Messaging Improved – Now With RCS
At Mei we are committed to improving your messaging experience and believe RCS is the future of messaging. We’re working on supporting RCS and it will be available in upcoming releases.
What Is RCS?
Rich Communication Services (RCS) is a type of messaging protocol that will upgrade and replace SMS. RCS will allow for improved media handling via Android messaging such as high-resolution photos, GIFs and videos.
Similar to iMessage you’ll be able to see when a contact is typing a message and when they have received a message when you both use RCS.
RCS will replace SMS and finally allow Android phones to compete with iMessage and over-the-top messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram and WeChat. Think of it as iMessage for Android.
Carriers around the world are adopting what is being referred to as the “Universal Profile” of RCS and in several countries (Japan, S. Korea, and recently, the US) carriers have formed joint ventures to build and offer RCS services. Google, the market leader, has in parallel been slowly rolling out its own version of RCS across several countries.
What Has Mei Built?
Mei is the first independent SMS app to launch RCS. This will enhance the advanced messaging features we already offer (such as Folders and Blast Messages). Rather than slowly rolling out to some users, we will offer RCS to all Android users on Mei in upcoming releases on the Play Store.
You will be able to send larger videos, higher quality pictures and GIFs to other Mei users. We will be adding in typing indicators and read receipts shortly.
To begin with this will only work between Mei users, but as soon as Google and/or the carriers share their APIs, it will work with other messaging platforms that support RCS.
End-to-End Encrypted RCS
Mei’s RCS is the first end-to-end encrypted RCS on the market. This means we can offer you the improved messaging functionality of RCS, along with a more secure messaging protocol. Messages will only be encrypted when sent between you and another Mei user and you are both using RCS.
How Do I Use RCS On Mei?
If you use Mei and have RCS turned on, Mei will automatically try and send a message/picture/video via RCS. If you are outside of a connectivity area (no WiFi or LTE) and/or the person you are texting doesn’t have RCS on Mei activated (or has no connectivity), the message will automatically revert back to SMS.
All you need to do is make sure you have RCS turned on in Settings:
Settings>Account and Advanced Features>Data Messages (RCS)
Once activated, RCS will be the new default between you and other Mei users and SMS the fallback.
Try out sending messages via RCS with your friends on Mei and let us know what you think!