Duplicate iMessage streams for same contact different number or sender identity

[rowi1de]

Hello Folks,

this issue is probably as old as not being able to merge AppleIds.

Anyway: If you chat with someone on iMessage and change your number (and the chat contact updated his contact about you), the receiver will still end up with two different message streams on iMessages even it is the same contact. Same if you change your setting of “new conversion form …”

Is there any good reason why people want to see these separate?
I can imagine apple had issues merging this on database level sever side.

However this could be a simple UI / client side toggle to show iMessages of one contact with different sender identities separate or merges.
You could please file this feedback here if you feel the same https://www.apple.com/feedback/

 

[iStorm]

Just speculating here, but I think it partly has to do with how iMessage works. Different devices can be configured to send/receive from different numbers or addresses even if they are all using the same Apple ID.

Say for example, a user wants to use only their phone number with iMessage on their iPhone, and only their email address with iMessage on their iPad (or different number on a separate work/personal iPhone). Don't see why they would want to do that since it could cause confusion for the recipient to have two separate conversation threads, but it's possible. Now let's assume the messages are merged on the recipient's end since it's the same contact. How would Messages know which number or address to send messages to? (i.e. The number/address from the last message received? But what if you know you want to send to the other, or need to start a new conversation? Make the sender pick each time?)

While I think it would be trivial to merge messages from the same contact, it probably introduces another set of problems/challenges to solve.

This used to annoy me too, but now I just think of the conversations as being from a certain number or address, rather than the contact itself...similar to how email works. It's just not as easy to see where the message originated from though, or which conversation to use when replying.

 

[rowi1de]

Same thoughts here, but I think it could be an easy toggle on receiver side per contact or for all iMessage.
Alternative some UI/UX where you drop the message stacks on each other and the receiver device would store the association.
For me personally it’s not a big problem but older family member are always confused by this.

Let me learn some swift and apply at Apple 🤣