Update: Apple iPhone 3G and 3GS will support MMS. AT&T will begin support of MMS on their network starting on September 25, 2009. Read more about the activation process here.
One of the most perplexing feature omissions from the iPhone was the lack of support for the MMS protocol. One can only assume that this was a deliberate choice by Apple, though it is hard to determine why.
Many users who are accustomed to snapping photos w/ their camera phones and sending those photos to friends and family via text/MMS messaging have been surprised to find out they can't do the same with their iPhone.
Thankfully, due to iPhone's email capabilities - there is a workaround.
In this day and age, almost all mobile phones have not only a phone number, but an email address. In fact, most mobile phones have two emails - one for plain text messages, and one for MMS.
Using iPhone's email picture function, you can still get your photos over to your friends' phones by emailing it to their phone. This does not require that the destination phone has email support. By emailing your picture to their phone and not their email, they'll receive it like a normal MMS message, provided they have MMS support on their phone.
Here's how to do it:
1) open a photo on your iPhone
2) click on the send photo link (bottom left hand icon)
3) select to email the photo
4) using the table below, enter the phone number of the person you want to send to, followed by the email suffix for their provider
| Service Provider | MMS Email Prefix |
| Verizon | vzwpix.com |
| AT&T/Cingular | mms.att.com |
| Sprint/Nextel | messaging.sprintpcs.com |
| T-Mobile | tmomail.net |
| Virgin | vmobl.net |
| Boost Mobile | myboostmobile.com |
| Alltel | message.alltel.com |
| Amp'd Mobile | vzwpix.com |
So, for instance, if you wanted to send an email to a Verizon user who's number was 8175551212, you'd send to 8175551212@vzwpix.com.
Hopefully, the iPhone will be updated to include MMS support soon. For now, this works.
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This will do the trick, really. Slightly less convenient than MMS itself, but a very viable solution if you know what networks your friends use.
What about Metro PCS?
@mymetropcs.com
how about for optus, mms???
Nice article. Also, you may send free SMS and MMS for free using web from website www.seasms.com
I tried it ..send one to myself and then my sister in law who has alltel and she gets the text but not the image. I have At&T
use (.net) instead of (.com) and it will work
#@mms.att.net
Thank you...It works perfectly now :)
This is kinda the opposite question. If someone tries to send an MMS picture to my Iphone...does it automatically go to email??? Or do they have to send it to my email initially???
It didn't work for me!
Worth pointing out to those not clued in to it - you can send pics to everyone's phone this way except iPhone owners.
Works great for everyone else though. :)
Does anyone know how the www.viewmymessage.com/1 works??!!
thats the website you follow its a link an the username an password is riqht under neith it
This trick also lets you send SMS/MMS messages to multiple recipients
how?
By sending to multiple phone email addresses.
You can already send SMS to multiple contacts. No need for a work around.
i tried sending sms but the person told me that the message didnot reach there overseas country how can i do that so that message can be delivered.
I tried sending one and it didn't work.
I tried it as well and it didn't work. I got "550 SMTP connection refused . . . Action: failed Status: 5.2.0 . . . 550 SMTP connection refused." And it was a Verizon phone, just like in the example. Anyone have any idea why?
The proper att address is **********@mms.att.NET from what I can tell. Thanks for the information! Very useful...
So when my friends send me photos is there any other way other than going to viewmymessage.com which i can't figure out how and the heck to do from the iphone anyway?
"I tried it as well and it didn’t work. I got “550 SMTP connection refused . . . Action: failed Status: 5.2.0 . . . 550 SMTP connection refused.†And it was a Verizon phone, just like in the example. Anyone have any idea why?"
I just tried it earlier (it was being discussed in another forum) and it worked fine. I have Verizon and I sent the picture to myself at myphonenumber@vzwpix.com with no problems...
hello....does anyone know if different language keyboards can be forthcoming in updates?
Go to Settings -> General -> International -> Keyboards
If I want to send a picture from a non Iphone to an Iphone without the person with the Iphone having to go to some website, how can this be done, if even possible. How exactly can the person with the Iphone send pics from their phone to a non IPhone??
Some providers support SMS to email, don't they?
not working for me either! Trying a Verizon phone. Any suggestions?
Just tested two to my friend's Verizon phone. Though the second one came about 5-10 minutes delayed, they both arrived.
Tried sending to two different verizon numbers. My mail provider, yahoo, rejected them as being addresses that could not be found. I tried a third to an att customer using the format ##########@mms.att.net and that worked. Any ideas???
You forgot one :)
Service Provider: Amp'd Mobile
MMS Email Prefix: vtext.com
Example: 8175551212@vtext.com
One.
Yes, I supposed it's bad to assume that everyone knows Amp'd = Verizon.
Thanks for the head's up, DJ one. Though, Amp'd would presumably use the vzwpix.com as the other Verizon #'s do (vtext.com only handles text, not multimedia).
Added.
I have the iPhone and I am having trouble sending it to Verison ppl. I type in the number: 7175551129@vzwpix.com. It shows that it sent, but the Verison person I sent it to never got it, and I never got an email saying that it didn't go through or anything, so anyone who may know what the problem may be please email me at: sp_wilson 72@yahoo.com. Thanks!
just an update from the last reply i left- i DID get an email saying it didn't work 500error blah, blah. But I still need help!
I cannot get anyof my verizon friends to receive the message either and I'm sending it to number@vzwpix.com doesnt work at all for me
is it normal to have the message you just sent always come back to you in your inbox on the iphone? this is happening after successful deliveries as well as failed... :( sorry if this is a double post too :)
Concerning ALLTEL. My buddy has Alltel and I've tried sending him a picture from my iphone to his Razor phone using his #@message.alltel.com. He has never received a single picture. Any help getting this through? Thanks.
The correct way to send pictures to ALLTEL is #@mms.alltel.net
using @mms.alltel.net worked for me. THANK YOU so much Tsonos!
Chad, PLEASE UPDATE the list in the article.
Thanks!
I'm using the new motorola evoke Qa4 and I'm trying to figure out how to have the messages sent to me through email. . any idea on how to get this to work?
I've had a Virgin Mobile phone in the past, and while the regular text-only address is @vmobl.com, the MMS address is @vmpix.com :)
I to am getting the failed 550 error when I attempt to send anything to a Verzion phone @ Phone#@vzwpix.com. Here is the exact error in fact from my returned email.
:
66.174.94.12 failed after I sent the message.
Remote host said: 550 SMTP connection refused
I get this when sending from Yahoo or GMail, from my iPhone and even from my desktop PC and MAC. So its not the iPhone itself.
What is even more strange is that I can recive pictures to both my Yahoo and GMail accounts from his phone (on my iPhone or computers) and they are addressed from XXXXXXXXXX@vzwpix.com (of course his phone number is the X's). I have replied direclty on my computers and still get the same error.
At a Verizon help board, the users there are just bitter and make fun of iPhone stuff so they are no help.
Worked for me just fine, thanks!
Well I've had trouble with other att customers with pocket pcs but regular phones arnt a problem for me
but I've had trouble with alltel
and no one has yet to pop up with one for suncom
my boyfriend has suncom and I want to see if it is possible there too
VERIZON HELP HERE
Ok, so I've figured it out. You CANT send to Verizon using Yahoo. You have to go into Settings>Mail>Default Account and set an account other than Yahoo. I used a personal account and now I can send to Vz phones...
hey, what personal account did you use? was it AOL? GMail? Neither one of those will send to verizon either. so i need an alternate way that i can send to a verizon phone. what was the one you used to send?
please email me at emorock20@aol.com if you have a good solution
thanks!
can u please tell me which personal account do i need to make in order to send email to verizon phones? since aol, yahoo and gmail do not work
just an FYI US Cellular's mms address is @mms.uscc.net
how about if my friends have CRIKET phone what would that b???????
Ok...I can't get it to send to an ATT phone at all. With a AOL account or a gmail. What am I doing wrong??