Apple has made some significant modifications to the Messages app in iOS 16 and included certain functionality that competing third-party messaging systems have long had. The ability to modify iMessage in iOS 16 is one of these modifications. Read on to see how it works.
Almost everyone who has a smartphone may relate to the scenario in which you send a text message only to instantly discover that an innocent error has changed the message’s meaning. The issue with Apple’s iMessage service is that once a message was sent using earlier iterations of iOS, there was nothing you could do to stop it.
In iOS 16, that is not the case. For the first time, Apple enables the editing of messages up to 15 minutes after they have been sent.
There are certain limitations to the functionality that you should be aware of before using the edit function described below. First off, because it only works with iMessage and not SMS messages, both parties must own an iPhone for it to be functional.
Additionally, in order to use the message editing capability, participants must be running the most recent versions of iOS 16, iPadOS 16, macOS Ventura, and watchOS 9. When receiving an altered iMessage, those using Android or an older version of iOS will see text that reads “Edited to [text]”.
Third, and for some, most significantly, when you modify a message, the receiver also receives the edit history, making the original text available. The little blue “Altered” label on an edited message may be tapped to see the edit history, which can then be hidden again by pressing on Hide Edits.
In light of the above, here is how to change an iMessage that has already been sent on an iPhone or iPad running iOS 16 or iPadOS 16.
- Open the conversation thread containing the sent message that you wish to change in the Messages app.
- To edit a sent message, hold down the mouse button on it. The message was sent more than 15 minutes ago, so you cannot change it if you don’t see the option.
- From the pop-over menu, choose Edit.
- Make the adjustments you want, then press the blue tick to the right to confirm with a tap. Tap the grey X on the left if you decide not to alter the message.
If you want to know how to cancel an iMessage then check out our how-to page.