Apple Starts To 'Get The Message' By Upgrading Its Message Feature To RCS

The green and blue bubbles on iPhone messages indicate the type of service used to send the message.

Blue bubbles mean that the message was sent using iMessage, which is Apple’s own messaging platform. Therefore, blue bubbles also signal that the sender and the receiver are both using Apple products, which can create a sense of belonging and identity among Apple users.

This essentially means that messages sent using non-Apple devices are discriminated, uniquely identified with their 'dreaded' green bubble.

Apple is widely regarded as a premium and innovative brand, and some people may associate blue bubbles with higher social status, taste, and coolness. Conversely, green bubbles may be seen as inferior, outdated, or uncool by some people.

Among other reasons, this is why Google desperately wants Apple to adopt RCS, and the reason why some Android manufacturers try to make their messages appear blue.

And how, finally. Apple is starting to #GetTheMessage and upgrade to RCS.

"Now that Apple is starting to #GetTheMessage with its adoption of RCS, texting between Android and Apple devices is getting a whole lot better," said Android in a dedicated web page.

"With RCS, you can text the people you care about with ease and enjoy features like high-res photo and video sharing, typing indicators, and read receipts, regardless of whether they're using iMessage or Google Messages."

Users can also have a better group chat experiences, and respond to messages with emojis.

To benefit from RCS, iPhone users must check with their carrier and their device's settings instructions to learn how to turn it on.

"You may need to download the most recent iOS software update," said Android.

When it's on, a green outline of a phone is overlaid by a green toggle titled "RCS Messaging" turned on. There is a dotted circle around the phone with a check mark icon on the upper left side of it.

"Though progress has been made with RCS, there’s still work to do to make texting better for everyone. We look forward to Apple adding the ability to react to media, reply directly to messages in group chats, and more," added Android.

And seemingly, many parties are rejoicing and celebrating.

Before this, when communicating with an Apple user through its default messaging app, anyone that didn't use an Apple device would have their bubble appear green.

This green color was more than just a color issue, because those who appeared green were confronted with restrictive character limits, pixelated photos and videos. This happened because non-Apple user trying to message Apple user sent their messages using SMS and MMS format.

Some people felt ashamed of this, and in pop culture, they were also ashamed about their choice of phone operating system just because their texts appear in green bubbles on iPhones and everyone else’s are blue.

This is apparent in countries where Apple dominates, like the U.S. as the most notable.