How to send and receive texts from the comfort of your computer

Say goodbye to the limitations of mobile phone text messages and easily send and receive text messages on your computer! This article will guide you to select and set up the right application, make your computer your SMS center, say goodbye to the trouble of frequently switching devices, and enjoy the convenient input experience brought by a larger keyboard.

This article has been updated and was originally published on July 9, 2018

Still busy in front of the computer? Stop picking up your phone frequently for text messages! Sending and receiving text messages with a computer can not only reduce phone interference, but also make it easier to type with a larger keyboard.

A variety of applications (for iPhone and Android devices) can allow your computer to send and receive text messages just like using a mobile phone. Next, we will guide you on how to choose the best option and set it up.

iMessage (for iOS)

Apple has restricted access to SMS messages on iOS, which means third-party apps cannot manage your SMS messages. Therefore, iPhone users can only rely on Apple's own solution: let iMessage on iOS work in conjunction with Messages app on macOS. While it's frustrating that there is only one option (or no choice for PC users at all), this package works well.

Some or all settings may be ready depending on the configuration of your device. To ensure that everything is foolproof, we will introduce the entire process from scratch.

[Related: Important conversations in quick access to iPhone information app]

First of all, you need to log in to the same Apple ID on your iPhone and Mac. On your phone, open the Settings app and click on your name at the top of the screen to check this setting. On your Mac, open System Preferences and confirm that you are logged in to the same Apple ID at the top of the pop-up window. If everything works fine, the next step is to set up iMessage so that the app can work in coordination with your computer. Pick up your phone again, turn on the settings, information , and turn on the iMessage switch. On your Mac, you should see a pop-up alert prompting that your phone number has been added to your iMessage.

When you open the Message app on macOS, you should see that your computer and phone conversations are synced and your computer will be able to send text messages to other iMessage users. But what if the person you are contacting doesn't have an iPhone? To send them a text message, you need to go back to your phone, go to Settings, Message , and then SMS forwarding . Here, select your computer from the list of all devices associated with your Apple ID. Next, sit in front of your computer and launch the information app. Click the Message menu, then open Preferences and go to the iMessage tab. Select the check box to enable your Apple ID email address and your mobile number.

Now, your Mac will be able to manage both iMessages (from Apple users) and text messages (from everyone else). Treat the information app on your computer as the corresponding app on iOS: Enter your information and press Enter> key to send. If you are talking to someone who owns iMessage, their names will appear in blue instead of red in the macOS app, and you will have more ways to manage your chat. Together with other iPhone users, you can enable read receipts, share your screen (click the message button for each chat to set it up), and send a small emoji-like response called a touch reply (just Ctrl ClickMessage received).

Messages (for Android)

Google provides a web interface in its default SMS program (Message App), which is pre-installed on native Android devices and can also be downloaded on all other devices. This website is the easiest way to send and receive Android text messages through any web browser on any computer.

First of all, if you don’t have an information app on your phone, please install the app. Then, grant it as the default SMS application by going to Set >App>Default App>SMS Application and select the message and grant it as the default SMS application permissions.

Next, open your computer, start its web browser, and then open the web version of the information, and you will see a QR code. You can scan the QR code using an Android device: Open the information, click the menu button (three dots) in the upper right corner, select Device Pairing , and then click QR code scanner . Point your phone's camera to the QR code on the computer screen, and after a brief pause, you should see all messages synced to your computer.

This web interface will be synced with your phone: any text messages you send online will appear in your phone's conversation list, and vice versa. Click any of these threads to view older chat history. When the message comes in, your browser can notify you - turn on by clicking the menu button (three dots) in the upper left corner of the screen and selecting Set and switching the switch under Notification This option. (From the same menu, you can also enable or disable darker visual themes.)

To send a text message, click to start chat, enter the recipient's name, phone number, or email, enter your message and press Enter. You can also decorate text with icons to the right of the text field, which allow you to add emojis, stickers, and photos stored on your computer.

Pulse SMS (for Android)

Given the flexibility of Android, you don't have to settle for Google's solution. One alternative we recommend is Pulse SMS, an Android SMS app that also comes with a web interface. It provides some extra features that Android information does not have: different topics for each conversation, password protection for selected threads, and scheduled text messages to be sent at some time in the future. Pulse is free to use on your phone, but if you want to integrate more devices (you need to do this if you want to send text messages from your laptop), you need Pulse SMS, which costs $1.99 per month and 19.99 per year USD, or lifetime visits are subject to a USD 99.99. But before you promise, you can try out the seven-day free trial.

To use it, download the app. When you first open it, you may see Change the SMS app? prompt, you can click Yes to set it as your default message application. Next, set up your Pulse SMS account: Click the menu button in the upper left corner (three horizontal lines), select to send text messages from any device and to activate and fill in your details. This will give you access to the seven-day trial version, after which the program will start charging you.

After setting up the app on your phone, pick up your computer, head to the Pulse website, and log in with your new account credentials. Like information, all conversations will be synchronized between the web interface and the mobile app. Your conversation will be displayed on the left and you can click on any conversation to continue the chat.

If you prefer computer apps over web browsers, Pulse SMS also offers native clients (for Windows and macOS). For these, the setup process is basically the same.

MightyText (for Android)

MightyText app does not actually process SMS directly. Instead, it runs in the background of your existing SMS app to synchronize messages between that Android app and the MightyText website. Behind the scenes, the free version works very similarly to the information. However, if you pay to subscribe to MightyText Pro ($11.99 per month or $89.99 per year), you will get additional features such as syncing photos and videos on your phone to the web and receiving phone notifications in your web browser .

To get started, you need to connect MightyText to any Google account you have linked to your phone. This part is easy – just download the app, open it, and follow the on-screen prompts. Then pick up your computer, head to the MightyText website, and log in with the same Google credentials. After spending a few minutes copying all contact names and photos, the page should show your conversation on the left side of the screen.

[Related: How to save text messages to prevent them from disappearing when you get a new phone]

You can click any of these conversations to continue chatting via text messages, click New Message and search for contacts, or use the search bar at the top of the screen to find older conversations. You can enter any message, add photos, GIFs, and emojis using the buttons in the pane, and press Enter to send.

Please note that with the free version of MightyText, you can only send 50 messages through the website per month (this will not affect your ability to send text messages from your phone). In addition to the benefits we've already mentioned, upgrading to MightyText Pro also allows you to send an unlimited number of text messages from the network, apply various topics to the interface, save drafts for later delivery, delete ads and more.

The above is the detailed content of How to send and receive texts from the comfort of your computer. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!