Android KitKat 4.4 Hangouts cannot handle Sending SMS intent

Question

Code for sending sms that worked perfectly until Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) and stopped working since 4.4 (KitKat)

I\'m just preparing the text message for the user, b

Answer 1

Combining the proposed solutions, the following provides presetting the recipient and the text.

Intent intent;
if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) // Android 4.4 and up
{
    String defaultSmsPackageName = Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(activity);

    intent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_SENDTO, Uri.parse("smsto:" + Uri.encode(toContact.toString())));
    intent.putExtra("sms_body", text);

    if (defaultSmsPackageName != null) // Can be null in case that there is no default, then the user would be able to choose any app that supports this intent.
    {
        intent.setPackage(defaultSmsPackageName);
    }
}
else
{
    intent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_VIEW);
    intent.setType("vnd.android-dir/mms-sms");
    intent.putExtra("address", toContact.toString());
    intent.putExtra("sms_body", text);
}
activity.startActivity(intent);

The only problem remaining is that you end up in Hangouts (Nexus 5), and you might have to press "back" multiple times to effectively cancel the SMS.

Answer 2

I attached a code that solve the problem by doing the following:

• Check the OS version
• In case that older version (prior to KitKat), use the old method
• If new API, check the default sms package. if there is any, set it as the package, otherwise, let the user choose the sharing app.

Here is the code:

if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) //At least KitKat
    {
        String defaultSmsPackageName = Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(activity); //Need to change the build to API 19

        Intent sendIntent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_SEND);
        sendIntent.setType("text/plain");
        sendIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_TEXT, smsText);

        if (defaultSmsPackageName != null)//Can be null in case that there is no default, then the user would be able to choose any app that support this intent.
        {
            sendIntent.setPackage(defaultSmsPackageName);
        }
        activity.startActivity(sendIntent);

    }
    else //For early versions, do what worked for you before.
    {
        Intent sendIntent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_VIEW);
        sendIntent.setData(Uri.parse("sms:"));
        sendIntent.putExtra("sms_body", smsText);
        activity.startActivity(sendIntent);
    }

Answer 3

In Kotlin following code works:

val defaultSmsPackageName = Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(activity)  
            val sendIntent = Intent(Intent.ACTION_SEND)
            sendIntent.type = "text/plain"
            sendIntent.putExtra("address", "sms:"+contactNumber)
            sendIntent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_TEXT, getString(R.string.share_msg_body))
            Timber.e("defaultSmsPackageName: "+defaultSmsPackageName)
            if (defaultSmsPackageName != null){ //Can be null in case that there is no default, then the user would be able to choose any app that support this intent.
                sendIntent.setPackage(defaultSmsPackageName)
                activity!!.startActivity(sendIntent)
            }

Answer 4

This one should work on all android versions and all sms apps (including Hangouts).

public static boolean sendSms(Context context, String text, String number) {
    return sendSms(context, text, Collections.singletonList(number));
}

public static boolean sendSms(Context context, String text, List<String> numbers) {

    String numbersStr = TextUtils.join(",", numbers);

    Uri uri = Uri.parse("sms:" + numbersStr);

    Intent intent = new Intent();
    intent.setData(uri);
    intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_TEXT, text);
    intent.putExtra("sms_body", text);
    intent.putExtra("address", numbersStr);

    if(Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.KITKAT) {
        intent.setAction(Intent.ACTION_SENDTO);
        String defaultSmsPackageName = Telephony.Sms.getDefaultSmsPackage(context);
        if(defaultSmsPackageName != null) {
            intent.setPackage(defaultSmsPackageName);
        }
    } else {
        intent.setAction(Intent.ACTION_VIEW);
        intent.setType("vnd.android-dir/mms-sms");
    }

    try {
        context.startActivity(intent);
    } catch (ActivityNotFoundException e) {
        e.printStackTrace();
        return false;
    }

    return true;
}