If you have consumed any of my TikTok content ever, you would know I like to make fun of Apple and Android fanboys alike. As an avid user of multiple platforms from Android to iOS, mac OS to Linux to Windows, Xbox and PlayStation, I see what all platforms offer me. For the past 15 years, I’ve made interoperability work for me.
I say this because I have found ways around the blue/green bubble debate. I mean, majority of the world has at this point. There are infinitely better platforms than SMS/MMS. There are better platforms than RCS. And, yes, there are better platforms than iMessage.
So, between seeing what Nothing was doing this week, what Beeper has been doing for a while, and this new thing, it baffles me.
For years, people in the US, specifically, have been arguing over an arbitrary status symbol that is green bubbles vs blue bubbles. This is mainly stemming from the features iPhone users have grown accustomed to in iMessage that aren’t translated well over SMS and MMS. This became an increasing pain when RCS was adopted on Android. RCS had similar features to iMessage and was widely available. But Apple never caved.
Until now. With the EU breathing down Apple’s neck, Apple’s hand was forced in yet another battle. First, it was the USB-C port. Now, it’s RCS. Now, it’s not to say that iMessage is going away. This just means the “green bubbles” can do more.
This, however, isn’t the best solution. While SMS/MMS was never encrypted, RCS really isn’t all that safe either. It doesn’t have the same levels of encryption that iMessages or any other texting app can provide.
At the end of the day, why don’t people just move to Whatsapp? Ever thought of Telegram? Maybe give Signal a try? There are even some dope open source routes you can go. But this color bubble war just needs to go away.
Source: 9to5Mac
