- Three possible Google Messages changes spotted in beta code
- These include a larger icon for Google Gemini and new text for location sharing.
- There is also a new “Open” option when saving media
Google Messages is already a competent messaging app, but it could soon benefit from three changes, which could improve it in small but useful ways.
We heard about it from Android Authority, who spotted these changes in the code of a recent beta build. None of these tweaks are active yet, but their presence in the code suggests they could be coming soon.
First, what happens when you save a shared media file such as a photo changes. Currently, when you save it, you’ll just see a message pop up to confirm that it’s been saved, but that message may soon receive an actionable “Open” option, which will then allow you to open the file.
This might be a niche addition, since you’ll already be looking at the file, but opening it in another app might assure you that it was actually saved. You can see how this would look and work in the video below.
Look on it
Gemini and location sharing
Then there’s a possible change to Gemini coming soon, with the icon to launch Gemini potentially likely to become much larger.
Right now it’s a small floating icon in the lower right corner of the screen, and its position will apparently stay the same after the change, it just won’t be that small. It’s unclear why Google would do this, but perhaps the company hopes it will make it easier for people to use Gemini. And for those who already use it a lot, a larger button might be easier to press, which could be considered a slight upgrade.
Picture 1 of 2
Finally, Google could change the text of the location sharing option. Currently, if you tap the plus sign to the left of the text input box, one of the options you’ll see will be titled “Location,” but Android Authority found that this could be changed to “Single Location.”
This is probably to make it clearer that this will only share your current location, rather than your current location. But to confuse matters, the site also discovered that in code, the option will be described as “enable_live_location_sharing_extension”, with the “live” making it seem more like an ongoing thing. So it’s unclear if there will be more changes than just the text.
Of course, there’s no guarantee that these changes will actually come to fruition, as at the moment Google is only testing them. But if they do launch, we expect them to do so soon.
Follow TechRadar on Google News And add us as your favorite source to get our news, reviews and expert opinions in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can too follow TechRadar on TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp Also.
