Forget about relying on your iPhone to text by learning how to send and receive messages with your iPad instead.
Are you tired of having to keep your iPhone by your side to ensure you don't miss any important text messages? Luckily, there's a simple way you can set up your iPad to send and receive text messages instead.
Using iCloud, Apple offers an easy option to synchronize your texts from your iPhone to your iPad, allowing you to send and receive messages from either device. The following steps will have you set up to do so in no time.
Before You Begin
You need to ensure that you have access to both of your devices, as you'll need to adjust the settings to sync your iPhone and iPad together.
Also, your iPhone will need to be turned on and connected to Wi-Fi or a cellular network. This is because texts you send from your iPad will route through the iPhone.
You also need to ensure that you're signed in to iMessage with the same Apple ID on both devices. Do so with the following steps:
- Open the Settings app.
- Tap Sign in to your [Device].
- Enter your Apple ID username and password.
- If prompted, enter the six-digit verification code sent to your trusted device or phone number and complete sign in.
Now that you have your devices, and are logged in with the same Apple ID, you're ready to begin.
Step 1. Set Up Your iPhone
You must first ensure your iPhone is configured to allow for message forwarding. Here's how:
- Open Settings on your iPhone.
- Select Messages.
- Turn on iMessage with the toggle if it is not already on.
- Next select Text Message Forwarding.
- Choose which devices can send and receive text messages from your iPhone.
- If you're not using two-factor authentication for your Apple ID, a verification code appears on each of your other devices: enter that code on your iPhone. If you are using two-factor authentication you can skip this step.
Step 2. Set Up Your iPad
Every message you send and receive on your iPad is saved in iCloud. You must ensure Messages for iCloud is turned on for your iPad. Here is how to do so:
- Open Settings on your iPad.
- Select your Apple ID account name.
- Select iCloud.
- Turn on Messages.
Texting From Your iPhone or Your iPad Made Easy
Now that you have everything set up, all you need to do is open the Messages app on your iPad to see all your conversations or start a new one as you usually would on the iPhone.
No more carrying all of your devices around to ensure you don’t miss any important text messages, as long as your iPhone is turned on and connected to Wi-Fi or a cellular network.
For anyone who uses both iPhone and iPad for communication, it’s necessary to sync contacts and messages across devices to keep important information up to date. Thus you can continue a conversation from the device you want.
Fortunately, Apple Message service is full of features and can help users sync messages between Apple devices easily. All you have to do is to modify certain parameters on your device. It can not only help you sync iMessages, but also help you forward SMS and MMS messages.
► For anyone who wants to transfer old text messages from iPhone to iPad:
Apple Messages service can only transfer one conversation each time. If you want to transfer multiple or all conversations at once, you can move to
Part 2 to get the method.
Part 1. How to Sync Text Messages from iPhone to iPad
Part 2. Quick Way to Transfer Old Text Messages from iPhone to iPad
Part 1. How to Sync Messages from iPhone to iPad
Apple makes it easy enough to help users sync messages across multiple devices. As long as you turn on the correct control keys, iMessages and text messages will be transferred from iPhone to iPad. You can set it to sync new iMessages, SMS/MMS messages, or old messages. Detailed steps are as follows.
How to Sync iMessage from iPhone to iPad
1. Make sure that your iPhone and iPad are signed in to iCloud with the same Apple ID.
2. On Your iPhone: Go to Settings > Tap Messages > Turn on iMessage option.
3. Tap Send & Receive option,
Make sure that it’s the Apple ID used on your iPhone/iPad for iMessage.
Confirm the phone number or email address to send/receive messages.
It’s recommended to just use the phone number to send/receive messages. This can prevent confusion and avoid accidentally syncing messages to one device.
4. Do the same above on iPad to turn on the iMessage sync, set your phone number/email address. Please remember to select the same item for the Start new conversations from option as on the iPhone.
How to Sync Text Messages from iPhone to iPad
1. Make sure that your iPhone and iPad are using the same Apple ID.
2. On your iPhone: Go to Settings > Messages > Text Message Forwarding.
3. Here you can choose the device that can send and receive text messages from your iPhone. To sync text messages to iPad, you should turn on the option for iPad.
How to Sync Old Messages from iPhone to iPad
1. Touch and hold the message bubble that you want to forward > Choose More option.
2. Select any other text messages that you want to forward.
3. Tap the Foward option and enter a recipient.
4. Tap the Send button.
Part 2. Quick Way to Transfer Old Text Messages from iPhone to iPad
If you want a quick way to transfer old text messages and iMessages from iPhone to iPad, you can rely on a third-party transfer tool. It is able to transfer a large number of messages at once, saving you time and energy.
FoneTool is recommended here. It’s one professional iOS data backup & transfer tool for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. It supports transferring SMS, MMS, iMessages, contacts, photos, videos, songs, and more between two iDevices, between iDevice and computer.
Two steps to complete
the transfer:
① Backup messages on old iPhone
② Restore the backup files to the new iPhone
You can select the messages you want to backup and restore. Most of all, there is no need to reset your new iPhone and it will not erase any existing data.
How to Transfer Old Text Messages from iPhone to iPad
1. Download, install and launch FoneTool> Connect your iPhone to computer via USB cable > Tap Trust.
2. Choose Phone Backup > Locate Selective Backup option and click Get Started > Choose Messages to select the iMessages or text messages you need > Click OK to confirm.
3. Click Start Backup to begin the process.
4. Unplug your iPhone and connect iPad to computer > Go to the Backup History screen > Click the three-dot and choose Restore option, preview and confirm the messages that will be transferred to iPad > Finally, click Start Restore.
Conclusion
That’s all for how to transfer messages from iPhone to iPad. The Apple Message service can help you sync iMessages and SMS/MMS messages. It can even help you forward old text messages to iPad, one conversation at a time.
If you prefer an efficient way to transfer old text messages from iPhone to iPad - no need to select the message you want to transfer one by one, then FoneTool is a better choice.