I don’t get the RCS hype. I already have apps for rich messaging and RCS offers nothing for me over those apps. What I do appreciate is SMS, which is posed to be killed-off by RCS. I can rely on SMS even when there is no data signal, can’t say that for RCS. I wish I had a way to permanently disable RCS on my Pixel 6a, instead I have to keep rejecting the ‘upgrade to RCS’ dialog.
Can’t you just disable RCS in the Google Messages app and use a different messenger? You can just change the default SMS app to one that doesn’t do RCS (which is almost all of them).
Edit:
I can rely on SMS even when there is no data signal, can’t say that for RCS.
Users in many cases switch cellular data usage off locally on their device. To allow the MNO
to offer IR 92 / IR 94 and RCS services to their users even in these use cases, the data off
switch shall have an MNO configurable impact on the device connectivity. It shall be up to
the individual MNO to ensure a good Operator service experience by the end user in cases
that allow IP service usage even if the data switch was set to ’off’ by the end user.
“MNO” refers to the cellular network operator you have a subscription with.
Of course, this requirement cannot be satisfied if you use a random internet server (such as Google’s) for RCS, rather than your carrier’s. This is a problem with Google’s servers, RCS itself was designed to operate even if you have data disabled. 4G and later are completely packet-based, so there is no “no data signal” situation, just “terrible reception and slow data rates” without fallback to 3G (if your area still has 3G providers) or 2G (if you enjoy the security risk of leaving 2G support enabled).
The hype is because America won’t switch to Internet messaging by default and only wants one app to message with. So SMS is the only primary option for that. Meaning lower resolution media, and a lack of modern features like read receipts and typing indicators.
I don’t get the RCS hype. I already have apps for rich messaging and RCS offers nothing for me over those apps. What I do appreciate is SMS, which is posed to be killed-off by RCS. I can rely on SMS even when there is no data signal, can’t say that for RCS. I wish I had a way to permanently disable RCS on my Pixel 6a, instead I have to keep rejecting the ‘upgrade to RCS’ dialog.
Can’t you just disable RCS in the Google Messages app and use a different messenger? You can just change the default SMS app to one that doesn’t do RCS (which is almost all of them).
Edit:
The RCS Universal Profile Service Definition Document has the following to say about that:
“MNO” refers to the cellular network operator you have a subscription with.
Of course, this requirement cannot be satisfied if you use a random internet server (such as Google’s) for RCS, rather than your carrier’s. This is a problem with Google’s servers, RCS itself was designed to operate even if you have data disabled. 4G and later are completely packet-based, so there is no “no data signal” situation, just “terrible reception and slow data rates” without fallback to 3G (if your area still has 3G providers) or 2G (if you enjoy the security risk of leaving 2G support enabled).
The hype is because America won’t switch to Internet messaging by default and only wants one app to message with. So SMS is the only primary option for that. Meaning lower resolution media, and a lack of modern features like read receipts and typing indicators.