Frequently Asked Questions
Mobile
Does the type of characters I use in my text messages (SMS) affect the cost?
Using different character sets
Generally, the standard setting on handsets is to use a basic character set. This allows you to choose from a limited set of characters when writing your text message.
Using this basic character set you can send up to 160 characters in a text message and this counted/charged as one text message.
However, this basic set of characters does not have characters such as á or é and other characters used by some languages including Irish, Chinese, Arabic, Thai, Cyrillic, etc.
To be able to select from a wider range of characters you must change the setting on your phone to an extended character set.
When you change your text message settings to this setting you then may limit the number of characters that can fit in one text message to 70.
For example, if you wish to send a text message including the extended character á instead of a you will reduce the number of characters technically possible to send in the message to 70.
Setting up the character set
Depending on your handset, the setting to change the text message character set is found in text message settings. It may be called ‘character encoding’ or ‘data coding’ and you may be asked to choose from full support/UCS2 or reduced support / 7-bit.
Counting the characters in a message
Your handset may also help you to count the number of characters in your message and the total available as you type your message.
For example, on the Nokia E52, when you start to type your message it shows that 160 characters are left; if you type á then the number left reduces to 70. While the handset does not stop you from typing when the maximum characters for one text message has been reached, it does indicate how many messages would be necessary to accommodate the text currently typed.
When the message you send goes over more than one message the additional messages will be charged/counted. When your messages arrive at the destination handset they are generally put together by the handset into one message.
If, after consulting with your handset’s user manual, you are still unsure about the settings on your handset you should contact the shop/service provider where you purchased your handset.
