Top 9 Ways to Fix iPhone Won’t Send Pictures Error

We all share pictures we take on outings with our friends or family. This is a popular ritual that all of has have done several times. We do the same. But the last time we tried sharing pictures from an iPhone, the pictures did not get transferred.

This was annoying and made us wonder if this was a serious firmware issue. After digging and calling Apple customer support, we figured out a few solutions to get the picture messages sent.

While we were at it, we noticed that many other Apple iPhone users faced the same issue. Therefore, we decided to address it and make this post to help people in the same spot we used to be in. This article has all the solutions you can use to fix the iPhone won’t send pictures error on your iOS handheld device.

Why won’t my iPhone send pictures to another mobile phone?

There are five logical reasons why your iPhone won’t send pictures to another mobile phone, irrespective of whether it is an Android or an iOS device.

Recipient side issues

The first reason is the possible reason the iPhone won’t send pictures issue. The person you share pictures with may not have an internet connection or could be out of a network coverage area.

This means that they will not only be able to receive media through iMessages but it’ll be impossible to communicate digitally.

Disabled iMessage feature

To send any message through iMessage, it must first be activated on your iPhone. Without activation, the message will be prepared to send, but it won’t be sent to the receiver. iPhone users should be able to enable this feature through their device settings. This has to be enabled in both the sender and receiver’s iPhones.

Disabled MMS feature

The Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) is also a service that has to be enabled to be used on an iPhone. Android phones do not require MMS services to be enabled for sending media messages. This can be enabled through the Messaging service settings on the iPhone. Without the MMS feature enabled, the user will not be allowed to prepare a media file for sharing.

Weak or No Network

A network connection with access to the internet is very important for sending a message containing a media file. Without a network, the file can’t get uploaded for sending to the recipient.

A weaker network connection can make it very slow for the message to send itself. Sometimes when the network is too slow, the file upload process might get canceled or stop, causing the message to be not sent.

Outdated iOS version

It is very important to update the firmware on your iPhone. An outdated iOS will not function as efficiently as a newly downloaded version. Not only the iPhone won’t send pictures issue but also has a variety of other issues.

If you see a notification or any sign that an update is available for download, the right thing is to do it immediately. If you are not familiar with the steps to do so, keep reading.

Symptoms of the iPhone not sending pictures issue

There are four visible symptoms that either the sender or the receiver can see when the iPhone does not send pictures to another device. Each of them stands for different errors on the iPhone and has unique factors responsible for each.

Only Specific devices get the message

Your iPhone’s iMessage configurations may be set to receive and send messages from the Apple ID account you logged in initially while initializing your new iPhone.

Your mobile number has to be in this place instead of your Apple ID. This is highly likely to happen when there is an Apple device atmosphere for your iPhone, like an iPad.

If your phone number is not used, you may connect it to your Apple ID so that you can send or receive iMessages through the mobile number. You may also set up the forwarding feature on your Apple devices to share SMS and multimedia messages.

When this is the case for you, only the devices with the phone number registered will receive the MMS. If you wish to send the media files to someone with an Apple ID registered for iMessage, you will have to ask them to do it. Alternatively, you can use another platform to share the files in.

Green bubble

IPhone users generally see a blue bubble over the icon when a message is sent through iMessage. The user will see a green bubble when the same message is sent as an SMS or an MMS. This could be because of three factors –

• The receiver does not have an iOS or iPadOS device.
• iMessage is facing issues on the sender or receiver’s device.
• iMessage feature has not been activated on the sender or receiver’s device.

Red exclamation point

A red exclamatory sign means that your message has not been delivered. You will also receive a notification that reads “Not Delivered”. You can either try sending the message again or send the message as a text message, which your mobile service provider will charge.

Group Messaging Issues

Should you stop getting messages in a group message, take a look at the chat window to see if you are still in the chat. When you try to open the group chat window, you will get a popup that states you left the chat or were removed from it. You can send messages to the group again when someone in it adds you again.

If you are in this position, you can create a new group with the help of the Compose option in the Messages application. You can ask one of the group members to add you back to the group as an alternate method. You can also try deleting the group conversation entirely and making another one, in case the chat has some bugs in it.

Solutions to fix the iPhone won’t send pictures issue

1. Restart the iPhone
2. Verify Internet Connection
3. Check the Contact’s Email ID and Phone Number
4. Try Sharing with another contact
5. Enable the Multimedia Messaging Service
6. Activate the iMessage feature
7. Reset the Network Settings to Default
8. Update the iOS carrier settings
9. Download iOS updates, if available

Fixing the iPhone won’t send pictures issue

Restart the iPhone

The simplest workaround to fix most technical issues is to restart the device or the interface. This is the same for fixing the won’t send pictures issues on an iPhone.

Restarting the iPhone can be done by pushing the power button on the side and sliding the power off slider to the right. Once the reboot is complete, you should be able to send MMS messages without any issues if this issue was caused by a temporary bug or unsaved settings configuration.

Verify Internet Connection

Multimedia message files require a network connection with internet access and sufficient bandwidth. This is because an MMS differs from an SMS that only requires a carrier service. If you do not have an active connection, connect your device to a network, and then, try sending the message.

If your iPhone has no internet, you can try enabling cellular data on it. You’ll find the toggle switch to do this in the Cellular settings. If there is a WiFi hotspot with a strong signal, you can also try connecting to it.

This issue can also occur when the network connection is very slow. To check this, you can run a speed test of your connection. Slow networks will make the MMS upload time too long and could eventually be timed out. forcing the user to send the MMS again.

Check the Contact’s Email ID and Phone Number

It’s also possible that the user is attempting to share multimedia files with someone using via email or text message using their mobile number. This is not something that won’t work but only the correct contact information will share the message for you. A wrong mobile number or a type error email address will not send the message to you. 

You will have saved the number on your iPhone in the contacts. Once you expand a contact, you should be able to see all the information that you stored on that individual. You can check with them to see if the saved data is right. If not, make the necessary changes and try sending the messages again.

Try Sharing with another contact

As we mentioned earlier, there is also a chance that the issue lies with the recipient’s side. There is nothing the sender can do except check where the problem is. Attempt to send a multimedia message to a different person.

If they receive the message without any errors, the first recipient could have some issues on their side. They might not have enabled the MMS service on their mobile phone. Ask them to check their settings and once they have changed, send the messages again.

Enable the Multimedia Messaging Service

Check the MMS service if your media message is still not being sent on your iPhone after checking the network and other factors that can hinder this. This feature can be toggled on and off, depending on your requirements and that is what we’ll be doing.

• Open the iPhone settings window and locate the Messages option from this page.
• Now, find the MMS Messaging toggle switch and tap on it. This has to be done irrespective of whether it is enabled or disabled.

If it used to be disabled, enable it. If this option has been enabled, turn it off; wait for a couple of minutes and re-enable it.

Activate the iMessage feature

Similar to the MMS feature, the user also has to enable the iMessage feature on their iOS device to use it or receive iMessages. This is the right procedure to enable iMessaging on your iPhone –

• Bring up the iPhone settings page and choose the Messages option.
• Locate the iMessage toggle switch and turn it on, if disabled. If it is active, disable it and enable it again.

Once this process is done, try sending your messages. Hopefully, they get sent.

Reset the Network Settings to Default

Another variant of the network issues we discussed is misconfigured network settings. If the network settings have been changed, the best option is to reset the network so you can get the default settings back. If you do not know how to, use the steps below –

• Open the iPhone Settings window and go into the General settings.
• Locate the Reset sub-settings and touch the Reset network settings option.
• You will be asked for the security PIN of your iPhone to initiate the process.

This should only take a few moments. Once the resetting is done, check if the messages could be sent to the recipient.

Update the iOS carrier settings

Your iPhone’s service operator distributes updates regularly to enhance cell service utility. If your iPhone isn’t up to date with the newest carrier settings, it can stop sending media messages. Updating this on your iPhone is easy with the steps given below –

• Launch the iPhone settings window and go into the General tab.
• Touch the About option and wait for the scan to complete.

If there are available updates, you will see a popup asking you to update it. No pop means that there are no updates and you are up-to-date.

Download iOS updates, if available

iOS updates can also help fix the messages that won’t be sent on an iPhone. Even if this does not help you with the issue, you could be looking at newer features on your iPhone and even improvised security. The steps to download iOS updates are provided below –

• Open your iPhone settings and go to the General settings.
• Select the Software Update sub-setting.
• Tap the Download and install option. This option will only be available if updates are available for download for your iOS device.

These are all the ways one can use to get multimedia messages sent on an iPhone. If you can still not fix this issue, talk to Apple customer support, who might have other solutions for you. If you cannot fix this, you can consult a technician at your nearest Apple Genius bar or a store that specializes in iPhones.

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