Report: SMS support coming in the next version of Google Hangouts

It looks like Google is gearing up to combine IM and SMS into a single app.

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[MoonShark]

If you (and Google) are going to mix protocols, you may as well count Gmail as a "messaging" app too. I don't really mind that one being separate, but a unified search would be nice. Isn't that Google's specialty anyway?

Often I have to find a piece of information my girlfriend sent me (an address, grocery list addendum, etc) but I forget whether she sent it via SMS, IM, email, or voicemail -- so I end up scrolling through up to four apps.

 

[krispharper]

Personally, I'd rather have Google Voice integration than SMS integration. But this is a step in the right direction and will probably be useful for lots of people.

 

[mikov]

Hangouts is such a bloated, slow and inconvenient app, that I am not looking forward to this...

 

[steelghost]

What will be interesting is how they resolve device conflicts. For example, my brother has an iPhone but is usually logged on to Google Chat / Hangouts during the day. So if I send him a message, does he get a text (aka SMS) or does he get a pop-up in his Hangouts messaging window?

 

[MoonShark]

By the way, there is an app that allows SMS to be sent & received via a Google Voice number (yes, bypassing your cell carrier). But it doesn't work on all Android versions or ROMs, and when I tried it I actually had to downgrade my GV app to on old version for compatability. Official support for SMS in GV (or Hangouts) would be better.

 

[rougegoat]

I'm pretty sure this is the Voice integration just without explicit "Google Voice" labels. That would make sense since they previously stated that Hangouts is the future of Voice. It would be dumb to have two sets of competing branding when you know from the get go that one of them is in the process of being killed off. So why state "Google Voice Integration" when not long after release "Google Voice" would be either depreciated or shut down?

 

[MoonShark]

mikov[/url]":1b0vltjy]Hangouts is such a bloated, slow and inconvenient app, that I am not looking forward to this...

I'm running an old Droid 2 (Android 2.3.4) and Hangouts is kinda slow to load, but it works fine thereafter. I'd glady put up with that if it meant I could ditch SMS from my carrier plan. Text messages are horribly overpriced when you consider the tiny amount of data they require.

 

[Shudder]

Awesome. HTC's implementation is busted, and garbage. 3rd party ones are very annoying and harass you all the time (especially anything by "Go".

I like the stock android SMS app but that doesn't really work in HTC's mess of a skin. This is welcome news.

 

[talz13]

I just want to see GV merged with Hangouts (on android and PC!) so I don't have to use the AWFUL web client, or the (slightly less awful) android client.

 

[Phiber]

Does this mean my SMS gets uploaded to Google's servers?

 

[vogelabv]

rougegoat[/url]":31zxh73w]I'm pretty sure this is the Voice integration just without explicit "Google Voice" labels. That would make sense since they previously stated that Hangouts is the future of Voice. It would be dumb to have two sets of competing branding when you know from the get go that one of them is in the process of being killed off. So why state "Google Voice Integration" when not long after release "Google Voice" would be either depreciated or shut down?

On that same note, I really hope they allow you to use your Google Voice number for Hangout SMS.

 

[rougegoat]

Phiber[/url]":30uu489a]Does this mean my SMS gets uploaded to Google's servers?

At the moment this means literally nothing as at best it is a leak of what might possibly someday exist. Nothing changes until it's officially announced or released. If you were uploading before you'll keep uploading. Odds are you weren't though, and if that's the case you still won't be uploading.

 

[oj88]

I doubt they will remove the stock SMS app completely. It's part of Android, while Hangouts is proprietary. They have the same problem with Chrome vs the AOSP browser.

 

[sadatoni]

I had to disable Google Hangouts, as it is a big battery drain.

 

[glap1922]

sadatoni[/url]":3imul0ff]I had to disable Google Hangouts, as it is a big battery drain.

What phone/rom? I have had no issues on several phones and different roms using it.

 

[DarkSkyForever]

Google Voice has always been the odd step child in Google's communication line up.

Anecdotally, I use GV as my main texting application as I ported my old cell phone number over to it when I switched to T-Mobile's $30/m unlimited data plan.

It never supported MMS (have to send via my normal text and receive through Gmail), locks up occasionally, and has a few other quirks. Really wish they would have included it in this update as well.

 

[steelghost]

Google Voice only works in the US. Since an increasing portion of Android users are outside the US, I wonder if GV support is not all that high up the list.

 

[yildo]

Google Talk used to let you see who was online and who was offline.

Google Hangouts does not let you see who's online, defeating the whole purpose of using an instant messenger.

Adding SMS support is yet more missing the point, as SMS is another protocol that doesn't tell me whether someone's online.

 

[psarhjinian]

So this is basically Google's riff on iMessage?

It's a nice idea, but then, so was Voice. I'll be impressed if Google can actually a) follow through, and b) see it used outside the United States.

 

[glap1922]

yildo[/url]":1akq06i5]Google Talk used to let you see who was online and who was offline.

Google Hangouts does not let you see who's online, defeating the whole purpose of using an instant messenger.

Adding SMS support is yet more missing the point, as SMS is another protocol that doesn't tell me whether someone's online.

Google Hangouts does let you see who's online. Looking at my app right now, the people who are online have a green word bubble next to their name, while those offline do not.

 

[Leiesoldat]

Finally parity with Apple. Just need that Voice integration now.

 

[Chuck Knucka]

dfavro[/url]":2yrmwm7l]So this is basically Google's riff on iMessage?

Hangouts is cross platform via an app on smart phones or through a web browser on a PC or Mac.


Hangouts definitely has an advantage over SMS like being able to send full resolution photos, video and other attachments. I look forward to this update. I try to get my friends all to use Hangouts, but they don't like having 2 messaging apps. This will go a long way to ditching the built-in SMS app.

It might not seem so, but the ability to seamlessly integrate with SMS is no trivial task. It's no wonder it took this long to get this feature.

 

[rougegoat]

yildo[/url]":gsl8mtb8]Google Hangouts does not let you see who's online, defeating the whole purpose of using an instant messenger.

Hangouts Play Listing[/url]":gsl8mtb8]
What's New
* You can finally see who is on Hangouts! When you start a new Hangout, green icons show who's on, and gray shows who's not.

Actually it does. It didn't initially though, so there is that.

 

[Shudder]

Ninhalem[/url]":3vicqoc4]Finally parity with Apple. Just need that Voice integration now.

What we really need is a more open protocol so the two OSes can talk to each other without having to worry about SMS.

iMessage is great in concept but when half the people have a different OS it doesn't help with the goal of getting rid of SMS entirely.

 

[wh1terav3n]

sadatoni[/url]":3d0nopi8]I had to disable Google Hangouts, as it is a big battery drain.

I find that somewhat difficult to believe, it uses Google's cloud push tech to send and receive messages. It's no bigger of a drain than GMail, or Calendar, which use the same tech by combining all those services into one server connection. Disabling it will give you no benefits unless you also disable all of your other Google Cloud Push server apps.

 

[oblib__]

I hope they never force Google+ sign up for Google Voice -- if they do, I may have to abandon my supposedly-good-forever Voice number...

 

[vnicolici]

Shudder[/url]":s3cjegmx]

Ninhalem[/url]":s3cjegmx]Finally parity with Apple. Just need that Voice integration now.

What we really need is a more open protocol so the two OSes can talk to each other without having to worry about SMS.

Google doesn't seem to think so: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/05/google-abandons-open-standards-instant-messaging

 

[TeknoKid]

steelghost[/url]":carku0xl]What will be interesting is how they resolve device conflicts. For example, my brother has an iPhone but is usually logged on to Google Chat / Hangouts during the day. So if I send him a message, does he get a text (aka SMS) or does he get a pop-up in his Hangouts messaging window?

If they handle it like Windows Phone (which has had combined messaging since launch in 2010) there will be a ‘switch’ button which lets you select the mode from all available messaging options for that contact. Also, when you receive a message and the mode has changed since the last message there is a note to that effect.. i.e. if you have been communicating via SMS and your contact switches to Facebook messaging midstream.

 

[Got Nate?]

mikov[/url]":y47j81s7]Hangouts is such a bloated, slow and inconvenient app, that I am not looking forward to this...

Hangouts is exactly as you described on my old iPhone 4 and iPad 3. On the other hand, Hangouts is behaves like it is fast, lean and convenient on my 5s. Definitely a sign of major bloat when only the highest end, latest and fastest hardware runs the app with any kind of grace.

 

[steelghost]

All that said, it runs just fine on my Galaxy Nexus. Go figure.

 

[mausium]

steelghost[/url]":3w2wmd38]What will be interesting is how they resolve device conflicts. For example, my brother has an iPhone but is usually logged on to Google Chat / Hangouts during the day. So if I send him a message, does he get a text (aka SMS) or does he get a pop-up in his Hangouts messaging window?

Ala iMessage, why not both?

 

[steelghost]

mausium[/url]":24lm7e04]

steelghost[/url]":24lm7e04]What will be interesting is how they resolve device conflicts. For example, my brother has an iPhone but is usually logged on to Google Chat / Hangouts during the day. So if I send him a message, does he get a text (aka SMS) or does he get a pop-up in his Hangouts messaging window?

Ala iMessage, why not both?

That's one way of doing it - another is like TeknoKid posted. I just think they need to think it through - because I've found the "what device gets notifications" doesn't resolve that well. For instance, I have a Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 10 - if I get a Hangout message, and I'm 'logged on' to both devices, only one gets the message, and it seems to be random which one. So the behaviour needs to be predictable, reliable. If I text a mate, and he's logged on to Google on some PC, it needs to not decide that his phone doesn't need a copy of that message.

 

[mausium]

steelghost[/url]":198q5zdm]For instance, I have a Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 10 - if I get a Hangout message, and I'm 'logged on' to both devices, only one gets the message, and it seems to be random which one. So the behaviour needs to be predictable, reliable. If I text a mate, and he's logged on to Google on some PC, it needs to not decide that his phone doesn't need a copy of that message.

Bizarre. I get hangout messages delivered simultaneously to my phone and PC, none ever skipped on either.

Edit: Galaxy S3, to be specific.

 

[steelghost]

Yep, that's my problem with it, it's not predictable. This is probably (for me) the biggest reason I want Google to rationalise their chat services. As it is, I stick to SMS because it (generally) works and its failure modes are well understood.

 

[arkiel]

Shouldn't we be fleeing from the SMS MMS standards en-masse? A medium billed by the phone company vs. a service that is free and carrier-agnostic?

 

[itlnstln]

arkiel[/url]":3aag56jn]Shouldn't we be fleeing from the SMS MMS standards en-masse? A medium billed by the phone company vs. a service that is free and carrier-agnostic?

Fleeing from a fairly standardized protocol (SMS/MMS) to proprietary media like Hangouts and iMessage that the use the data plans billed by phone companies? Probably not, especially since many plans have unlimited texting and limited data.

 

[sr105]

glap1922[/url]":1wnfn3bv]

yildo[/url]":1wnfn3bv]Google Talk used to let you see who was online and who was offline.

Google Hangouts does not let you see who's online, defeating the whole purpose of using an instant messenger.

Adding SMS support is yet more missing the point, as SMS is another protocol that doesn't tell me whether someone's online.

Google Hangouts does let you see who's online. Looking at my app right now, the people who are online have a green word bubble next to their name, while those offline do not.

Actually, it doesn't. It only shows you the people you've recently communicated with. It will not show you any of your other Google Talk contacts online status. Yildo was 100% correct.

 

[lamawithonel]

'bout time! webOS introduced unified messaging how many years ago?