Apple's iMessage woes: App cache data can not be cleared alone

Although iMessage has the option to delete messages after 30 days or 1 year, it deletes chats and media files forever

Web Desk - Jul 14, 2024

An undated image displaying Cache in text. — iStock — An undated image displaying "Cache" in text. — iStock

Storage management has never been easier than it has become with the introduction of a way to delete stale, unnecessary files in the form of cache data.

In case you happen to be someone uninitiated, cache data are a sort of residue of files and data (be it on-device or cloud-based) a device comes into contact with, which occupies a substantial chunk of the device's built-in storage.

If not deleted intermittently, this cache data takes a massive toll on the device storage without being aware of it. Sounds annoying?

What if we tell you that a popular messaging app from one of the top tech tycoons lacks a simple option to delete such cache files (or manage data with efficacy)? Sounds more annoying, right?

This is a mess spread across almost all Apple devices under one app: iMessage. Although the app is nice to keep users' devices in real-time sync when it comes to conversations, but turns a blind eye when you need to manage its storage consumption.

Although the entire bundle of your chats and multimedia files on iMessage are stored on iCloud, their local clones, morphed as cache data, on the device never get deleted. This results in your uncontrolled anxiety when your device storage runs out of space and you get desperate to fix it, but to no avail (in the case of iMessage).

Although iMessage has the option to delete messages after 30 days or 1 year, it deletes your chats and media inherent media files from everywhere, not only the local, on-device copy on your iPhone or Mac.

With users massively reporting this issue lately, it's time for Apple to add an “Optimise Storage” option, so that the most recent chats and files are accessible offline.