Help a parent work around this iPad messaging phone number obstacle.
October 3, 2022 6:36 AM Subscribe
Here's the situation: I'm trying to set up a new number on my daughter's iPad for sending and receiving text messages on the iPad. She has a Timex smart watch which only allows texting between her and me and her mother...
..She's currently sending messages on the iPad using my email address ( because the iPad has my name and email connected with it ) but I want her to be able to text by using her own phone number, which she has because it came with the smart watch.
The problem is.. when I try to change the phone number for sending and receiving texts on the iPad it sends a verification code to the her new number, but I can't get it because the watch doesn't receive text messages from unknown numbers.
Does any one know of a way to verify the number by another means or work around this?
Thanks in advance.
..She's currently sending messages on the iPad using my email address ( because the iPad has my name and email connected with it ) but I want her to be able to text by using her own phone number, which she has because it came with the smart watch.
The problem is.. when I try to change the phone number for sending and receiving texts on the iPad it sends a verification code to the her new number, but I can't get it because the watch doesn't receive text messages from unknown numbers.
Does any one know of a way to verify the number by another means or work around this?
Thanks in advance.
To the best of my knowledge, iPads do not send SMS messages in and of themselves. Rather, then can do text message forwarding to/from a linked iPhone that has been set up to enable this functionality.
posted by slkinsey at 9:45 AM on October 3, 2022
posted by slkinsey at 9:45 AM on October 3, 2022
Response by poster: To the best of my knowledge, iPads do not send SMS messages in and of themselves. Rather, then can do text message forwarding to/from a linked iPhone that has been set up to enable this functionality.
I think you're right but does it have to be an Apple product? There is a phone number linked to the smart watch but its a Timex watch.
posted by Liquidwolf at 10:06 AM on October 3, 2022
I think you're right but does it have to be an Apple product? There is a phone number linked to the smart watch but its a Timex watch.
posted by Liquidwolf at 10:06 AM on October 3, 2022
Best answer: Yes, the device with the actual number sending/receiving messages has to be an Apple product. When setting up text forwarding, the iPhone settings have to grant "permission" to allow the iPad (or other Apple device) to do the forwarding--which is to say that text forwarding is controlled by the iPhone, not the iPad or other Apple device. This is part of Apple's Continuity functionality. Since the Timex watch is not an Apple product, its settings can't be configured to allow text forwarding to an iPad.
posted by slkinsey at 10:17 AM on October 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by slkinsey at 10:17 AM on October 3, 2022 [1 favorite]
These are all just guesses as I do not have these devices.
Does the watch use a Sim? Can you not just put the sim in another device, send the verification text to it, verify it, and then put it back in the watch?
If not, does the watch run Android? If so, you can download Google Messages and text from that. Then, on the iPad go to messages.google.com to text from it. You can use the same sim swap system above to do this if if the watch doesn't take pictures (you need to take a picture for the linking stage). (I text from my Macbook Air via my Android phone using this system.)
posted by dobbs at 12:09 PM on October 3, 2022
Does the watch use a Sim? Can you not just put the sim in another device, send the verification text to it, verify it, and then put it back in the watch?
If not, does the watch run Android? If so, you can download Google Messages and text from that. Then, on the iPad go to messages.google.com to text from it. You can use the same sim swap system above to do this if if the watch doesn't take pictures (you need to take a picture for the linking stage). (I text from my Macbook Air via my Android phone using this system.)
posted by dobbs at 12:09 PM on October 3, 2022
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