Comply with these steps to change your default Android textual content messaging app

One of many lesser-appreciated options of Google’s Android mobile operating system is the power to change your default apps with out fuss. Your default net browser, telephone app, caller ID and spam app, digital assistant app, home app, and Quick Message Service (SMS) texting app are all simply interchangable with third-party alternate options.

There are numerous, many reasons to be critical of Google, however I am going to give credit score the place credit score is due: the tech large has carried out a fairly good job of creating Android a versatile OS, messaging apps included. In case you’re questioning how one can make the swap to a third-party text messaging app, otherwise you merely wish to check out one thing that is not Google Messages, then all it will take is a few purposeful display screen faucets.

Easy methods to swap out your default SMS texting app on Android

The whole course of solely takes a couple of moments to finish

With the intention to swap from one Android texting app to an alternate one, comply with these steps:

1. Obtain a third-party textual content messaging app from the Google Play Store, for those who do not have already got one put in in your Android telephone.
2. Find this third-party texting app from inside your telephone’s app drawer, and faucet on its icon to launch the software program.
3. Instantly, you will be greeter with a splash display screen. You will wish to faucet on the Set default SMS app button.
4. From the listing offered, faucet on the textual content messaging app of your selection.
5. Faucet on Set as default.

And identical to that, whichever texting app you’ve got chosen will begin working as your new default — it will mechanically replace and sync up all of your present textual content message threads, with no extra enter required. The method to return to your beforehand chosen texting app is an identical, however merely in reverse.

In case you’re in search of some wonderful third-party messaging app suggestions, Pocket-lint has a dedicated article on the subject. Briefly, some standard choices embody:

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Google is the undisputed chief on the subject of trendy Android textual content messaging

That being stated, third-party SMS apps nonetheless have their place out there

Lately, we have seen Google push aggressively to make its personal Messages app the de facto texting expertise on Android. The tech large has emphasised its personal implementation of the Rich Communication Services (RCS) protocol, and has brokered offers with giants like Samsung to include the service on new phones by default.

The truth is, because it at present stands, the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) or ‘vanilla’ model of Android doesn’t even have an actively maintained app for messaging family and friends. As a substitute, it is as much as smartphone OEMs and third-party builders to fill the Google-sized void within the room.

Fortunately, whereas the present collection of different SMS apps is not large, the accessible choices are nonetheless being frequently up to date. If the newer RCS texting normal continues to realize trade prominence — and it’s a safe bet that it’ll do so — then I can envision an eventual RCS-powered renaissance within the Android texting app scene.

In fact, as a prerequisite, this is able to require Google to open up its distinctive taste of the RCS protocol to third-parties within the type of a developer API. In the meanwhile, nearly all of texting apps on Android fall into one among two camps: those who depend on the now-ancient SMS normal, and people funded by deep pockets that may afford to construct proprietary messaging applied sciences à la WhatsApp, Discord, and others.

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