SMS truncation between iOS and non-iOS smartphones

[Rafagon]

Hi, I wanted to ask a question...

What are the rules for SMS truncation between smartphone platforms when the SMS exceeds 160 chars (yep, I just spent the last few minutes trying Google with no luck)? Several Android users seem to be able to get my texts without being truncated. Is this true for all Android flavors--ICS, Gingerbread, Whole Wheat Bread, Pumpernickel Bread, Mint Life Saver, Ground Paprika, Αυγολέμονο, Iceberg Lettuce and everything that came before?

Your help is appreciated. I get tired of writing "..." and starting a new line for fear that important material may be missed by my recipient!

 

[TarekElsakka]

I don't know about the States, but here you will always receive the full SMS unless your phone is outdated. So it really goes back to the phone rather than the network, for instance. Plus, a phone usually lets you know how many messages you've written in one (1, 2, 3, etc.) but will only be split IF the phone it is being sent to is old and cannot receive full messages, and I believe almost every phone on the market today can receive a full SMS with no problems.

I'm sorry if this didn't help, but that's as much as I know.

 

[Rafagon]

Yes, sir, it helped! I really didn't know that longer-than-160-character SMS message transmission was pretty much the norm nowadays. I thought it was guaranteed iOS-to-iOS and iOS-to-some-androids. I'm glad to hear this, as I now know I don't have to think about it as much. Thank you.

 

[xavierhgt]

Since truncation differs for different devices, is it correct to assume that the software on the phone is causing the truncation. The SMS truncation works correctly if it is supported by the carrier. They are usually limited to around 160 characters depending on your carrier. Because of the carrier's action, a long message sent to Tropo will either arrive as multiple messages or have the part beyond about 150 characters stripped off. 150 instead of 160 because that user data header is part of the message body and generally takes up around 8 to 10 characters. The exact behavior will depend on the carriers the message passes through in order to get to our upstream carriers.