Trouble initiating group texts

[aysiu]

I'm using Hangouts as my default SMS app, and I recently switched to Project Fi, but even before that I was having this issue, so I don't think it's a Fi-related.

If someone else initiates a group text that I'm part of, and I reply, everyone gets my reply back as part of the group text.

If, however, I initiate the group text from the Hangouts app, it sends as individual texts instead of as a group text.

I've already checked my Hangouts settings, and I have Use MMS to send a single message when there are multiple recipients enabled.

So two questions:

1. Has anyone else experienced this?

2. If anyone else has, what's the fix if the fix exists?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[aysiu]

This is kind of a fringe scenario, so I'm not surprised it went unanswered. But in case anyone else comes across this, it's a weird situation of Google not playing well with itself.

Basically, I have a Project Fi phone. If one of the people I initiating a group-text with also happened to be a Google Voice number (forwarding to a regular mobile number), all the messages would send as individual ones.

The other side effect of this was that if I texted (even an individual text) to a Google Voice number (forwarding to a regular mobile number), and the recipient texted back a photo, I would never get the photo. The photo would just disappear into the ether. I could, however, successfully text photos to the Google Voice number, and the recipient would get my photos. And I could get texted photos directly from the regular mobile number (not as a reply forwarded from Google Voice).

So I would say if you have this issue and stumbled across this thread, use regular mobile numbers for group texts and photos (or expected photos), not Google Voice numbers, especially with Project Fi (I'm actually pretty sure now my original post was wrong, and I was not experiencing this problem before Fi).