4) On your Mac, open the Messages app. A six-digit activation code appears.

5) Enter this code on your iPhone, then tap Allow.

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