I have mobile phone service with Verizon Wireless and I'm having trouble text messaging (sms) to my wife's mobile phone in Siberia. I recently called Verizon and had them switch on international calling feature and I added the $3.95 per month international calling option as well. But I still can't send her text messages. I'm pretty certain she can sms to a relative living in the US so I don't know if it's her phone service or mine that's the problem.

Anyone have some help or advice to offer? thanks!

Hi,

I have been calling and sending SMS to my wife for the last 5 years in Siberia. I have T-Mobile and don't know what company she have. What I do know is both T-mobile and phone system in Russia use GSM and SMS is instant. Sometimes I even travel in the US/Europe and she text me and those are SMS are instant.

Maybe Verizon got CDMA which may have an issue with the gateway to GSM. Try a GSM phone (Cingular, T-mobile) and see if it works.

AXP101

If you can call her, just send the SMS to the same number already programmed in your phone. If that doesn't work, the problem may be on her end.

SMS messages do not depend on CDMA or GSM issues. CDMA phones can SMS GSM phones and viseversa. You can send an SMS from a computer.

My husband and I do that. His mobile has a @vtext.com address so he texts my email address and I email his phone. It's very nice considering those texts are covered in his monthly plan Also, all of them are saved in Outlook so they will be nice to show as evidence at my interview... we have roughly 10,000 of them in the time we've known each other so I'll really need to pick and choose which ones to screenprint

I also have Verizon and problems with SMS to Russia. Being short of patience with Verizon customer service, I signed up at ipipi.com (disclosure: I am in no way affiliated with them, other than as a customer) and I use that to send her SMS messages (in Russian or English, my choice). Not the ideal solution and I should follow up with Verizon since I have to pay to use ipipi, but it's an alternative.

Called Verizon Tech Support. They told me I can't text message Russia.

Did they tell you why?

Find out what company she uses and go to their website. Beeline, MTS, and the others have an easy system for sending SMS from your computer to her phone, and it is free to send.

Well, there was some Tech talk about this and that but basically Russia was not on a list of countries capable of receiving sms using Verizon vtext. There was something about their overseas carrier not supporting sms in Russia. Looks like Verizon is the worst US mobile phone company when it comes to sms to Russia.

Thanks for the suggestions. Her mobile phone company is Yenisey Telcom but I can't find a web site and if I do it's probably in Russian. I see it's good to sms via a computer but she can't sms me back so I don't see this as a full solution...unless I'm missing something.

Guess she doesn't have easy access to a computer. She could send you an SMS using the verizon SMS web page.

My wife works long hours without access to the internet. So she could only use a computer to sms me late in the evening...not very helpful.