RCS is supposed to be an open standard, but it certainly doesn’t feel like one in any meaningful sense. Before my move back to Android, based on some of the news articles I had read online and conversations I had heard in passing, I naively assumed it was the kind of service that any app could adopt. Much like SMS apps, I thought I could try a few, pick the one I liked most, and then choose a default.
I was horribly wrong about all of this.
On Android, the only way to use RCS is to use Google Messages and Google’s servers. Samsung Messages was also nominally an alternative, although it still used Google’s Jibe implementation/servers underneath, and is now being phased out and users are being migrated to Google Message. Not only do you only have one option for an app, but you are also limited in the circumstances where you can actually use it. Want to unlock your phone and install an alternative operating system? Too bad, Google will check the “integrity” of your device, deem it insecure, and limit you to SMS only.
The idea of RCS is great: an open standard shepherded by a standards body, that any vendor can create an implementation for. On the technical side, RCS is a gigantic improvement over SMS, providing features like delivery and read receipts, high quality photos and video, and typing indicators. Plus, being a standard for every phone means that people don’t have to resort to third-party apps, or come to an agreement on which ones to use. As much as I would personally love for everyone to use Signal, some people prefer WhatsApp, others want Telegram, and others opt for even more obscure choices. With this, at least everyone can still chat with one another.
That’s part of the reason why I’m optimistic about Matrix. I hope that one day it becomes as easy to use as some of these other protocols, and everyone can choose a server and client they like, and chat with everyone else that way. Of course, I think we’re really far off from that kind of future.
For now, I wish there were more choices. I wish that you didn’t have to pick between Apple’s proprietary iOS app or Google’s proprietary Android app. If you’re wanting to pick up a phone to install GrapheneOS or LineageOS, and you’re banking on being able to use RCS, I would encourage you to reconsider, or at least find an alternative to use with the people in your life you want to stay in contact with. In 2026, SMS simply doesn’t cut it any more.