Issue with android phone sending MMS, but only when on home WiFi


Recommended Posts

So this is truly a head scratcher to me. My mobile provider is Xfinity mobile, who is an mvno of Verizon, and ever sense I upgraded to my Pixel 4A (5G) I have been having issues while trying to send MMS messages, mainly they don't work (fail to send 9 out of 10 times) but if I shut off WiFi and just use mobile data, I have no problems at all sending MMS messages. My providers only solution is to reset network settings on the phone, which is pointless considering I bought the phone from them and only used their service, so resetting the network settings is pointless. But I have diagnosed the issue down to the home WiFi network, it only fails to send when on the home network. I am connected wireless to the 5GHZ WiFi, and even dropping to the 2.4GHZ does not resolve the issue. I am completely confused by this and can not begin to figure out what to look at. I have reset the modem and router a few times just to make sure that is not the issue, but it had not made any difference. The modem and router are both ones that we have purchased and do not belong to Xfinity. Everything else wired and wireless work flawlessly, so I can not fault the ISP in this situation, but it makes me really wonder why.

This might be a long shot, but, here I go.

 

After reading this: https://community.t-mobile.com/accounts-services-4/mms-not-sending-10163

 

It might actually be your APN...

  On 11/06/2021 at 03:59, Mindovermaster said:

This might be a long shot, but, here I go.

 

After reading this: https://community.t-mobile.com/accounts-services-4/mms-not-sending-10163

 

It might actually be your APN...

Expand  

Not likely considering I have only used this phone on Xfinity and I have reset the network settings which would reset the APN

  On 11/06/2021 at 04:13, jnelsoninjax said:

Not likely considering I have only used this phone on Xfinity and I have reset the network settings which would reset the APN

Expand  

OH, OK, then I'm like you.. confused.

So i sorta have the same issue. Mine however, is when receiving with signal on wifi, MMS fails. If I turn off wifi click the MMS i receive it fine.

 

One thing I found that works on my wife's phone (I dont get many MMS so have yet to test) was from this website HERE.

 

Quick TLDR

1) Enable Developer Mode (Settings->click the build # several times to enable dev menu)

2) After doing that, scroll to the option that says “mobile data always active” and enable it.

3) Profit?

 

Hopefully that helps.

Also, go into your Wifi settings, select the three dots and press on the advanced options. Make sure that "Switch to mobile data" it turned on. It will use your mobile data when the wifi connection is slow or unstable. Who knows, that might kick it in to gear...

  On 11/06/2021 at 04:42, devn00b said:

So i sorta have the same issue. Mine however, is when receiving with signal on wifi, MMS fails. If I turn off wifi click the MMS i receive it fine.

 

One thing I found that works on my wife's phone (I dont get many MMS so have yet to test) was from this website HERE.

 

Quick TLDR

1) Enable Developer Mode (Settings->click the build # several times to enable dev menu)

2) After doing that, scroll to the option that says “mobile data always active” and enable it.

3) Profit?

 

Hopefully that helps.

Expand  

That option was already enabled.

  On 11/06/2021 at 11:53, Nick H. said:

Also, go into your Wifi settings, select the three dots and press on the advanced options. Make sure that "Switch to mobile data" it turned on. It will use your mobile data when the wifi connection is slow or unstable. Who knows, that might kick it in to gear...

Expand  

That option is enabled as well. I need to point out that it is only on the home WiFi network that I have the issue. If I am in a store with WiFi it works just fine.

  On 11/06/2021 at 12:59, jnelsoninjax said:

I need to point out that it is only on the home WiFi network that I have the issue. If I am in a store with WiFi it works just fine.

Expand  

Ah, ok! I missed that bit, or thought that it had only been tested on home WiFi and mobile network, not another WiFi.

 

Do you have another mobile device that can send/receive MMS? Does it suffer the same issue?

  On 11/06/2021 at 13:13, Nick H. said:

Ah, ok! I missed that bit, or thought that it had only been tested on home WiFi and mobile network, not another WiFi.

 

Do you have another mobile device that can send/receive MMS? Does it suffer the same issue?

Expand  

The other two people in the house with phones do not seem to have the issue, and they are on different providers, and both are using Pixel 3's. The last time I spoke with Xfinity mobile about this issue they suggested that I should contact Google regarding the issue as they stated that everything is fine on the network side, but this was prior to my diagnosing the issue down to the home WiFi

  On 11/06/2021 at 16:03, jnelsoninjax said:

The other two people in the house with phones do not seem to have the issue, and they are on different providers, and both are using Pixel 3's. The last time I spoke with Xfinity mobile about this issue they suggested that I should contact Google regarding the issue as they stated that everything is fine on the network side, but this was prior to my diagnosing the issue down to the home WiFi

Expand  

That's their fault, not Google's sheesh..

 

Was it working before you switched to your Pixel 4? Or weren't you using Xfinity prior?

  On 11/06/2021 at 17:22, Mindovermaster said:

That's their fault, not Google's sheesh..

 

Was it working before you switched to your Pixel 4? Or weren't you using Xfinity prior?

Expand  

Yes it was working with the Pixel 3a XL, I never noticed the issue until I started using the 4.

sounds like a bug with the Pixel 4 then to me; like the toggle for Wi-Fi Calling in the menu isn't being respected.

 

I'd report it to google if you haven't already. maybe they already have a fix in the works that just hasn't been pushed out yet

  On 11/06/2021 at 17:35, Brandon H said:

sounds like a bug with the Pixel 4 then to me; like the toggle for Wi-Fi Calling in the menu isn't being respected.

 

I'd report it to google if you haven't already. maybe they already have a fix in the works that just hasn't been pushed out yet

Expand  

WiFi calling works just fine, it is just MMS and just on our network, if I switch to mobile network or use any other public WiFi it works fine. Regardless of where the problem is, how would I go about reporting this issue to Google?

  On 11/06/2021 at 17:38, jnelsoninjax said:

WiFi calling works just fine, it is just MMS and just on our network, if I switch to mobile network or use any other public WiFi it works fine. Regardless of where the problem is, how would I go about reporting this issue to Google?

Expand  

that's kind of what I'm getting at though, maybe the MMS protocol isn't honoring the setting causing it to not auto toggle itself to mobile data like it should

 

bugs and issues about pixel devices can be reported with the info here https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/6398243?hl=en

 

definitely odd and since it seems isolated to your device it makes me think maybe a firmware issue with the Pixel 4 rom in combination with something on your network blocking MMS traffic on it.

The 2 other devices on your network as well as your last phone may have been auto toggling themselves to mobile data for MMS if there's something with your network.

 

that's my thought process at least for what may be up

  On 11/06/2021 at 17:43, Brandon H said:

that's kind of what I'm getting at though, maybe the MMS protocol isn't honoring the setting causing it to not auto toggle itself to mobile data like it should

 

bugs and issues about pixel devices can be reported with the info here https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/6398243?hl=en

 

definitely odd and since it seems isolated to your device it makes me think maybe a firmware issue with the Pixel 4 rom in combination with something on your network blocking MMS traffic on it.

The 2 other devices on your network as well as your last phone may have been auto toggling themselves to mobile data for MMS if there's something with your network.

 

that's my thought process at least for what may be up

Expand  

OK, thanks for the link, I submitted feedback via the phone and also posted a question in the forum. Perhaps I will get a response.

  On 11/06/2021 at 17:56, jnelsoninjax said:

OK, thanks for the link, I submitted feedback via the phone and also posted a question in the forum. Perhaps I will get a response.

Expand  

Let us know, bud. :)

  On 11/06/2021 at 18:36, Mindovermaster said:

Let us know, bud. :)

Expand  

Yeah , not a problem, I want this resolved and will gladly share the fix (if any)

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • I have the Tab A9+ also, and I agree with all your points. I really like this tablet.
    • Microsoft changed recall to opt-in some time ago, which seems to still be the case. I personally feel like that is the right move for something like this. You are right, settings that turn themselves back on after an update is totally unacceptable; its weird how that only happened with privacy and advertising related settings...
    • I have a Tab S9 FE and a Tab A9+ which is a lot less expensive. I much prefer the TabA9+. 1. Its display is more landscape while that of the S9 FE is more boxy. 2. They both drain battery at about the same rate of between 7% and 9% an hour depending on how I use them 3. The Tab A9+ charges a lot faster than S9 FE, The S9 FE is better at handling memory, It is faster. They both have 8GB. The TabA9+ does a lot better at handling memory on Android 15, One UI 7.0 than it did on Android 14, One UI 6.1
    • Following rough launch, Splitgate 2 is going back to beta as studio announces layoffs by Pulasthi Ariyasinghe The sequel to the free-to-play arena shooter Splitgate was released just a couple of months ago alongside a surprise Battle Royale mode, but it doesn't look like the launch has gone too well for the studio, 1047 Games. In a lengthy social media post, the developer revealed that it is making some major changes within the company that will also affect its games. The studio said that it agrees with the community regarding Splitgate 2 launching too early with rushed features. Because of this, the title is returning to its beta state. While Splitgate 2 will remain playable, the studio will be deep in development reworking the title behind the scenes until at least early 2026. The soon-landing Season 3 content update is still planned for release. "We're returning not just to our roots in what we build, but in how we build it – with you," said the company. "That means more playtests, more surveys, more listening, and truly being community first. Our goal is to combine the DNA of the first game with the best improvements from the second." The studio also revealed that this shakeup means that it had to cut some team members from the studio. It didn't give an exact number for the roles being cut but said that "we hope to bring them back when we can." In the same vein of keeping costs low, 1047 Games will be shutting down the servers for the original Splitgate within a month's time. "While we'd love to keep servers online indefinitely, it's cost us hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past couple of years, and we have to prioritize our team," added the studio. It said that offline play or peer-to-peer matchmaking for Splitgate are being explored for fans to keep playing, but nothing concrete about these potential options was announced today.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Week One Done
      SmileWorks Dental earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Community Regular
      vZeroG went up a rank
      Community Regular
    • Collaborator
      Snake Doc earned a badge
      Collaborator
    • Week One Done
      Snake Doc earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Johnny Mrkvička earned a badge
      One Month Later
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      587
    2. 2
      Michael Scrip
      199
    3. 3
      ATLien_0
      193
    4. 4
      +FloatingFatMan
      132
    5. 5
      Xenon
      122
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!