My message arrived in several pieces

An SMS carries only 140 bytes. Beyond that, the message is split into segments transmitted independently and then reassembled by the recipient's mobile. This reassembly almost always succeeds, but it relies on the handset, which explains the displays in several pieces.

The causes, from the most common to the rarest

1. 1

   The text exceeds the capacity of a single SMS

   160 characters in GSM-7, or only 70 as soon as a character outside the alphabet is present. Beyond this threshold, splitting triggers on its own.

2. 2

   Each segment sacrifices a bit of space

   The header used to reassemble the parts takes 6 bytes per segment: only 153 usable characters therefore remain per piece in GSM-7, and 67 in UCS-2.

3. 3

   The recipient's mobile didn't reassemble the parts

   Some older handsets, or an incomplete reception, show the segments one by one instead of a single text.

4. 4

   The segments arrived out of order

   The pieces each travel on their own. If one lags, the display can remain partial for a while.

Steps to follow

1. 1

   Gauge your message before sending it

   The character counter states the exact number of segments and the chosen encoding, even before the message departs.

2. 2

   Remove what forces UCS-2

   A single emoji lowers the limit from 160 to 70 characters for the whole message, which multiplies the number of segments.

3. 3

   Shorten rather than let it split

   A text that fits in a single part arrives as one block and depends on no reassembly operation.

4. 4

   Split it yourself if needed

   Two brief messages sent one after the other read better than a long text whose reassembly failed.

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