All about RCS

RCS stands for Rich Communication Services, which you can think of as the successor to the familiar SMS. After all, the way we send messages has changed tremendously since we started texting. We send more photos, chat with more than one person at a time, share our location and add magic to our conversations with GIFs and videos. RCS makes all this possible, via the Google Messages app.

To use RCS, you need the following:

• An Android smartphone (Android 5.x or later).
• The Google Messages app. Do you have a Samsung or the latest Huawei? Then you can download the app in the Google Play Store. Other Android smartphone? The Google Messages app is installed on your phone as standard, and you already use it for texting.
• You must accept the general terms and conditions to use the messaging service.
• The person you are messaging must have also accepted the terms and conditions. What if they haven't? Then your message will be sent as a regular SMS or MMS. You can see in the text bar whether a message is sent as SMS, MMS or RCS.
• Your smartphone must be connected via Wi-Fi or mobile data.

Good to know: You don't pay for RCS, only your usage counts.

Do you want to switch RCS on or off?

• Click the hamburger menu (three dots) in the top-right corner of your messages app to open the menu.
• Go to Settings.
• Select Advanced and click Chat functions.
• Switch 'Chat function' on or off.