For years I was a nuisance to anyone with an iPhone. As I proudly carried my Samsung Galaxy devices, my friends deplored the havoc it would wreak on any text message or group chat by “turning everything green.” Apparently there’s nothing worse for an iMessage user than an Android user ruining your precious blue bubble party.
I’ve since given up the fight and switched to an iPhone, and now reap the many benefits of iMessage, including sending high-resolution photos and videos, displaying typing indicators, and sharing reactions. These benefits are limited to messaging other iPhone users. Now I am the one who, much to my chagrin, laments receiving green text messages from anyone who is “out.” Exclusivity brings out the worst in us.
Read more: The best iPhone to buy in 2024
Now that Apple has said it will adopt Rich Communication Services messaging, things should improve. RCS is a protocol that replaces SMS (short message service) and has many of the same features as iMessage, including typing indicators, high-resolution media sharing, and end-to-end encryption. It’s already available on Android devices, and after years of pressure from iPhone users, competitors and lawmakers, Apple has said it will adopt RCS on iPhones as well.
Despite Apple barely acknowledging the impending arrival of RCS on iPhones during its keynote at this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference, the update is still planned to be available to the public in the fall with iOS 18 rolling out with iOS 18 developer beta 2, 9to5Mac previously reported.
Here’s everything you need to know about how Apple’s adoption of RCS could improve messaging.
Apple’s RCS text message screenshot shows a “delivered” status update, media, and some green bubbles. While it may look a lot like a current MMS conversation, it’s likely the biggest improvement a non-iMessage conversation has seen in years on the iPhone.
Apple
RCS will replace SMS text messages on iPhones
When RCS comes to iPhones, it should transform basic messaging with Android users into a more modern and sophisticated experience by replacing SMS and MMS (multimedia messaging service). Apple shared a first look at the new capability on its iOS 18 Preview Page after WWDC, and here’s what we know so far.
Instead of receiving small, grainy photos and videos from Android friends, you’ll see high-quality media. RCS will also provide benefits such as read and deliver receipts, according to a screenshot posted by Apple.
According to users on X who have been using the new RCS capability with iOS 18 developer beta 2, iPhone owners will also see typing indicators when texting their friends on Android.
But there’s one big caveat: Adopting RCS won’t solve the blue bubble-green bubble problem. iMessage will still be available only to Apple customers, meaning texting anyone who doesn’t have an iPhone will still be a separate (but hopefully more comparable) experience.
And yes, texting with Android users will still be green. You’ll just have to deal with it.
Some features will remain exclusive to iMessage or the Google Messages app. For example, while you can edit or unsend text messages in iMessage, you probably won’t be able to do so with messages sent via RCS. And features exclusive to Google Messages, such as composing texts using the Gemini AI model, probably won’t transfer between devices either. It is also not yet clear whether messages sent via Android phones and iPhones will be end-to-end encrypted.
Still, this update should make messaging on Android phones and iPhones seem less archaic.
When will RCS be available on iPhone?
Apple hasn’t shared an exact timing, but it should be available in the fall with the release of iOS 18.
Even before the WWDC keynote, Google appeared to have accidentally leaked the arrival of RCS on iPhones on a landing page for Google Messages. According to 9to5Google, the search giant noted that the new messaging protocol is “coming soon to iOS” and that “Apple has announced it will adopt RCS in the fall of 2024.” This mention has since been removed, but it’s as if Google can barely contain its excitement.
Will the Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit open up iMessage?
In a sweeping complaint against Apple, the United States Department of Justice accuses the iPhone maker of hindering competition, delving into a series of practices that it considers monopolistic. This includes accusations that Apple “undermines cross-platform messaging” by not extending its iMessage service to Android.
Apple has maintained that keeping iMessage exclusive to its own devices is in the interest of user privacy and security, noting that it could not guarantee that encryption and authentication measures on third-party devices would meet its standards. It also points to the company’s ongoing work to support RCS, which it says will enable an improved messaging experience with non-iPhone users.
And if that wasn’t enough to make people happy, Apple highlighted the variety of other messaging platforms that people can use to communicate across devices, including WhatsApp, Messenger and Snapchat. But depending on where you live, it may be more intuitive to access the native text app on your phone, whether it’s Apple’s iMessage or Google Messages.
Whether the Justice Department’s complaint will force Apple to open its walled garden remains to be seen. The European Union has also been putting pressure on Apple and other tech giants as part of its Digital Markets Act, which is designed to promote fair and open competition in the tech sector. Earlier this year, the EU determined that Apple’s messaging platform does not qualify as a “gatekeeper” service, meaning it won’t have to connect directly with other chat apps. (Meanwhile, Meta’s WhatsApp and Messenger apps will be closed to Apple’s privacy.) do (They fall under the EU’s gatekeeper label and will therefore have to allow conversations between other services.) Time, perhaps years, will tell how Apple fares in the face of the Justice Department’s allegations and whether changes are in store for iMessage.
In the meantime, both iPhone and Android users can find some respite in Apple’s impending adoption of RCS, which should hopefully make talking to your friends on different devices less of a pain. And even if the texts stay green, hopefully the grass on the other end will seem a little less so.
