GoKawiilEdgar Cervantes / Android Authority
Every friend group is going to have its black sheep. Maybe they’re the one who’s most likely to need bailing out, the one who’s always canceling plans at the last minute, or the one who’s never jumping at the chance to buy the next round. I’m the black sheep in my friend group, and it’s all Google’s fault.
Like many friends do, we keep in touch through a group chat, and at first, everything was fine. But one by one, over the past few years everybody started upgrading to RCS, getting access to new features — and having their expectations for text messaging evolve. The big problem, though: I’m using Google Voice, and Google Voice feels like it’s never going to get RCS.
Are you a Google Voice user? 21 votes Yes, it's the primary way I text message. 14 % I have a GV number, but I hardly ever use it. 52 % I used to be, but RCS through Messages is just plain better. 10 % No, I never really got into it. 24 %
In 2026, not supporting RCS has become a liability
As you’re probably well aware by now, RCS (Rich Communication Services) is the big upgrade to modernize text messaging that smartphones have needed for a long time. Android has been building out its support for years, and when RCS arrived for iPhones in 2024, a major hurdle in the way of cross-platform communication finally came down.
This is all great, with RCS delivering everything from support for reactions, to read receipts, to large media attachments. At least, it’s great … up until you’re the last person in your group chat without access. Reactions come through awkwardly as messages unto themselves. Sometimes images don’t show up at all. And once in a while conversations seem to randomly drop messages and arrive out of order.
If Google cared enough to bring RCS to Voice, it would have happened by now.
Especially with that last one, I can’t even say positively that this is specifically an RCS problem causing it. But it keeps happening, and I can’t blame my friends when they all point their fingers at the one guy insisting on using decades-old SMS in 2026.
Why Google Voice in the first place?
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