Google Messages replace places distance between Android and iPhone

Earlier than the discharge of iOS 18, texting between iPhones and Android gadgets was usually irritating. Though Google Messages adopted RCS (Wealthy Communication Providers) messaging in 2019, Apple solely built-in RCS into its Messages app in 2024, 5 years later, with the rollout of iOS 18.

At the moment, Android and iPhone customers can alternate high-quality pictures and movies, view learn receipts, and see typing indicators with RCS. Earlier than the introduction of cross-platform RCS, messages from Android to iPhone relied on SMS, an outdated expertise that did not assist any of those options.

Whereas Apple’s addition of RCS assist to iOS final 12 months was optimistic, it had notable limitations — messages aren’t end-to-end encrypted (although this can be addressed soon), and message enhancing wasn’t attainable, whether or not despatched from an Android gadget or an iPhone. Nevertheless, with a brand new Google Messages replace now slowly rolling out, Android customers can lastly edit RCS messages despatched to an iPhone (by way of Android Authority).

Because of this while you textual content somebody with an iPhone utilizing Google Messages, you may quickly have the ability to edit your message, identical to you may when messaging different Android customers with RCS. As talked about, the rollout is going on slowly, so that you won’t have this characteristic but. If obtainable, you may long-press on a message and faucet the pencil icon to edit and save your message. Whereas this improvement is nice for the over a billion Google Messages customers, there are nonetheless some limitations.

iPhone customers are left within the mud

Apple nonetheless must replace its Messages app to assist this

Whereas all Google Messages customers will quickly have the ability to edit messages despatched to iPhone customers, it sadly will not work the opposite manner round. If in case you have an iPhone, and textual content an Android gadget, you continue to will not have the ability to edit any of the messages you’ve got despatched. It’s because Apple nonetheless must replace its own messaging app to assist RCS message edits.

When will Apple replace RCS on its Messages app? That is a fantastic query, and sadly, it is unclear when Apple will do that. Given how lengthy it took for them to undertake RCS initially, it might take some time for Apple to lastly replace RCS on the iPhone. It will be good to see Apple replace RCS on the iPhone with iOS 26 within the fall, however that is likely to be an extended shot.

Whereas Google Messages’ newest RCS replace is encouraging, it isn’t flawless but as a result of Apple would not assist it. Once you edit an RCS message despatched to an iPhone in Google Messages, it exhibits as regular with an edited tag. However when the iPhone consumer receives the edited message, it seems as a brand new message with an asterisk initially. So, in the event you edit a message despatched to an iPhone, the recipient will obtain two messages — the unique and the edited one — fairly than only one marked as edited. Which is irritating, to place it mildly.

In line with Android Authority, this new Google Messages RCS characteristic works when texting iPhone customers with iOS 18.5 and the iOS 26 beta, in each particular person chats and group chats. Like enhancing messages to different Android customers, you may have a 15-minute window to edit the textual content after it has been despatched. After that, you may now not have the ability to edit it.

It is price noting once more that this new Google Messages characteristic is not but obtainable on each Android gadget. Google is rolling this out progressively, so it might take a couple of weeks to seem in your gadget, if it hasn’t already.

Cross-platform RCS messaging is not good but, however no less than there’s some significant progress with this Google Messages replace. Hopefully this replace is a wake-up name for Apple to replace its RCS implementation sooner fairly than later.

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