The answer, quite simply, is "Yes! Outlook Can Send Text Messages!"
And, how it's done is really quite simple.
More and more, people are working on their phones. And, if you're like me, phone is sometimes the quickest way to get hold of me. Or, if I'm on vacation and may not have my laptop out or available (hopefully not, because you should be on vacation), you can send me information to my phone using this technique. Or, maybe you have a sick child and had to hurry out to pick them up from school or daycare and forgot to grab your laptop on the way out of work. There are a few occasions where this can be a helpful tip.
I would only say to do this in an emergency, but it is helpful. If someone needs me to review something quickly, instead of calling me to let me know I need to check my email (which still may not be readily available), I can have them send the information from their email to my phone as a text message. This really has saved things from becoming urgent for me in the past.
So, how do you use Outlook to Send a Text Message?
Here's how:
With Outlook open, click NEW Email to open a New Email Dialog box.
Instead of entering the person's email address, you will enter their 10-digit phone number.
Then, you will need to know their carrier's gateway domain to add the phone number.
A list of some of the popular carriers and their gateways, for both SMS and MMS, are listed below.
NOTE: If the person is able to receive messages with images and other multimedia, you will need to use the MMS carrier gateway.
For example, see the screenshot below.
If I wanted to Outlook to send a text message to someone with the phone number 602-555-1111 and whose phone carrier is Verizon, I would enter: 6025551111@vzwpix.com (this is the format for Outlook to Send a Text Message via email.
If you do not know the person's phone number, you can do one of two things:
1) Ask them for their phone number and their carrier. You would then type the correct format as I've shown above.
OR
2) Have them send you a text message to your email address. The "From" address will be their text message address, with the carrier gateway already listed for you.
It really is that simple!
Now, if you don't want to have to remember this information for future needs, you can create a Contact Card for this person with their SMS or MMS Text Message address.
The next time you're in a crunch, remember that you don't always have to have your laptop with you or have your email attached to your phone. Simply have the person send you the email you need to read via text!
Top Phone Carrier SMS & MMS Gateway List:
AT&T
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@txt.att.net
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mms.att.net
Boost Mobile
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@sms.myboostmobile.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@myboostmobile.com
Cricket Wireless
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mms.cricketwireless.net
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mms.cricketwireless.net
Google Fi
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@msg.fi.google.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@msg.fi.google.com
Metro PCS
SMS: [insert 10-digital number]@mymetropcs.com
Republic Wireless
SMS: [insert 10-digital number]@text.republicwireless.com
Sprint
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@messaging.sprintpcs.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@pm.sprint.com
Straight Talk
SMS: [insert 10-digital number]@vtext.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mypixmessages.com
T-Mobile
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@tmomail.net
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@tmomail.net
Tracfone
SMS: [depends on underlying carrier]
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mmst5.tracfone.com
U.S. Cellular
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@email.uscc.net
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@mms.uscc.net
Verizon
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@vtext.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@vzwpix.com
Virgin Mobile
SMS: [insert 10-digit number]@vmobl.com
MMS: [insert 10-digit number]@vmpix.com
Xfinity Mobile
SMS: number@vtext.com
MMS: number@mypixmessages.com
I hope this tip can save you time if you're ever in a crunch and need to use Outlook to send a text message!
If you'd like to find more time saving tips, download my "65 Ways to Use MS Office to be More Productive" eBook.
