Apple finally caves, announces plan to bring RCS to iPhones in 2024

16 November 2023
Google will feel vindicated, but note that this doesn't mean blue bubbles on Android.

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jason, 17 Nov 2023I don't want the world. I just want a removable batter... more"want a removable battery, headphone jack and SD card slot.”

I'm guessing you don't have a phone then that isn't bottom of the line or is water tight! Most phones that are water tight have gone the route of gluing the phone shut. Precisely because of that water proofing phones now last long enough that they could handle a new battery.

These are all things that break or cause water and dust problems.

I don't miss the days when my phone would explode because I dropped it and the battery cover came off and the battery popped out.

I don't miss the days when a phone would die because water got into it. Or a headphone would yank it off the table and smash on the floor. Or they would be so big yet have such poor battery life because so much space was needed for all these extras that didn't get used like headphone jack, SD card slot or removable battery cover.

Face it. These things were rarely used in the first place. 95% of people paid extra for these things and never used them (headphone jack aside). And, even the headphone jack came with a hidden cost since it was the first thing to break (and sometimes take the whole phone with it) and was a great way for water to get in.

Only the cheapest of phones still sport these features because they're now old technology and cheap to implement and good marketing but offer little in the way of value (which is what people pay the big bucks for). There isn't the expectation of longevity when you buy a cheap device.

    Gamma Ghetti, 17 Nov 2023But WhatsApp doesn't support SMS. iMessage is better i... morePssssst...Beeper exists....

      Anonymous, 17 Nov 2023Apple already mentioned it that the green blue bubble stay ... more"Apple will use the original RCS protocols instead of Google 🤣🤣🤣 joke on you Google 🤣🤣"

      That would be great news. RCS is useless precisely because Google has their own servers and their own Google Messages app can't properly fall back to SMS. Maybe with Apple in the game and implementing only the core of RCS carriers will finally be forced to implement RCS at a network level distinct from internet.

      Hmm. Who knows. Maybe RCS will become viable afterall.

        Great stuff.

        To those recommending WhatsApp, guys, Meta has your metadata from your messages. If you really care about true E2E encryption, you should be using signal. I don't even like WhatsApp and their inclusion of ads soon is only going to make it worse.

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          • Anonymous
          • 70d
          • 17 Nov 2023

          Late as usual. Better late than never, though.

            Anonymous, 17 Nov 2023I never knew humans could be this shallow .. well I did but... moreSmile. It seems to be mostly the writers at Android sites that have a bee in their bonnet about the colour of text bubbles on the iPhone.

            Oh well.

              yalim, 17 Nov 2023whatsapp already has 3-4 times more active users than imess... moreBut WhatsApp doesn't support SMS. iMessage is better in that regard than WhatsApp since it allows you to communicate with everyone while WhatsApp is limited to WhatsApp users.

              As an Android user I find WhatsApp useful to communicate with my iPhone using family and friends but I find that, especially in Europe, the UK and Australia (where most of my extended family reside) they all have iPhones and they all use iMessage with each other. It's mainly me, the pleb with the Pixel, that warrants WhatsApp (or if we're in the same country, SMS).

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                • yalim
                • mu4
                • 17 Nov 2023

                whatsapp already has 3-4 times more active users than imessage and it is not OS restricted. imessage is just like lightning port itself. it charges the phone and transfers data. however, it only works with iphones. you will definitely run out of juice when you cannot find another iphone cable around at some point. upgrade to whatsapp just like type-c to get rid of restrictions.

                  Bluemarble, 17 Nov 2023SMS can not send multimedia content, or even a picture. If ... moreSMS is an awful lot more reliable than data or phone calls in an emergency. I've often had SMS or MMS go through where calls were impossible to complete (at the edge of cell service in a park or in the middle of a building with thick concrete walls) and data reliable enough for internet based IM was but a pipe dream. SMS operates as a protocol distinct from TCP/IP and even MMS has a better reliability profile than regular internet (which is RCS).

                  Using RCS will guarantee that your messages won't get through in an emergency.

                  If you need multimedia use MMS or WhatsApp or iMessage. Don't use RCS because RCS will block your ability to send SMS if data is unavailable and you'll not know your message failed to send (or be received) until it's too late.

                    I only use SMS/RCS because it is native in each mobile and Messenger because it is necessary if you use Facebook. I'm tired of people trying to make me add WhatsApp. So next year will be a big year. Firstly with this announcement of RCS on iPhone in the next iOS, but also in principle next spring in Europe, messaging systems will have to be compatible with them at least for a classic message. Finally.
                    (Sony Xperia 1 V owner)

                      you have to suffer, 17 Nov 2023ever heard of MMS featureYes, MMS is much more reliable and unlike RCS MMS is actually supported by carriers at a low level which means that it's reliable. RCS is exclusively internet only.

                        If you really want to see just how bad RCS is go look at recent Google Play Store reviews for the Google Messages app.

                        A few months ago they forced RCS to be turned on by default. You now have to intervene to turn it off.

                        The reviews are AWFUL. Universally people complain about lost messages or being unable to send or receive messages with certain people.

                        These users lack the technical sophistication to know what the problem is so they're being forced to buy new phones or switch to other SMS apps. The problem is RCS and the absence of a robust fall back mechanism to SMS.

                        The best way to ensure you'll receive messages from an Android user is to keep RCS turned off. If Google's RCS servers don't have you registered anyone sending you messages will be forced to use reliable (strange to say that about SMS) SMS.

                          Nooo. Please just let RCS die. I have exclusively owned Pixel phones for the last five years. The only thing RCS is good for is to guarantee your messages won't be delivered.

                          Google has been pushing RCS for most of those five years. RCS is still just as bad in 2023 as when it launched on Messages.

                          RCS has no viable fall back mechanism. If data is unavailable or turned off Google Messages does not automatically fall back to MMS/SMS for sending messages even though the Settings say there's a fallback to SMS/MMS.

                          The same applies to messages sent to you. If data is off or unavailable the person sending to you won't switch to SMS/MMS either.

                          I tried an experiment a few months back with a recent model Samsung and my Pixel 6. No dice. There was no viable fall back to SMS on either phone when data was unavailable but cell service was despite many trials over many hours.

                          Problem is that RCS only exists on the internet. It's not directly supported by carriers.

                          We already have iMessage any WhatsApp. What's the point of a mediocre IM protocol (more like service since it's just another failed attempt at relevance by Google and Microsoft to break into the instant messaging market that they both so spectacularly lost to Apple and WhatsApp despite a hundreds of millions user head start in the late 2000's).

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                            • Anonymous
                            • X5u
                            • 17 Nov 2023

                            I never knew humans could be this shallow .. well I did but I didn't know it was up to this extent
                            Who tf cares about the color of a messaging bubble

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                              • JMBL
                              • XQZ
                              • 17 Nov 2023

                              Anonymous, 17 Nov 2023Apple already mentioned it that the green blue bubble stay ... moreThis looks like Apple tards trying hard to find a silver lining when the reality is, they got slapped down hard for their insolent and arrogant attitude. A lot of tards are not coping well with this news.

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                                • Avinash
                                • CbI
                                • 17 Nov 2023

                                SIGMA, 17 Nov 2023"The color of chat bubbles is extremely important to p... moreThey shame Android guys with that.... Spoiled bunch of shameless Americans

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                                  • SIGMA
                                  • mxB
                                  • 17 Nov 2023

                                  "The color of chat bubbles is extremely important to people in the US" - LOL
                                  Really ? Is this some kind of joke?! Living in Europe and using among others - iPhone 6s, LG, Samsung, Sony, Oppo, I wouldn't have thought that color... chat is important xD

                                    Bluemarble, 17 Nov 2023SMS can not send multimedia content, or even a picture. If ... moreever heard of MMS feature

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                                      • JustAnotherPerson
                                      • SXp
                                      • 17 Nov 2023

                                      ChristianNerd, 17 Nov 2023They are trying hard to make iphones more consumer friendly... moreThere are so many friendly devices out there, why do people care about Apple? Leave Apple by Apple and the people that prefer those devices to enjoy them as they are! No one should force or impose an opinion on what is better! Everything in the end is subjecting and should be used according to one personal taste!

                                        Anonymous, 16 Nov 2023Green bubble-poor Blue bubble. - rich With that mental... moreThey think android phones will copy oled screen, wireless charging, USB C port, Always on display, widgets sooner.
                                        They believes 60hz apple display greater than 120hz from android.

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