iOS 16: Why editing posts isn’t as fun as you think

iOS 16 allows you to edit a text message. But the change history remains visible to the recipient. There is a more interesting option.

Apple recently introduced the ability to edit messages in iOS 16, allowing you to correct spelling errors in previously sent messages. This is a feature that many of us have wanted for years. Twitter, having recently added the ability to edit their tweets, it was only logical that Apple would offer more or less the same on its iPhone. And today I advise you not to use this new feature.

Why not use post editing?

The main reason can be summarized in one word: history. When Apple released the first developer beta in June, post editing was present but worked differently. If you edited a message with this version, the recipient was notified that the message had been edited, with an “edited”icon visible in the conversation, and that’s it. The recipient could not see the unchanged message.

During the development of iOS 16, Apple changed its feature to include revision history. From now on, when you change a message, the recipient is informed that it has been edited and can view all the changes made.

To do this, he can click on the “Edited”button that appears below any edited post, and he will see all versions of the post displayed above in a lighter blue bubble. If you don’t want the recipient to see the original message, that’s a big problem.

What should you do instead of editing the post

The answer lies in another new feature in iOS 16: Undo Send. Instead of editing a message to fix or delete something that the other person shouldn’t see, simply unsend, rewrite your message, and resend it.

You have less time to cancel a submission (2 minutes) than to change it (15 minutes), but if possible, you should use this option. To cancel sending, press and hold the message, then tap the Undo Send option.

When you unsend a message, no history is saved. The recipient will see that you canceled the send, but they won’t be able to see the canceled message. And if notifications are enabled at home, the corresponding notification will disappear when the message is cancelled.

There is always a risk that the recipient may read your message before you unsend it, but unsending increases the chance that the original text will never be read. This is much better than modifying it, which would leave the history available to the recipient.

If you don’t want the original message to be recorded and viewed and you can take action within two minutes, cancel the send instead of editing it.