Pixel 3 Won’t Send Pictures – What to Do

When Google Pixel 3 came out, a lot of users were impressed with its camera quality. Before Pixel 4 was released, it had one of the best smartphone cameras you could find. And for people who like making high-quality photos, this is the phone of their choice.

So, how would you feel after capturing an amazing moment in a photo, if you couldn’t send it with your Pixel 3? You might scratch your head and wonder why. And you’d surely want to know how to fix the issue.

Pixel 3 MMS Issue

Sending pictures and videos with a smartphone is common practice. People post pictures on social media platforms all the time. But even the ones who don’t, send photos to their friends and family. All of the messaging apps have that feature, but also every phone with a functional SIM card has the option to send and receive MMS.

MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging Service, which means that you can combine pictures and text. Every smartphone already has this feature within the default SMS/MMS app, and the same applies to Pixel 3. But you’ve tried using it and it won’t send pictures via MMS. Here are some things you can do.

Enable Mobile Data

When you’re using a third-party messaging app, you’re probably going to rely on Wi-Fi connection more often than mobile data. Especially when trying to send a picture or a video. But for MMS, you have to use mobile data.

Therefore, if you’re trying to send a picture with your Pixel 3, make sure that you’re not connected to Wi-Fi first. In case you’re not, then make sure that your phone’s mobile data feature is on. Go to Settings and check that the mobile data switch is on. Then you’re ready to send your MMS.

APN Settings

If your phone is connected to your network provider but you’re still experiencing issues with sending a picture via MMS, then it’s time to check your APN Settings. APN is short for Access Point Name and it’s the gateway from your provider’s network to the internet.

It’s possible that you don’t have the APN settings in your Pixel 3. And to remedy this, you have to call your provider’s customer service or tech support and ask for the correct APN settings. Without this, your phone won’t be able to connect to mobile data.

Also, if you’re on a prepaid phone plan, you might be out of credit. Therefore, check your balance as well as your APN settings. Sending a picture via MMS might cost more than sending a regular SMS.

File Too Large

Creating great quality pictures with your Pixel 3 sounds fun, but that excellent photo might be too big for MMS. If the attachments are too large, the MMS is unlikely to go through. No one likes compromising the quality of the photo by resizing it, but if you’re looking to send the picture via MMS, you might have to.

But before resizing the picture, test the theory out by sending another MMS with a much smaller file size. If that one goes through, then proceed with the resizing. If it doesn’t, then something else is causing the problem.

Reboot Your Phone

There’s a chance that the reason your Pixel 3 won’t send pictures is a minor glitch that can be fixed with a simple reboot. If you tried everything and know for sure all the settings are correct, then go ahead and restart it.

These glitches happen and it’s not a serious problem. Give your phone a few minutes and then try sending the MMS again. Chances are this simple “trick” will fix all the picture sending woes.

Third-Party Apps

If all else fails (and it shouldn’t), you can always try downloading a messaging app and sending the picture that way. Sure, you have to be certain that the person you want to send the picture too is also using that app. SMS is universal for all mobile phones, Skype, Telegram, and WhatsApp are not.

You can also just email them the picture if it sounds easier. Granted, this doesn’t fix the MMS issue, but it can help you do what you need to at the moment.

Sending Pictures Is a Must

It doesn’t matter if you use MMS to send pictures or not, you still want the APN Settings properly set up in your Pixel 3 smartphone. Even if you only use other messaging apps to send pictures, when you’re not in the proximity of Wi-Fi, you’ll need mobile data. Also, make sure you’re not sending pictures that are too large, and don’t forget to give your phone a reboot if necessary.

Have you ever experienced picture sending issues with Pixel? What was your experience? Let us know in the comments section below.