11 Google Messages options, suggestions, and tips

Google Messages is the default SMS and messaging choice on many Android phones. If it isn’t on the cellphone already, it is only a fast obtain from the Google Play Retailer. Its unobtrusive UI is clear and likewise features a library of elective options that make gentle work of your messaging wants, too.

Many of us have certainly gravitated towards apps like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and even Discord. Nonetheless, SMS continues to be the default for a motive, and it is one that everybody has entry to with only a cellphone quantity. So, it is nonetheless price giving Google Messages a strive — listed here are slightly below a dozen neat suggestions and tips to make your expertise higher.

1 Allow RCS messaging

Ship your texts over knowledge as an alternative of over SMS

From the principle display screen in Messages, faucet your profile icon on the correct facet of your cellphone and choose Messages settings. From there, faucet RCS chats and tick the Activate RCS chats choice. There are additionally a number of extra choices like learn receipts, typing indicators, and different choices. Anybody desirous to migrate to Google Messages ought to use RCS chat because it’s one of many app’s largest options.

RCS chats, to place it merely, ship your texts over knowledge as an alternative of over SMS. Thus, you now not have the 160-character restrict or the MMS dimension limitations. It’s also possible to react to messages like you possibly can in iMessage and also you get entry to extra options you do not see in SMS. Plus, with iMessage adopting RCS, it behooves you to get used to the characteristic.

Associated

What is RCS? The standard unifying chat, explained

Google Messages helps RCS messaging and Apple is including it to the iPhone in 2024 with iOS 18. However what’s RCS messaging?

2 Confirm your end-to-end encryption

Examine for this on a chat-by-chat foundation as properly

One of many foremost advantages of RCS on Google Messages is end-to-end encryption. So long as you and your textual content recipient are each on Google Messages and RCS, your chats will probably be end-to-end encrypted. You may verify for this on a chat-by-chat foundation as properly.

Open any chat you are inquisitive about and faucet the 3-dot menu icon within the prime proper nook of your chat. Choose Particulars. On that display screen, you may see the end-to-end encryption part. If it says Standing: On, congratulations, your chat is encrypted. If it says off, then it is not. There are additionally another choices like force-sending messages with SMS/MMS as an alternative of RCS should you favor. Nonetheless, this may disengage encryption.

Associated

Facebook Messenger now defaults to end-to-end encryption for all chats and calls

Meta additionally provides choices to edit messages after they’re despatched and switch off learn receipts.

3 Allow or disable chat bubbles

Rapidly faucet the bubble to open up the chat

Fb Messenger launched the chat bubbles perform a few years in the past, and it will definitely grew to become a normal characteristic on Android. Messages helps chat bubbles, and you may allow it fairly shortly. From the principle Messages display screen, faucet your profile image and choose Messages settings. Within the subsequent menu, faucet Bubbles. From right here, you possibly can choose to show your whole chats into bubbles or solely those you choose.

When enabled, Chat bubbles will present up as, properly, bubbles on the facet of your display screen. You may shortly faucet the bubble to open up the chat and reply. This can be a little bit of a polarizing characteristic, as many of us do not like having further stuff on their display screen. Thus, if you wish to flip it off, comply with the directions above and easily flip it off.

Associated

Get control of unmanageable WhatsApp chats with this new feature

WhatsApp has added a brand new characteristic which lets customers add lists to arrange their chats.

4 Ship pictures in full decision

Images will take a bit longer to ship

By default, Google Messages reduces the picture high quality of belongings you ship in order that they ship quicker. For those who do not thoughts an extended sending time, you possibly can ship your photos in full decision. To take action, as soon as once more head to the principle Messages web page, faucet your profile image, after which choose Messages settings. As soon as there, discover the Ship pictures quicker choice and untick the choice.

Your pictures will take a bit longer to ship, however the recipient will get the full-size image as an alternative of 1 with diminished high quality. For those who discover that your photos are taking method too lengthy to ship, you possibly can all the time head again into the settings and reverse the change to ship quicker photos once more.

Associated

Was that photo manipulated with Google AI? You’ll soon be able to tell

Google has introduced it’s going to quickly label photos within the Images app edited with its AI instruments.

5 Make use of the Suggestion options

Work smarter, not tougher

Google is working to make its apps smarter on a regular basis. One such instance is Suggestion options. To search out these, head to the house web page of Messages, faucet your profile image and choose Messages settings. Scroll down till you discover the Ideas choice and choose it. From right here you have got 4 choices that I am going to run by means of shortly.

• Good Reply: Suggests fast replies when somebody texts you. It is helpful if you wish to acknowledge one thing somebody stated, however you do not have the time to sort out a full message at that second.
• Advised actions: This selection integrates Google Messages with different Google apps, equivalent to Google Maps, Google Meet, and Google Calendar. So, for instance, if somebody needs to make plans with you subsequent week, Messages could counsel making a calendar occasion to remind you about it.
• Magic Compose: Magic Compose is an AI-drive characteristic that checks your message draft and provides alternate concepts for what you typed. It is in beta, but it surely does assist should you’re caught on what to say.
• Advised stickers: A extra enjoyable and fewer sensible characteristic that can counsel emotive stickers primarily based on what you say. So, after I textual content my spouse “I really like you”, it will present me an animated sticker of a bear blowing kisses. It is a good method so as to add some character to your messages.

Every of the above choices is individually accessible. Thus, if you’d like one or two of them, however not the entire batch, you possibly can allow and disable them as essential to customise your expertise.

Associated

How to rid your Samsung Galaxy’s share sheet of unwanted contact suggestions

If you do not need prompt folks popping up everytime you’re sharing stuff out of your Samsung Galaxy, this is the way to disable the characteristic outright.

6 Assign your swipe actions

Archive, delete, and mark a message

Swipe actions work fairly properly in Google Messages once you get them arrange. By default, swiping a message on the principle web page left or proper sends it to the archives. Nonetheless, chances are you’ll not need that, or it’s your decision completely different swipe instructions. Altering it’s fairly straightforward.

As per the norm, head to the principle web page in Messages and faucet your profile image. Choose Messages settings and scroll down till you discover Swipe actions. As soon as chosen, you are offered with the flexibility to customise your left and proper swipes. The choices embrace archive, delete, and mark a message as learn or unread. It’s also possible to flip the swipe capabilities off if you do not need them.

Associated

How to use Gemini in Google Messages

It is a lot simpler to entry Gemini in Google Messages than a separate app, however what it may well really do may not be helpful for everybody.

I swipe proper to delete and swipe left to mark as learn. It is useful for shortly coping with texts that I do not intend to maintain long-term, equivalent to two-factor authentication texts or textual content updates about shipped packages after I obtain my supply. As soon as completed with them, I swipe them away so they do not clog up my inbox.

7 Use Google Messages in an internet browser

Textual content out of your PC totally free

Google / Pocket-lint

Google Messages is certainly one of solely a few methods to textual content out of your PC totally free. To do that, use the next steps.

1. Navigate to messages.google.com in your PC.
2. There are two strategies to attach your cellphone. For this one, we’ll use the QR code because it would not require a Google account. Faucet the Pair with QR code choice.
3. The web site will generate a QR code.
4. In your cellphone, scan the QR code utilizing your digicam app or a QR code scanner of some kind.
5. As soon as authenticated, the webpage will reload with your whole texts.

As soon as completed, you possibly can safely and shortly textual content out of your net browser freed from cost. The great factor is that you simply solely should do the setup course of as soon as per system. As soon as it is arrange, you possibly can navigate to messages.google.com on the identical net browser to right away load your messages once more.

8 Schedule a textual content to ship later in Google Messages

You have got 4 choices

The power to schedule texts is constructed into Messages by default, you simply must know the way to entry it. Happily, you already know the place it’s. Open any chat and kind out the message you wish to ship later. From there, lengthy press the ship button. A window will seem that can allow you to schedule the textual content.

You have got 4 choices. The primary three are predetermined occasions and the ultimate choice helps you to choose your date and time. As soon as completed, merely ship the message. Google Messages will present that you’ve got a scheduled textual content on the backside of your textual content historical past to remind you that it is there.

Associated

Why Samsung Messages is no longer preinstalled on Galaxy phones

Samsung Messages is now not preloaded on the most recent Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 telephones — this is what occurred, and what it means for the long run.

To unschedule the textual content, faucet the place it says Scheduled messages to point out the upcoming textual content. Faucet the ship icon to the correct of the textual content to replace the message, ship it instantly, or delete the message.

9 Save necessary messages in Google Messages

Save, pin, or in any other case mark a message as necessary

It’s doable to save lots of, pin, or in any other case mark a message as necessary in Google Messages. To take action, discover the message you wish to save. Faucet and maintain the message to pick out it after which faucet the star icon on the prime of the display screen to “star” the message. The message will present up with a star icon within the backside proper nook in your textual content to indicate that you simply did it efficiently.

To view your starred messages, open your chat with that particular person and faucet the 3-dot menu icon. Choose the Starred choice to view the record of messages. This works very equally to pinned messages in Discord, so you should utilize it to save lots of data chances are you’ll want later.

Associated

You can finally use Gemini in Google Messages on any Android phone

No must have a Pixel or Samsung system.

To take away a star from a message, go to your starred messages and faucet on the message you wish to un-star. When it is pulled up in your message feed, long-press the message and faucet the star icon alongside the highest once more to un-star the message.

10 Pin necessary conversations in Google Messages

Will stay on the prime of the record

Very like particular person messages, it’s also possible to pin necessary conversations to the highest of your message record. Pinned conversations will stay on the prime of the record, even should you get textual content messages from different folks. You may pin a number of conversations as properly to maintain your most necessary contacts on the prime.

The method is sort of straightforward. Merely long-press any dialog you wish to pin. As soon as chosen, faucet the pin icon on the prime of the display screen to pin it. Pinned conversations have a pin icon in the correct margin to let you realize which of them are pinned. To unpin a dialog, repeat the method once more verbatim and it will unpin the dialog.

Associated

Why Apple finally decided to bring RCS messaging to the iPhone

The iPhone will probably be adopting RCS later this 12 months, however what took so lengthy to get right here? Plus, what do you have to count on when it arrives?

11 Different Google Messages suggestions and tips

Smaller options

Google Messages has a wide range of different, smaller options that may make your life just a little simpler when enabling them. We’ll rapid-fire by means of a couple of of those smaller options under.

• Auto-delete authentication codes: Faucet your profile image, then Messages settings. Scroll right down to Message group and choose it. Tip the field on. Now, any time a website sends you a textual content for two-factor authentication, Google Messages will auto-delete them after 24 hours.
• Voice or video name somebody from throughout the chat: Whenever you go into any chat, there’s a cellphone icon and a video digicam icon within the prime proper nook. Tapping the previous will provoke a cellphone name in your dialer and tapping the latter will provoke a video name through Google Meet. Word that each events should have Google Meet for video calls to work.
• Assign per-conversation notification tones: Open the chat you wish to customise and faucet the 3-dot menu button. Choose Particulars, then Notifications. On the following display screen, you possibly can choose a customized notification sound for simply that contact. Repeat for any contact you need customized tones for.
• React to SMS and RCS texts: Lengthy-press any message you obtain in Google Messages and you may react to a message with an emoji. Word that SMS and iMessage customers will obtain a separate textual content letting them know you reacted to a selected message, however Google Messages (and apps that assist this characteristic) customers will see the response on the message itself.