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Not long ago, Google began testing the waters with account-based logins for Google Messages. I even wrote an entire post about how important this change is and why it is a necessary step for Google to take with their primary messaging platform. And while I still absolutely stand by those thoughts, I’m a little bummed right now.
You see, Google Messages is rolling out account-based logins for people pretty broadly at this point, meaning you can simply log into Google Messages on the web (PWA) with your Google Account, match up an emoji on your phone, and be up and running quickly. That part is pretty great for certain!
A missed opportunity
But as nice as it is to get connected easily and quickly, I really don’t think account-based logins are limited to just this use case. Even WhatsApp has the ability to stay connected and send/receive messages with my phone completely powered down. If I’m linking my account to Google Messages both on my phone and in the web app, shouldn’t I be able to send at least RCS messages when my phone is unavailable? For now, the answer to that seems to be a solid no.
Now, to be fair, Google didn’t promise this feature with account-based logins, but I really hoped that was the point of all this. After all, if I always have to have my phone on, available, and nearby in order to use the web app for Messages, is the account-based login really necessary? What is it really helping with other than making login a little bit faster and easier?
Hopefully we’re getting to the point where Google will leave Messages attached to our phone numbers, but also untether the send/receive functionality a bit. I understand that sending SMS/MMS over the web is sloppy and a mess, but RCS shouldn’t be an issue at all. And if Google wants us all to take Messages seriously as more than just a text messaging client, they need to enable web-based features that don’t require my phone to be ready and available to work. Here’s hoping that happens sooner than later.
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