The popular messaging app Messages is finally catching up with other chat apps. In it, Google will soon be able to directly respond to messages of the RCS (Rich Communication Services) standard.
Over the years, "texting" and instant messaging have become one of the main ways we communicate with each other. However, a minor problem can arise during this communication, which is that in "quick" chats such as a busy group chat, it is not always easy to tell which message someone is replying to.
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Most chat apps have solved this "little thing" in one form or another. For example, Slack offers threads to keep discussion on a topic separate from the rest of the chat room discussion. Other apps like iMessage and Discord simply let you choose a message to reply to, usually adding a bit of style and context to your message when it's sent.
From the website's analysis of the latest version of the News 9to5Google, it appears that Google is coming up with a similar solution, which is a reply arrow icon that appears when you long-tap on a specific message. Tapping this icon will place your message above the typing bubble along with a Cancel button in case you change your mind, otherwise you can write your message as usual.
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The feature appears to be far enough along in development that replies can be properly sent and received through RCS, with replies appearing in the web version of News as well. As you would expect, the reply message includes a preview of the original message and the name of the sender. Clicking on the preview will take Messages to the original message. Some users of the app on Reddit are reporting (and they're not beta testers, they say) that the feature has already arrived, so it looks like Google has started rolling it out in the past few days. It should reach you soon.
