How to cancel a text message (SMS) that is being sent

A wrong text or SMS message or sent to the wrong person can create a big problem. Once the button has been pressed Submit there is practically no going back, but if you are fast enough you can cancel a text message that is being sent activating Airplane Mode.

Airplane mode, available in the system settings, “Connections” option (or the button with the figure of an airplane in the quick settings panel), which exists on both Android and iPhone, disable cellular connection (and all wireless connections). Therefore, if you activate it before the “Message sent” notice appears, it will not reach the other person’s phone.

If you have succeeded, you should see an error notice, warning, or “submitting” or “Waiting for connection»Next to the message, which means it has not been sent.

Now before disabling airplane mode, make sure to delete the message first, or else the SMS app may resend the message once the connection is reestablished. Just hold down on the message and tap on the Delete or Delete option.

Unfortunately, a text or SMS message is usually sent very quickly after pressing the button. Submit (in a second or two) so even if you are very fast you will probably not be able to activate the airplane mode in time. This is easier to do with MMS, because it takes longer to send and gives you enough time to activate Airplane Mode.

How to cancel a text message effectively

Above: “Sending Delay” option in Handcent SMS application (left) and “Sending Delay” in Textra SMS (right).

If you usually send text messages and “make mistakes often,” you may want to use an application that allows you to set a sending delay. This option does not normally exist in the messages application that comes with the Android, so you must install an application such as Textra SMS or Handcent SMS that do have this option, in addition to many other advanced SMS functions.

In the configuration of these applications there is the option Time delay O Shipping delay (Delay Sending) where you can set an X number of seconds before an SMS is sent. After tapping on the «Send» button, the application will wait for that amount of seconds (the progress will be displayed on the screen) and then it will send it. During this period, the user can cancel the shipment with the “Stop” or “X” button offered by the application, without having to activate Airplane Mode.

If you couldn’t cancel the text message before it was sent, you won’t be able to erase or delete it once it’s on the other phone or before it is read. This is an advanced feature that is not available in the SMS system and apparently not even in its successor RCS technology.

If you need to delete sent text messages or delete them before they are read, you must send your messages through instant messaging applications that do have this functionality. One of them and that most people use is WhatsApp, which is available for Android and iPhone for free. Here you can delete messages hours or even days after they have been sent.

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