How to stop your iPhone audio messages from vanishing—and keep them forever!The Problem: Show
You receive an important or touching audio message on your iPhone. Later, you decide you’d like to listen to it again. You tap the Messages app, expecting the audio message to be there, but (to your dismay), it’s already vanished. Apple has expired your audio message! The Solution: In this article, I'll explain how you can stop your audio messages from disappearing and how to export them out of the Messages app to use elsewhere. But first, let's review some basics: How to listen & reply to your audio messages?By default, the iPhone is set up to play all incoming audio messages using a feature called ‘Raise to Listen.’ It’s incredibly simple to use:
Audio messages will play when you tap on the triangular play icon. You can respond to a message by tapping on the soundwave icon inside the message reply field. How to save iPhone audio messages?You can save any audio message you’ve received on your iPhone by using one of these simple methods: The ‘Keep’ button
The disadvantage of using ‘Keep’ is that it’s easy to forget to save the file, and you need to remember to save each message to prevent them from expiring. By default, messages expire 2 minutes after you listen to them. Once they do, there’s no way to retrieve them. A better alternative to separately saving each message is to head into the iPhone ‘Settings’ menu and remove the time limit altogether. This simple change will ensure you can keep your audio messages available indefinitely. Here’s how: How to change the default audio message settings?
Where are audio messages saved?If you have an iOS version earlier than iOS 12, your saved audio files will be in the Voice Memos app. To access them:
Your audio messages will now be visible inside the Voice Memos app. Audio messages in Voice Memos are relatively easy to move, archive and share. Unfortunately, Apple has slightly nixed that option in subsequent versions of iOS. Audio messages on iOS 12 & laterVoice messages received on iPhones running iOS 12 and beyond behave as if they were secret messages delivered to agents in a ‘Mission Impossible’ movie! 🕵️ Unless you save them, they automatically ‘self-destruct’ 2 minutes after listening to them! This process is designed to save storage space and protect your privacy. However, that consideration won’t resolve your frustration when you lose an important audio message because you forgot to save it! Exporting voice messages using the Notes appUltimately, neither the ‘Keep’ function nor housing your audio voice messages inside the Messages app may be the solution you’re seeking. What if you want to move your saved audio files outside of the Messages app altogether? Perhaps you want to use the messages creatively, or maybe, you’d like to archive them on a secure drive that only you control. Fortunately, this is relatively simple to do. You’ll begin by using a Long-Press inside the ‘Messages’ app. Here’s how it works:
FAQ’sWhere do saved messages go on my iPhone?All saved messages are stored on iOS 12 and later in the Messages app. But, if you’re running a version of iOS earlier than version 12, they will be stored in the Voice Memos app. How do I know when someone has heard my audio message?Once the person you sent the audio message to has listened to it, the word ‘Played’ will appear underneath the message. If they save the message, you will receive a notification informing you. NB: This notification also appears if they have used ‘Settings’ to override the default message expiry time. Can I unsend a voice message on my iPhone?No. You cannot delete an audio message once you’ve sent it to someone else. Deleting it from your device will not affect its existence o theirs. Instead, you’re better advised to delete the message before sending it. ConclusionWe hope you now feel more confident using your iPhone’s audio messaging capabilities. Voice messaging is a super helpful way to communicate with your contacts when you don’t have time to type a long reply. Don’t forget to check out Notta’s free Chrome extension. It’s a great way to record audio on the web. Having transcripts of all the YouTube videos and tutorials you watch is a wonderful way to help you remember what you learn! How long can a voice recording go on iPhone?We see that you have a question about the recording limit with Voice Memos app, and we'd like to help! The only limit that you'll have is the amount of storage you have left on your device. You should be able to record until your storage eventually runs out.
How do you send a voice memo on iPhone that is too long?You need to get the voice memo file to your computer, then upload it to a cloud, then share the link for your recipient to download it. If you are not a iCloud Mail user, you can use any other cloud drive to upload and then share the link - many here use DropBox <http://dropbox.com> as do I - often.
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