Whereas iOS 26 provides some cool new options within the Messages app, it seems that not everybody has been in a position to totally take pleasure in them. Following the replace, a number of customers reported issues getting iMessage to work with their cellphone numbers. The excellent news is that Apple has now defined why this was occurring and printed a repair — and it doesn’t require an iOS replace.
Based on most stories, the problem was particular to utilizing iMessage with a cellphone quantity. Chats would work positive over any related e-mail addresses, however the iPhone quantity wouldn’t correctly activate, stopping messages from being despatched or acquired utilizing that quantity. As a substitute, messages would are available in through SMS or RCS.
Not everybody was affected, and it seems that’s as a result of there’s a particular set of circumstances that have been triggering this conduct, as Apple explains in a brand new help doc:
If you replace to iOS 26, you may not have the ability to activate iMessage along with your cellphone quantity you probably have an inactive SIM with the identical cellphone quantity as your energetic SIM.
Basically, it seems that iOS 26 was confused by seeing two SIM playing cards with the identical cellphone quantity, and the repair is simple: merely take away or delete the inactive SIM.
Right here’s examine your SIM card configuration and see you probably have an additional one lurking inside your iPhone:
- Open the Settings app.
- Choose Mobile.
- In case you have a number of SIMs, they’ll be proven right here. If two of them have the identical quantity, you’ll have to take away the inactive one.
- If the inactive SIM is a bodily SIM, take it out of your iPhone.
- If the inactive SIM is an eSIM, choose it to see extra particulars, after which scroll down and faucet Delete eSIM and make sure that you simply wish to delete it.
When you’ve taken care of the duplicate-numbered SIM, examine to see in case your quantity is correctly activated for iMessage and activate it if mandatory. Right here’s how:
- Return to the highest stage of the Settings app.
- Scroll to the underside and select Apps.
- Seek for or browse and choose Messages from the listing of apps.
- Choose Ship & Obtain.
- Faucet your cellphone quantity to activate iMessage.
- Optionally, faucet your cellphone quantity within the part, underneath “Begin New Conversations From,” for those who’d like to make use of it because the default. This can solely apply when sending new messages; current conversations will proceed to make use of the deal with they have been began with.
Having two SIMs with the identical quantity can simply occur for those who’ve switched from a bodily SIM to an eSIM. After you’ve transferred your quantity to the eSIM, the bodily SIM card turns into inactive. Nonetheless, for those who don’t take away it, your iPhone will nonetheless learn it as a legitimate, albeit inactive, SIM card, with the identical cellphone quantity as your energetic eSIM. In that case, take away it bodily out of your iPhone.
Apple doesn’t clarify the underlying drawback, however my educated guess is that iOS 26 could have been utilizing the flawed SIM to confirm the consumer’s cellphone quantity.
When Apple created iMessage fifteen years in the past, it wanted a technique to stop cellphone numbers from being simply spoofed. Whereas different messaging apps, resembling WhatsApp, require customers to substantiate a code despatched through textual content message, Apple aimed to make this course of extra seamless by dealing with all of it within the background.
Most customers won’t ever see this occur, however once you initially activate a cellphone quantity for iMessage, your iPhone sends a hidden SMS message to Apple’s servers. Since this message comes out of your cellphone quantity, Apple can use it to substantiate that the quantity you’re activating is respectable and doesn’t have to trouble you with issues like six-digit codes.
After all, this additionally results in issues resembling this one. A textual content message despatched from Apple to your cellphone quantity wouldn’t be impacted by an additional SIM with the identical cellphone quantity, however because the iPhone is sending the message, it has to determine which of the 2 SIM playing cards to make use of, and in not less than some circumstances, it was probably selecting the disconnected one, so the activation SMS by no means went by way of.