Picture Messages

There are several ways to send picture messages. The most popular ways are sending Nokia Smart Messaging pictures and sending pics taken with camera phones.

Even though sending plain text is convenient, sending pictures is the big thing. For example, already, Sprint Vision customers with camera phones are sending, on average, more than 15 pics per month.

How Can You Start Sending Picture Messages?

Whatever your cell phone is, chances are that the phone is capable of picture messaging.

Virtually all current Nokia phones are either capable of sending Smart Messaging pictures or MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service) based GIF quality pictures with text and sound.

If you have selected Motorola, Siemens, or Sony Ericsson phones, you can send pictures with either EMS (Enhanced Messaging Service) that combines ringtones, pictures and text, or with MMS, both of which are supported in most models.

As for other manufacturers’ phones, many are also capable of taking pictures with internal cameras and sending them forward.

Furthermore, you’ll need a cell phone plan that makes it possible to send and download pictures.

Different Levels of Picture Message Quality

The first level of quality are pictures done with SMS. These are just text characters formatted as picture.

One level above this you’ll find Nokia Smart Messaging pictures that you can send forward. However, even these messages are based on SMS technology, so they are pretty simple.

About the same level of quality is represented with EMS pictures, which have the option for you to add ringtones and text to a picture. You won’t find these in Nokia phones as the standard is a competing one to Nokia’s Smart Messaging.

The best picture messaging format lets you send GIF/JPEG quality pictures and video. There are two ways to send the pictures.

First, either you have a phone capable of downloading pictures and/or a camera phone capable of taking pictures. Then, you have to have ability to send these pictures as picture messages.

The basic phones in this category are capable of just sending the pictures without any added features such as text.

However, some phones are able to combine text and sound/voice to the pictures. These advanced services are called MMS messaging, and they’re commonly seen as the next evolution (third generation) from EMS messages.