SMS messages are old and boring —RCS messaging is the future. For the uninitiated, RCS messaging — short for “rich communication services” — turns your phone’s standard text messaging app into a chat service like WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger. That means real-time typing indications, group chats, audio and video messages, and even interactive content.
Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it? Well, it is. Unfortunately, it’s not here yet. While RCS messaging is rolling out, it’s not arriving quickly — and that’s because it’s reliant on each carrier turning the service on. While those onGoogle Fican already enjoy RCS messaging, if you’re on another major U.S. carrier, you’ll have to wait until the switch is flipped by each company in turn.
Or will you? It turns out you may force Google Messages to use RCS before a carrier has turned it on. To do so requires a couple of steps, but it’s not tough to accomplish. As reported byAndroid Police, there is a way to turn on RCS, and here’s how you can do it.
What you’ll need to do beforehand
Turning on RCS services is simple and straightforward, but there are a few additional steps you’ll need to take before you’re able to get started.
Register for the Google Messages beta and download Activity Launcher
The big prep step involves registering for the Google Messages beta version. Unfortunately, this trick won’t work in the current live version of Messages, so you’ll need beta access. Thankfully, it’s easy to access. Justtell Google you want beta access, then download theMessages (Beta) app.
You’ll also need to make a few changes to the Messages app, so you’ll need to downloadActivity Manager, too. It looks like something from the dawn of Android, but it’s required to get RCS working.
Turning on RCS in Google Messages
Once you’ve downloaded all the apps and betas you need, you’re good to go. Here’s how to quickly turn on RCS messaging:
Now you’ll need to force close the Messages app. You can do this either by heading toSettings>Apps & Notifications>View all apps>Messages, and tappingForce closein the options, or by long-pressing theMessagesicon in your app drawer and selecting eitherInfoor the “i” symbol, and tapping theForce closeoption. You’re not done yet, but you are on the home stretch.
Setting it up can take a little time, so feel free to leave it alone while it does its thing. you may check whether RCS is working by tapping the three dots in the top-right, selectingSettings>Chat features, and checking theStatusfield. If RCS is working, it’ll read “Connected.” You can also choose whether you want to send read receipts and other features here.
There are reports that it can take as many as three or more tries to connect to the RCS service, so keep trying if it doesn’t seem to work the first time. Additionally, this feature may disappear at any point in the future. It’s part of the beta, yes — but since it’s so well hidden, it may be that Google locks the option back down in the next build. So enjoy it while you’re able to.
