What you need to know
- Samsung and Google have redesigned the Google Messages app on the S21 to match the aesthetic of other One UI apps even more.
- It's an extension of Google and Samsung's messaging partnership and adds a new spaced out home page to the app.
- Reports from users place this as a server-side upgrade, so it should appear on your phone once Google flips the switch.
The update is rolling out worldwide to Galaxy S21 users (and only those, so far). It's not yet known whether Google and Samsung will roll this out to more of Samsung's cheapest phones like the A52 and A72. If Samsung is going to keep it on its flagship phone, however, then we can expect to see it on the S21 FE, Galaxy Z Fold 3, and the Galaxy Z Flip 3, at the very least. Google may also roll out a variation of this design to Android 12, given its current design stylings for the beta operating system.
Google's goals for working with Samsung on this are clear. The company has been trying to expand the reach of Google Messages for a while now, even stepping in to power RCS in places where operators were slow to take the reins. By leveraging its partnership with Samsung, the company can push RCS front and center to a wider variety of users than the Pixel or other stock Android using brands could reach on their own.
Have you gotten this new One UI-inspired Messages app? Let us know in the comments below.
