Android Gets Messages for Web

FrgMstr

Just Plain Mean
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Google announced earlier this year that Android Messages users would soon be able to send and receive text messages from your PC desktop. That feature is rolling out this week, if you don't already have it on your Android phone. This page has the full instructions on this which uses a QR code. I certainly know that not having to pick up my phone 20 times a day while using my PC will be a welcomed addition to Android functionality. All you have to do is open Messages on your phone, tap the options menu and select Messages for Web, and scan the QR code with your phone. My Pixel 2 has not yet gotten the feature rolled out to it, so I did not have a chance to try it out.


You can use your computer to chat with your friends through Messages for web, which shows what’s on your Messages mobile app. Messages for web sends SMS messages using a connection from your computer to your phone, so carrier fees will apply, just like on the mobile app.

Note: The QR code for Messages for web is unique to your computer and pairs the mobile app to that computer. You can pair your Messages account on multiple devices, but only one will be active at a time. When you open Messages for web on a computer, your conversations on any other computers or browser tabs will become inactive.
 
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I used Textra on my android phone and love it, I've also been using MightyText for texting from my PC...I really dont want to switch to Messages for my texting app since it blows donky balls compared to Textra. I really hope I can enable this on messages, text from the web, and still use Textra as my default texting app. Then I can ditch MightyText (which is pretty good btw) but it's not free. I hope messages for the web is good...
 
Unsure if this requires the messages to be on google servers or not... Might be acting similarly to airdroid.

It could go either way as to whether this does or does not respect your privacy... Hmm...
 
Don't see it yet on my Pixel 2 XL either. My fam/friends mostly use Hangouts, so I keep Gmail up at work and talk to them on there mostly. But for the few people I do text with, this will definitely be nice and kill the need for Pushbullet on my phone.
 
Whatever, don't care. Why would you need web for SMS anyways? Its not like iMessage with dedicated app and sync.
 
I've had this fuctionality with Hangouts on Project Fi always. I have my choice of getting sms in Gmail or on the web Hangouts interface. Anyone else in the same boat? I wonder if this will be better or worse and if they will kill my hangouts fuctionalily...
 
I've been doing this for a while with google voice / hangouts. I fail to see the amazing newness of this.
 
I've been doing this for a while with google voice / hangouts. I fail to see the amazing newness of this.
Because they killed that functionality on normal Android a while ago. I didn't notice it until I left Fi, now I'm frustrated by having to use something else to replace what was functionally awesome. I wish Google would stop making useful services, then abandoning them a bit later. It's like that corporate ADD. They've basically turned Messages into Hangouts, wasting time, money and user Goodwill on the process
 
Whatever, don't care. Why would you need web for SMS anyways? Its not like iMessage with dedicated app and sync.

Sometimes you might like to just text while on your computer without pulling your phone out of your pocket.
 
I've had this fuctionality with Hangouts on Project Fi always. I have my choice of getting sms in Gmail or on the web Hangouts interface. Anyone else in the same boat? I wonder if this will be better or worse and if they will kill my hangouts fuctionalily...
As a fellow Project Fi customer, this is my concern as well. I like having a complete text/chat log in one place, and I'd be fine with switching software as long as it will import/access my Hangouts history.
 
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I used Textra on my android phone and love it, I've also been using MightyText for texting from my PC...I really dont want to switch to Messages for my texting app since it blows donky balls compared to Textra. I really hope I can enable this on messages, text from the web, and still use Textra as my default texting app. Then I can ditch MightyText (which is pretty good btw) but it's not free. I hope messages for the web is good...
+1

It's $39/year to get full access to MT, a price I've been willing to pay because it works very well. The only other option I found is Pulse (only $11 for lifetime use), but you have to use the Pulse app on your phone, too. I'm excited about this Android Messages alternative... if I can keep using Textra.
 
I used to use MightyText but then a few years back it stopped working properly, intermittently, not at all. So there's no way I was going to pay for it.

Messages is my default text message app, but I don't have the options for that yet. Probably rolling out to Google devices first, and then friends of Google, and everyone else can suck it. At least that's how it seems in the android world.
 
I used to use MightyText but then a few years back it stopped working properly, intermittently, not at all. So there's no way I was going to pay for it.

Messages is my default text message app, but I don't have the options for that yet. Probably rolling out to Google devices first, and then friends of Google, and everyone else can suck it. At least that's how it seems in the android world.
Given that it's an application-level change, this is highly doubtful. I have the latest update (3.3.403), which is supposed to be the correct version for the new feature, and I also don't see the option. I looked at the reviews and found one person who had the same issue, but the option then suddenly appeared for them without further update. So, a little patience is probably in order.
 
Seems like a good vector for an unprotected PC to send out mass-texts, phishing, etc.
 
Seems like a good vector for an unprotected PC to send out mass-texts, phishing, etc.
Not really, since the PC has to be linked to the phone for the PC side to work. Even on a compromised PC, too, there would be immediate feedback to the user in the messaging app if it was suddenly sending out a bunch of text messages.
 
i don't understand google reasoning for killing SMS support in hangouts (i just installed it back on my pixle 2 right now and it has all my messages from 2015)

i dont get why google is using 3 apps that one can do , 3 as Message SMS/MMS/RCS app, Allo (can't use SMS with it so it makes it mostly useless to use) Duo witch all could be done in one app which was google hangouts as its integrated into gmail web witch also works on my chromebook perfectly fine (video and voice,text) google should just kill Allo and Duo and re enable SMS and fix bugs (as at the time SMS was little iffy with it) and add RCS into it (we know it still works in SMS as its on project FI admittingly that is basically SMS over data)

or make the Messages app have built in support for Allo and Duo (obviously they have to opt into it) over 100m people have the updateable messages app
 
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This just came up today on my Nokia 7 Plus.
It's nice, but I don't send too many SMS, so its not that useful for me.

Also, I use Cortana: if I get an SMS, I get a notification on Win10 and I have the option inside the notification to send a reply. That's the quickest method possible, I think, without touching your phone.
 
Tried it all day. It’s pretty good, but I don’t care for the Android Messenger app. Guess I’m sticking with Textra and Mighty Text for messaging on my computer.
 
Hard to give up Textra. Messages seems to crash on me quite a bit, no dark theme in 2018 and overall feels clunky.
 
Went live for me last night.
Interestingly, I had my work VPN active on my phone when I initially started the pairing process. Worked like a charm, albeit a bit slow (yes, was on Wi-Fi). When I was finished with work stuff, I closed the VPN out and the link failed. Had to reboot my phone to get it back. This was very reproducible. Troubling thing is, only our Siebel Field Service app is supposed to use the tunnel, and nothing else. Might have to let IT know.
 
It is a soft rollout. As long as your messages app is up to date, you'll get it when they go love for whatever metric they're using.
 
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