Texting has evolved over the years to become a better version, like almost every other piece of tech. The core idea is still the same, but now with plenty of features that give you more control over your messaging.
While the number of features can vary based on which text messaging app you pick, finding the ones that can make a difference matters the most.
Android has numerous quality texting apps, but it’s the Google Messages app that shines over everything else, mainly due to its numerous powerful features that make texting on Google’s operating system a breeze.
Here are eight features that make texting on Android unbeatable.
8
Message scheduling
Google Messages allows users to type the message and choose a specific date and time, at which the app will automatically send the message to that particular person.
As simple as it sounds, this still isn’t available on some of the widely popular messaging apps, like WhatsApp. In Google Messages, it’s easy to schedule a message, though the option isn’t immediately visible when you start typing your message.
You’ll have to long-press the send icon after typing the message, and this will display the “Schedule send” feature in Google Messages. You can then choose what time and date you want that particular message to be delivered to that specific person.
You can change your mind later by canceling the scheduled send or modifying the date and time.
7
Pin messages
Before scheduling a message, you’ll have to find the contact you want to send the message to. You can use the search option and type the name of the contact, but that’s not the most efficient way of doing it, especially if they are important people.
The Google Messages app has a pinning feature that lets you pin or unpin messages. This way, when you open the app, messages from those contacts appear first. So, you don’t have to use the search option or scroll to the bottom to find those messages.
Message pinning is one of those easy-to-use features in Google Messages. All you do is select the message from the list and tap the pin icon at the top. You can pin multiple messages in the Messages app.
Those pinned messages always remain on top until you unpin them. To unpin, you need to select the pinned message and tap the unpin icon that appears at the top.
6
Advanced message search
Message pinning makes you want to use the search feature less, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need it. Google Messages’ search feature isn’t a regular one.
Google Messages features an advanced search capability, allowing you to quickly find the message you’re looking for. The app offers several filters that you can apply to narrow down the search results.
This comes in handy when you have thousands of conversations and vaguely remember sending or receiving an attachment or keyword. You can apply a filter and then type the keyword to quickly find the relevant message.
The option for search appears right beside the profile icon at the top.
5
OTP auto delete
Different people have different opinions about what features they think are the best, primarily because everyone’s priorities are different. However, as a general rule of thumb, the best features are those that perform actions quickly and with minimal user effort.
The “Auto-delete messages” feature is a perfect example of this. You’ll enable this from the Settings, and after you grant the permission, it’ll automatically delete all your one-time passwords and security codes from businesses after 24 hours.
You can turn on this feature by going to Settings > Message organization and then toggling the Auto-delete messages after 24 hours. After this is enabled, you’ll no longer have to do a manual cleanup of those OTPs.
4
Spam protection
Spamming can occur through various channels, including text messages. There are several ways to protect yourself from falling prey to spammers, depending on the platform.
Google Messages offers you one of the easiest ways to protect yourself from such bad actors through its Spam protection feature. You can enable this feature from the Messages Settings.
When turned on, Google Messages will filter out messages containing those dangerous links to fake websites to your Phone’s Spam and Blocked folder.
Since those nefarious text messages aren’t available in the app, it eliminates the chances of you accidentally clicking one of those links and giving away your personal information to malicious actors.
Text messages come from various sources – governments, friends and family, and businesses. So, not all of them are equally important and don’t deserve your valuable time.
That said, you wouldn’t want to miss the ones that come from people closest to you.
One of the easiest ways to do this is to set up a custom notification sound for your most important contacts. This way, you know immediately who sent you the message by the sound of the notification.
Apart from your loved ones, you can set a custom notification sound for those people whose messages you have to reply to on time. They can be anyone, from your boss to your colleagues. Google Messages is the solution.
2
Device pairing
An app is more useful when it’s accessible across different platforms. Google Messages isn’t available outside the company’s ecosystem, but it has a clever solution called “Device pairing” to make up for that.
It lets you pair Google Messages to any computing device with a display and an internet connection.
This is the same Google Messages you have on your phone, but now running on another device through mirroring. Since this isn’t running natively on your second device, you need to connect your phone to the internet.
You can pair this with your PC or Mac, or even pair it with another handset. To pair, tap the profile icon in the upper-right corner, choose Device pairing, and follow the on-screen instructions.
If you no longer need to use Google Messages on those devices, you can unpair the app from every device. It also has the option to unlink an individual device.
1
RCS chats
RCS (Rich Communication Services) support is arguably the most important feature in the Messages app, and for many, it’s the only reason to use the app.
RCS turns the old SMS messaging system into something more modern, with features like the ability to send high-quality images and videos, typing indicators, read receipts, end-to-end encryption, reply to a specific message, and many more.
However, RCS isn’t available by default. You must activate it from the Chat features setting to start using these features. It also requires the other person to have RCS enabled on their phone number.
You get the best RCS experience on Google Messages when both senders and recipients are using Android phones, as cross-platform RCS communication still lacks some of the important features, like end-to-end encryption.
Google Messages is the answer to Android’s best texting experience yet
Nothing is perfect, and neither is the Google Messages app. Some may feel its interface is a bit cluttered, and its quirks may not suit everyone.
However, Google Messages’ powerful features work so well that the app becomes indispensable quicker than you realize.
You’ll find Google Messages as the default messaging app on most new Android phones. So, it takes away the effort of hunting for a better texting app after the first boot. It’s already there, ready to get you started texting your friends and family.
Google Messages has an impressive number of handy features, and it keeps getting more with app updates. It’s also one of the most frequently updated Google apps.
So, if you find something annoying, you may not have to wait long for the company to issue a fix.
If you think something is missing in the Google Messages app, the first step is to check the Settings, as many of the best tools are hidden there. A few are enabled by default, while others are just a toggle away from giving you an unbeatable messaging experience on Android.
