Google Again Criticizes Apple for Not Adopting RCS for Messages App: 'Their Texting is Stuck in the 1990s'

[currocj]

Lots of people here are confused as to what Google is asking for... They aren't asking Apple to replace iMessage with RCS. They are asking Apple to replace SMS with RCS.

SMS is technology from the 90s. It sucks. RCS is a more modern version of SMS. It's a lot better.

Apple users will benefit in every conversation they have with their family/friends that don't have iPhones.

Voice of reason, thank you.

This is all we want from Andriod users (the majority of planet Earth): high res photo/video transfer, longer messages, and finally, finally, a 'HaHa' tapback integrated and not: "Joe laughed at: [repeat of super long message]"! It's that simple

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

Lots of people here are confused as to what Google is asking for... They aren't asking Apple to replace iMessage with RCS. They are asking Apple to replace SMS with RCS.

SMS is technology from the 90s. It sucks. RCS is a more modern version of SMS. It's a lot better.

Apple users will benefit in every conversation they have with their family/friends that don't have iPhones.

They're not confused. For many people, when it becomes Apple vs Google (or Samsung or any Apple competitor), reason goes out the window and the Apple blinders are put on.

Good information you post, though.

 

[Kar98]

Lots of people here are confused as to what Google is asking for... They aren't asking Apple to replace iMessage with RCS. They are asking Apple to replace SMS with RCS.

SMS is technology from the 90s. It sucks. RCS is a more modern version of SMS. It's a lot better.

Apple users will benefit in every conversation they have with their family/friends that don't have iPhones.

But it needs to be implemented on the CARRIER side. Of course Apple is gonna say "nah bruh, we're good" when Google asks to implement their version of RCS.

 

[1885507]

Green people problems. lol.

 

[genovelle]

I don’t recall hearing your users asking you to put a lot of energy into Send Your Heartbeat to another Apple Watch user either Tim, but that Pulitzer Prize winning feature exists. 🙄

Big difference in a fun feature and on that undermines the security of iMessage by converting messages to this mess of a service that remains unencrypted so google can extract data from the android end like they do with emails sent to gmail accounts.

 

[bobcomer]

And that is fine. Google "calling out" Apple is poor form. I guess this is the norm for business tactics now, but I digress; it's poor form.

It's also poor form to keep insisting on SMS/MMS when there is something better for cross OS messaging.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

Big difference in a fun feature and on that undermines the security of iMessage by converting messages to this mess of a service that remains unencrypted so google can extract data from the android end like they do with emails sent to gmail accounts.

RCS doesn't convert iMessage. When you send a message to an Android user now, your iPhone sends an SMS message, which is NOT secure at all. It doesn't send an iMessage. So, instead, the iPhone could send an RCS message (which IS secure) to the Android phone.

 

[genovelle]

Apple should release a proper Apple app for Android. It should include basic versions of Apple TV, Apple Mail, iMessage and FaceTime for $9.99 month. Free for the first 3 months.

 

[Azathoth123]

Apple blinders are put on.

Literally, non-cellular Watches, iPads, and Macs are blind to them

 

[Azathoth123]

So, instead, the iPhone could send an RCS message (which IS secure) to the Android phone.

If Apple implements Google‘s fork of RCS which they can’t because there is no public API of Google’s fork. Regular RCS is not encrypted, right?

 

[okkibs]

We had texting in the 1990s? Wouldn’t that involve a flip phone and hitting the same key over and over again for one letter?

...yes that is how it worked and it wasn't much slower than typing on a touchscreen. There was also T9 that later phones had which predicted the word just like smartphones do today. The problem was more about fitting your message into 160 characters so the phone bill wouldn't explode. A message was about $.5 back then so if you ran over the limit by a single character you paid $1 for the message. Inflation-adjusted today that would be more like $3 or so.

 

[lartola]

Haven't we been through this already? Google should fix what's broken and adopt iMessage.

Google can’t adopt imessage because Apple owns that service and won’t allow it. Apple could enable RCS because it’s a global standard, but they won’t. They’ll die before they budge.

 

[lartola]

The carriers will have to push Apple to do RCS if they want it. Apple isn't going to support it just because Google wants to whine about it. If the carriers deprecated SMS and said that they would discontinue support then Apple would switch to RCS.

Correct. Since Apple won’t budge on its own under any circumstances, an external factor will be necessary to force them.

 

[lartola]

Users would still not switch from WhatsApp / SnapChat.

Google is just wanting more market share, that's all.

And Apple just wants to sell more iphones, that’s all.

 

[Azathoth123]

Apple could enable RCS because it’s a global standard, but they won’t.

Apple can’t implement Google’s encrypted fork of RCS because Google hasn’t published a public API and is not a standard. Why would Apple implement carrier standard RCS?

And how do I get RCS messages on my non-cellular Apple devices?

 

[lartola]

And why would they?

SMS brings money to carriers.

And imessage brings money to Apple by selling more iphones.

 

[lartola]

And how do I get RCS messages on my non-cellular Apple devices?

Just like you already get your SMS on those same non-cellular Apple devices: by enabling text message forwarding.

 

[lartola]

We bought my Android sister a used iPad just for messaging, now everything’s good!

See? that’s exactly Apple’s trap. By limiting imessage to their devices only, they sell some more of them. That’s why they’ll never open up imessage outside their ecosystem or enable RCS on their devices. It gives them some extra hardware sales not to do it.

 

[lartola]

Apple can’t do it without the carriers, and the carriers aren’t interested.

Neither is Apple in the first place. They sell more hardware units that way.

 

[coffeemilktea]

And to think, Google had Hangouts (easily one of the best messaging platforms ever), killed it due to their own mismanagement, and now they're trying to make others pay the price for their own inability to not ruin messaging.

 

[lartola]

Why would Apple implement RCS when they have iMessage?

For better messaging between apple and non-apple users. Whether Apple and its blind defenders like it or not there will always be non-Apple users out there. Apple forcing its customers to use of something as obsolete as sms to message non-apple users is outright abusive and only driven by greed, since their only purpose for limiting imessage and not upgrading from sms to rcs is to sell more iphones.

Nothing makes Apple’s purposes clearer that Tim’s reply to a reporter’s complaint about the lack of RCS not letting him send hq pictures and videos to his non-apple mom: “just buy your mom an iphone” he said.

 

[Azathoth123]

Why doesn’t Google make an equally popular messaging app? The discussion is almost like they can’t do it.

 

[Azathoth123]

Why did they kill Hangouts? People seemed to like it.

 

[bobcomer]

Why would Apple implement carrier standard RCS?

Because it's way better than SMS/MMS -- and for their customer's benefit.

 

[lartola]

Why doesn’t Google make an equally popular messaging apo?

Even if they did, Apple most likely wouldn’t allow it in the appstore. It’s Apple that doesn’t want its users to use anything but SMS to message Android users. At least in the US, where most people refuse to use 3rd party messaging apps.