Alternative Messaging App That Allows Replies Through Gear S???

[Therealm80]

Am I really stuck with the stock messaging app? Are there others that will allow me to reply the same way as I do with stock?
Thanks

 

[mike almodovar]

Also curious about this one...

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[mike almodovar]

There is an app on app store called "gear s notification extender" seems to be working so far. Using textra at the moment, and am able to read and reply from watch just like stock messaging app...

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Therealm80]

Worked like a charm. Thanks! That is a great app. Using textra.

Posted via the Android Central App via my amazing Note 4.

 

[mrsmoore78]

I didn't have any luck with this app on Go SMS Pro, which I paid $20 for to have access to all of the layouts. Now I can't even use it anymore. My biggest beef with my Gear S (other than crappy battery life) is the lack of text messaging options. I hate the stock Samsung messaging app and it seems for now I am stuck with it. Interested to see if anyone has figured something else out.

 

[mountainbikermark]

I use Handcent text app with no problem to reply to texts. To initiate one I must use the stock app but replying works fine both when tethered to the phone and when remotely connected. No special notification app from anywhere.
I chose Handcent as default on my phone, turned off notifications for stock app and on for Handcent in my Gear Manger. If I initiate a text using the stock one on my watch it uses the number associated with the S not my phones number but it is a work around for times I need to initiate a text when away from my phone.
Hope that helps

 

[mrsmoore78]

Worked like a charm. Thanks! That is a great app. Using textra.

Posted via the Android Central App via my amazing Note 4.

Does this also work for group MMS? I have several group conversations with my husband and kids and when I use the notifications for Go SMS Pro it won't show me conversations unless they are just SMS between two people.

 

[toddkageals]

Yeah.... the watches ability to handle MMS is a major problem for me too. If I get group messages, I get separated messages and some only show part of the message (like some parts of the group don't exist). This is made even more strange by the fact that the entire conversation will appear on the phone, but not on the watch. This would SEEM to be an easy fix. Please Samsung.... get this fixed!

 

[skatergirl]

I just got my watch today, wahoo, and I downloaded the extender but I am still not getting my texts through Textra. I must be doing something wrong.

 

[mountainbikermark]

I just got my watch today, wahoo, and I downloaded the extender but I am still not getting my texts through Textra. I must be doing something wrong.

In Gear Notification Extender tap here

Make sure GNE is checked

In GNE tap Choose Additional Notifications

and check Textra.
In Textra make sure you're not using Textra when you get a notification or it won't show up in the bar then push to your watch.
Make sure to uncheck Textra in Gear Manager notifications.
If you've done all that and it still isn't working please post back.

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[skatergirl]

Thank you for all the screen shots. I am getting the notifications but cannot read any of the messages. Is that the way this app is supposed to work?

 

[mountainbikermark]

Can you take a screen shot or 2 and post here if my below suggestion doesn't work?
It might be you need to check these boxes

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[skatergirl]

Still not getting the actual text messages

 

[BarryH_GEG]

Still not getting the actual text messages

The biggest difference between Android Wear and Samsung's wearables are that the latter are highly dependent on using a Samsung-supported device and Samsung's core apps (EG: e-mail, mms) to get full two-way functionality. Samsung's Gear S apps are "full fledged" stand-alone apps which in the case of text and e-mail allow you to do pretty much what you do on the equivelant Samsung smartphone app incuding using them remotely. Android Wear is pretty much built on a Google centric "advisement model" where the OS, Google's core apps, and third party apps pop-up snippets of contextual info based on your preferences and an individual app's capabilities. Most don't offer anyting approaching the two-way functionality Samsung's core apps on the Gear provide.

The quandry for Gear S owners is that to take full full advantage of its comprehensiveness and capabilities they need to be using Samsung's core apps on a Gear-supported Samsung smartphone. Half the threads, posts, and discussion in this forum are from people trying to connect non-Samsung phones to a Gear and/or trying to replicate the functionality of Samsung's core Gear apps like the instructions above provide. I use (and like) Samsung's core smartphone apps so don't have the issues people are trying to work-around. If I didn't have a Samsung phone and/or use their core apps I'd be on Android Wear. It's an uphill battle trying to make the Gear S work with third party apps and in the end what you end up with is inferior and less integrated than Android Wear.

To each their own.

 

[mountainbikermark]

The biggest difference between Android Wear and Samsung's wearables are that the latter are highly dependent on using a Samsung-supported device and Samsung's core apps (EG: e-mail, mms) to get full two-way functionality. Samsung's Gear S apps are "full fledged" stand-alone apps which in the case of text and e-mail allow you to do pretty much what you do on the equivelant Samsung smartphone app incuding using them remotely. Android Wear is pretty much built on a Google centric "advisement model" where the OS, Google's core apps, and third party apps pop-up snippets of contextual info based on your preferences and an individual app's capabilities. Most don't offer anyting approaching the two-way functionality Samsung's core apps on the Gear provide.

The quandry for Gear S owners is that to take full full advantage of its comprehensiveness and capabilities they need to be using Samsung's core apps on a Gear-supported Samsung smartphone. Half the threads, posts, and discussion in this forum are from people trying to connect non-Samsung phones to a Gear and/or trying to replicate the functionality of Samsung's core Gear apps like the instructions above provide. I use (and like) Samsung's core smartphone apps so don't have the issues people are trying to work-around. If I didn't have a Samsung phone and/or use their core apps I'd be on Android Wear. It's an uphill battle trying to make the Gear S work with third party apps and in the end what you end up with is inferior and less integrated than Android Wear.

To each their own.

Ummm
Others are having it work just fine. It's just a matter of figuring out what is going on. When I first got Textra it didn't work with my S but uninstalling Android Webserver update on my phone fixed it. A later update to the aforementioned app fixed the bugs introduced in its initial release and new bloatware on lollipop

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[skatergirl]

What I might end up doing is when I need to read a message on the watch, just let it default to the sammy app and when I get back to my phone go back to textra. It is a little bit of a pain, but not that big of a deal. I used to use the stock app until the interface turned orange with Lollipop. That is when I switched to Textra and Textra has a few nice features that the stock app does not have, like unique signatures for different people.

 

[mountainbikermark]

What I might end up doing is when I need to read a message on the watch, just let it default to the sammy app and when I get back to my phone go back to textra. It is a little bit of a pain, but not that big of a deal. I used to use the stock app until the interface turned orange with Lollipop. That is when I switched to Textra and Textra has a few nice features that the stock app does not have, like unique signatures for different people.

Is Textra the default app on your phone now? If not that could explain it as well.


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[BarryH_GEG]

Ummm
Others are having it work just fine.

"Just fine" is in the eye of the beholder. For those that are happy managing apps and functions on their phone as notifications on their Gear that's totally cool. For me, having real apps on my Gear with more functions and control makes sticking to Samsung's core smartphone/Gear apps the better option. The reason for my original post was so people coming in to the party late know that there's a difference between the two.

 

[skatergirl]

Is Textra the default app on your phone now? If not that could explain it as well.


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Yes, Textra is my default texting app.

 

[mountainbikermark]

Yes, Textra is my default texting app.

Can you post a screen shot of what you're getting on the watch?
To take a screen shot swipe your screen from left to right while holding the power button. To transfer it to the phone open the watch gallery, long press the photos you want to send, tap the icon on lower left. They'll send and you can see them in the "Gear" folder in your phones gallery.

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