[legends wear 7]

When you send a text message that is longer than the max limit for a single message does three charge for these. Or just reduce your allowance by the required amount

[flagpole]

they're called concatenated text messages.

they are just sent as 2 or 3 or whatever separate text messages. i'm not on 3 but AFAIK they are always treated as if you just sent more than one message.

assuming that you don't have one of those phones that switches to MMS

[Lidtop2013]

Good question, I've been with Three for 4-5 years and I've never been charged any extra for texts, but on my iPhone I dont have the character limit displayed while typing so I'm not sure if I've ever gone over it, probably have at some point I'd I thought? But yeah I know for a fact I have never been charged for it

[legends wear 7]

Xperia T

Just I have recent spend on the three app that I'm not sure what it is. Will phone them later which is always a frustrating experience

[Thine Wonk]

There's been several other threads saying some phones decide to send long SMS messages over MMS, only certain handsets do it.

[legends wear 7]

Can't see anything in the messaging settings

[Thine Wonk]

Here's a thread http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1779170

By the way, I'm on Three and I send long text messages and they just come out of your allowance as 2 or more SMS messages.

So you've either replied to somebody that sent you an MMS message and it's sent your text as an MMS or your phone has sent an MMS as a result of a large number of recipients or something.

If you have 2 data addons, sometimes on Three's system it takes a few seconds to realise that you've used up your allowance on one addon and started using the next and you get billed for the data for a few seconds until the next one kicks in. I had a small charge which was an error one month.

I'd ask them what it is first then you'll have more information to go on. I've always found them to be really good on the phone and never understood why people have issues, but then I've been to India for months in the past and work with an Indian team daily, on the phone and on email etc.

It's all in the way you talk to them, if you have a really strong Norfolk or Glasgow accent I guess you are going to have issues!

[Thine Wonk]

Here's another thread:

When is an SMS not an SMS

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1770559

The common theme is somebody sends you a picture message and you reply, your reply even though it's text defaults as an MMS message. This happens on a lot of handsets.

[DevonBloke]

Originally Posted by legends wear 7

When you send a text message that is longer than the max limit for a single message does three charge for these. Or just reduce your allowance by the required amount

I'm pretty certain (most) phones send a long text as seperate texts. My iPhone does. A text that's 3 messages long certainly counts as 3 texts on my invoice. I have unlimited texts so it doesn't matter anyway. It appears that different phones handle different lengths differently.
Found this Nokia help page where it describes what happens in thier handsets. http://www.nokia.com/gb-en/support/t...FA120178_en_US

The problem I see is that for example, I get free texts but have to pay for mms. So if my iPhone did what Nokia are describing and I send a massive text and it gets converted to an mms I would pay for it, whereas any number of texts wouldn't cost anything.

I seem to remember (don't hold me to this) that I once sent a really long text (like probably more than 10 texts) and my iphone actually split it into 2 searate multi-texts anyway.
Going to see if I can find out now.

[DevonBloke]

Originally Posted by Thine Wonk

Here's another thread:

When is an SMS not an SMS

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1770559

The common theme is somebody sends you a picture message and you reply, your reply even though it's text defaults as an MMS message. This happens on a lot of handsets.

Yeah, I think that happens on most handsets actually. Would make sense I guess but would be nice if the handset gave you a choice.

[flagpole]

^ my Nokia doesn't do that. But some phones do. And as has been said, if someone sends you a text only MMS and you reply it's likely you'll reply by MMS. Which is pretty annoying.

[Thine Wonk]

Originally Posted by flagpole

^ my Nokia doesn't do that. But some phones do. And as has been said, if someone sends you a text only MMS and you reply it's likely you'll reply by MMS. Which is pretty annoying.

I think it gives you a popup saying it's sending over MMS and you can dismiss or say ok, or it puts up a message somewhere, but that depends on the phone / software.

[DevonBloke]

Hmmm, can't find anything in the short time I've just tried.
There is a lot of confusion on most forums about splitting and rebuilding texts on the recievers end.
With multi texts that are not too long you see the text as one long text before you send but the network still handles them as seperate texts (but I guess with a flag to say it was origionally sent as one text (probably). If the receiving handset is modern it simply joins them back up again (eg. Androind, iOS). If the handset is really old it just displays them as seperate texts.

[Thine Wonk]

I think it's best the OP checks to see if the charge is MMS first and not just an error or something.

If it is MMS it's likely a reply to an MMS message that the OP thought they had sent over SMS, but in fact has been sent by the handset over MMS.

[DevonBloke]

Yeah, good idea. You are most likely correct.

[lost boy]

Originally Posted by Thine Wonk

I think it's best the OP checks to see if the charge is MMS first and not just an error or something.

If it is MMS it's likely a reply to an MMS message that the OP thought they had sent over SMS, but in fact has been sent by the handset over MMS.

Agreed. MMS is the most likely culprit for recent spend - I got caught by it when I first got my S3, as it changes text into MMS automatically when the text is longer than 3 parts (as opposed to my previous handset which did it after 5 parts). There's nothing in the settings or anywhere else to say that it'll happen, it just does it. Bit of a shame really as texts come out of the inclusive allowance while MMS do not (because there is no MMS allowance), but that's hardly a Three only issue in this respect.

[kidspud]

Originally Posted by Thine Wonk

There's been several other threads saying some phones decide to send long SMS messages over MMS, only certain handsets do it.

The galaxy ace 2 does this by default. As I found out when they got me for £2.90 worth of mms.

[jabbamk1]

I really don't understand how mms isn't free and bundled with sms.

[flagpole]

Originally Posted by jabbamk1

I really don't understand how mms isn't free and bundled with sms.

$$$$$

[spaceman05]

the samsung galaxy not automatically converts it from sms to mms if you go over a certain amount of characters

[spaceman05]

the samsung galaxy note automatically converts it from sms to mms if you go over a certain amount of characters

[legends wear 7]

phoned 3, they are saying the xperia t sends long sms as an mms but this cant be right, as i have put the wifes PAYG vodafone sim in and sent the offending message again. On Vodafone its removed 2 sms from her sms allowance

[Thine Wonk]

It's at 3 messages it sends it as MMS isn't it?

As per lost boy

MMS is the most likely culprit for recent spend - I got caught by it when I first got my S3, as it changes text into MMS automatically when the text is longer than 3 parts

[legends wear 7]

the phone is saying 2 sms, vodafone PAYG charges 2 SMS to the allowance but 3 have confirmed that the message is hitting them as an MMS

[legends wear 7]

Originally Posted by Thine Wonk

It's at 3 messages it sends it as MMS isn't it?

As per lost boy

i dont have an S3 its the Sony Xperia T