Help! Longtime MMS issue on T-Mobile

[anon(10222986)]

I'm hoping one or more of you Droiders can help me out. I have an unlocked Alcatel that runs on Jelly Bean and my plan is through T-Mobile. I bought the phone about a year and a half ago after my non-smart slide phone bit the dust (Ludditesque, I know). I only started to really use it beyond basic means a few months ago and realized after my roommate tried to send me something recently that I have never received a picture text from ANY of contacts (and some have confirmed that they have sent me things). I never received a notification to download or an error message; yet, I can browse the web and my navigation app works great.

Things I have tried:

1. Looking up and using T-Mobile apns for non-LTE phones - no difference
2. Disabling the phone's stock app and trying different messaging apps - I like the look and feel of Textra, but I haven't had any luck even with the T-Mobile fix setting. I tried various others and noticed that Chomp actually sent me a "Non-text Content" sms but that's it.
3. Backing up my data and factory reset in case I did something at some point - no dice
4. Called T-Mobile tech support and was told: to use "https:" when entering the mmsc (didn't work); to soft reset and then hard reset (didn't work); that I should consider upgrading my phone. I also went to my local store and the staff told me that mms won't work because my phone is nonLTE (which really makes no sense to me since my other data capabilities work fine) and suggested I upgrade my phone for "As little as $20 a month!" (because I apparently look like an *****).

Any ideas or suggestions? I am using epc.tmobile.com as my apn since my phone is nonLTE (I think the sim's preset is fast.t-mobile.com) and the T-Mobile mmsc.

Thanks in advance.

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! First, your mobile data is on, right? MMS uses mobile data, not voice signal or wi-fi.

Second, are all of the APN settings correct, as shown here? What are the APN settings for T-Mobile? | Android Central

 

[anon(10222986)]

I don't have the WAP 2.0 option, so I just left it as is (default is IPv4, which is the only option as there is that one radio button).
I have all of the other settings, except port 80--that isn't on the default APN. I've configured it into a new APN before without a result but will try again. I am using Textra with the auto feature that turns on data when receiving an mms.

 

[zuben el genubi]

Do you have a default messaging app with MMS? If so, try that. If it works, use it. You can also try Google's messaging.
Did you buy that Alcatel through TMO? We have their TMO flip. (other half's phone)

I can have all kinds of fits with Textra, Chomp, with TMO. I keep losing their paid notices when I pay the damn bill. I've had them quit totally on a different phone.

I only buy unlocked - right now it's Moto. I had an Oppo which worked just fine until TMO reengineered everything back in 11/15. I've had problems since.

 

[anon(10222986)]

@Zuben I was using the default app on the phone and it supports MMS, but I've never received anything. No, it's an unlocked I purchased elsewhere.


I sent a text to myself via email and received a download link, but so far none of the other picture messages have come through.

 

[anon(10222986)]

Tried again this morning, but no go.

Here are my settings. MMS port for both apns is set to 80.

 

[Rukbat]

The APN protocol being IPv4 may make the phone unable to receive MMS. (And if you can't change it to WAP 2.0, you can't - and you can't receive MMS. That's one of the problems with buying a phone designed for one carrier and using it on another - "unlocked" only means that it will accept the new carrier's SIM card, it doesn't mean that the phone will work with the new carrier.)

 

[anon(10222986)]

That doesn't make sense. There are phones that do not have the option to use WAP 2.0 and those work fine. Also, a number of people have posted in forums about having to switch off ipv6 to ipv4 to get mms to work.

I can send picture messages to myself and others, I am just not receiving.

I deleted the two apns that I made (pictured above) and am using just one. I didn't set an apn type and I have the port set to 80. Fingers crossed, droiders.

 

[zuben el genubi]

If it still doesn't work you will have to get TFORCE to help. They are on both Facebook and Twitter.
They might tell you to install the TMO app, but you don't need it.

Like I said, I have trouble with an unlocked Moto with TMO's own stuff.