Google is going crazy with this unbundling/rebundling nonsense.<p>There was once Google Voice, Google Chat, Google Talk, Google Hangouts and now Google Messenger! This is crazy.<p>Yesterday I opened a Google Drive spreadsheet via the Android "Drive" (which was earlier "Docs") app yesterday but when I tried to edit a cell was told I need to install "Sheets" to do so! I'm waiting for Google Save, Google Forward, Google Share, Google Delete. Sorry, scratch that last one cos we know Delete ain't gonna happpen at Google.
I am amazed it is the end of 2014 and Google (and Microsoft) still have not figured out messaging yet. iMessage is far from perfect but it is a hell of a lot nicer experience than anything else.<p>This is even more true for Microsoft IMHO as they could (should!) have had an integrated messaging app between Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 to allow for transparent SMS/Skype/MSN/WhateverTheyWantToUseNow messaging the same way iMessage does and have everything synced between devices.
This is nice, and I prefer it to the combined hangouts app as I tend to receive a lot of hangouts and few SMS and yet the SMS are sometimes important and effectively this filtered view (by using two apps) makes it easier and quicker to find a specific SMS.<p>I also like that it's now a little clearer how to block a number. They were under similar interfaces in the hangouts app but because it was combined it wasn't as clear.<p>It would be good for the times that I do get SMS spam if Google partnered with the telcos in such a way that Google reported back spam and offered a "Report Spam" button in addition to the block option.<p>The material design really does make the Hangouts app look dated and clunky by comparison.
My conspiracy theory is that this app will eventually replace the Hangouts app.<p>Notes:<p>1) This is not AOSP. It is closed source. And since it can be updated through Play, Google can ship new features independent of Android releases. Some say good (I do). Some might label it as a trojan horse... for Hangouts.<p>2) For Lollipop, carriers choose between the classic AOSP Messaging app and this one, Messenger.<p>3) Hangouts suspiciously has not received the Material Design treatment.<p>4) Google is holding Material Design hostage to get Messenger onto the phone as the default SMS/MMS app, possibly to deliver an even more integrated Hangouts later.<p>5) Wonder if Messenger is part of the Google app preload required to get the Play Store on the device?
Gyah, my android messaging experience is so confused! Has anyone else managed to get a nice experience with Google Voice? What's your set up? Last I checked, hangouts still <i>sends</i> SMS under your real phone number, not the GV one. Is that still the case?<p>I also tried tossing in TextSecure at one point, and now sometimes I get texts there, sometimes Hangouts, sometimes neither.... Sigh.
Obligatory rant about too many IM apps: <a href="http://the.taoofmac.com/space/blog/2014/11/13/0830#the-instant-mess-we-re-in" rel="nofollow">http://the.taoofmac.com/space/blog/2014/11/13/0830#the-insta...</a>
Uh, nice I guess? Is it end-to-end encrypted like TextSecure? (Or WhatsApp, now?)<p>Because if not, why would anyone want this? Is this just the moving of the SMS app out of AOSP and submerging with Hangouts? Is TextSecure (and the upcoming Signal) not clearly better?
As someone who does not have unlimited SMS and also communicates with many international phone numbers, this is a step backwards. The unification of hangouts and SMS allowed me to control which medium my messages took, which saves me a lot of money and allows me to stay in touch wherever I am in the world. Before, I had to straddle two apps to make this happen. With Hangouts, it's all one interface and conversation threads are combined.
I like this app better than Google Hangouts but I can't seem to figure out how to use it to send SMS from my Google Voice number. I can only send from my carrier's number. I tried changing the "my number" setting but it didn't do anything.
I wonder if this works with Moto Assist for spoken SMS messages and responses while driving. SMS for Hangouts does not and this doesn't seem to replace the official Messaging app (...yet?)
Yay, same name as the Messenger app from Facebook - that's gonna end up in a lawsuit. Doesn't the Play store disallow apps with the same name by default?