If you buy a high-end Samsung or iPhone device, you don’t have much to choose from. It is the Android operating system that has always been the focus. But now Google is slowly changing that too—and it’s making users seriously angry…
Google’s latest update is very “iPhone”
3/4 update below. article originally published 3/1.
Android is changing—this year we’ve seen an exciting focus on AI upgrades to existing apps, as well as security crackdowns on dangerous apps and the third-party app store ecosystem. And later this year, we’ll finally see an update to texting between Android and iPhone, courtesy of Apple’s reluctant RCS.
One of the issues here is control. Apple practices this to a high degree in its ecosystem, and Google, through Android, traditionally does not. But that is changing. Google focuses heavily on the walled garden elements of the ‘Play’ ecosystem, including additional protections available to its huge user base.
Now we’ve just seen the latest examples of Google’s “Play” style Android look more and more like the iPhone. According to reports, users with rooted devices—stepping outside the half-walled garden—can no longer use RCS.
As explained in a Reddit thread that has highlighted the issue: “Starting in 2024, Google will now silently block RCS messages on rooted Android devices. Even if your device only has its bootloader unlocked, it is now at risk of being silently blocked from sending RCS text messages.”
A Google representative told me that “ensuring that messaging devices follow the operational measures defined by the RCS standard is one of the ways that Google Messages prevents spam and abuse” and that “as we fight spam and scammers, we take into account different indicators.
Not a popular move for those affected. “Shadowbanning is one of the most classic, Orwellian tools in the censorship toolbox,” complained the original Reddit poster, “and it’s used against people who paid full price for a device and pay monthly for cell service. Google is now completely denying your communications.”
“A large amount of RCS spam comes from automation, which is usually based on modifications to the sending device,” the Google spokesperson explained. “Our spam prevention techniques are constantly evolving in response to the changing behavior of spammers. We will continue to look for ways to prevent spam and fraud while minimizing the number of users affected.”
Issues can be difficult to resolve. According to another Reddit poster, “I have a rooted Pixel 7 Pro and RCS broke (again) this morning. Worse, there’s the possibility that things aren’t magically changing over SMS to other people’s phones because your RCS is broken. You just won’t get messages from people.”
This poster described the update as “the Applefication of Google”, and that perfectly sums up what we’re seeing here. The old philosophy of user beware, buyer beware, is changing rapidly, and these latest AI upgrades will bring more and more control Google’s way. This has implications for users and for Android OEMs—including Samsung, who must navigate Google’s tightrope when pushing original innovation.
There is a solution that seems to be working – at least for now. According 9to5Google“those knowledgeable enough to root have found a fairly simple workaround involving bypassing the security feature (Play Integrity API) that appears to be responsible for preventing RCS access.”
However, it is difficult to say whether any solutions will continue. Another Reddit poster suggests there may be a cat-and-mouse game going on behind the scenes as Google tightens its grip. “People have been fighting hard for API integrity/player integrity for the past few weeks now. In recent years, it’s been relatively easy to bypass. Now, all of a sudden, things break much faster and are resistant to the same solutions that have worked for years.”
And while this poster, and others, refer to this as Orwellian, the difference is that most Android users in the Google ecosystem generally want the same level of security and protection that their iPhone counterparts enjoy. Therefore, I don’t see this kind of tightening changing again anytime soon.
While blocking banking apps and wallet functions makes sense, blocking RCS will be much more unpopular. “This is unethical [and] despicable,” complains the original Reddit poster. “I’m willing to give up the banking apps, but to prevent me from communicating is absolutely unconscionable.”
Update 3/1: This RCS crackdown isn’t the only Android-to-iPhone evolution we’ve seen this week—and the other seems even more blatant. It looks like Google is borrowing one of Apple’s top recent innovations for its own devices, and it’s now showing up on devices.
Google has started updating Pixel phones with the “Satellite SOS” feature that appears on Apple devices from the iPhone 14 onwards. As explained by 9to5Google, “if you dive into Settings > Security & emergency on a Pixel phone today, you’ll most likely see “Satellite SOS” appear between Emergency SOS and Car Crash Detection. Google, seemingly by mistake, rolled out the setting widely to nearly all Pixel devices through a recent update to Adaptive Connectivity Services.”
The feature is apparently pre-release and not working yet. However, based on some of the links being shared, it looks like there may be an optional search and rescue plan available from Garmin that works alongside the satellite SOS feature.
Overall, the uptick in this kind of feature, combined with a shared focus on genetic AI, which Google and Samsung are speeding up while Apple prepares to roll out iOS 18, means that flagship devices from each one of these OEMs will get closer and closer in features and performance. And while Satellite SOS will be useful to a small percentage of Android users, the AI differentiation that will be evident when Apple finally goes live will be far more significant.
Update 3/4: Clearly, the risk for Google is that the more Android starts to align with the iPhone, the more likely the risk is that Android users will make the switch. And at this point, some interesting research has just been published, which claims that when Android users switch, they choose less expensive iPhone models, rather than high-end, flagship devices.
It’s no surprise their report is now making headlines. According Consumer Intelligence Research Partners“a small but steady share of iPhone buyers do switch from Android phones, and those customers tend to be more male and have lower incomes than existing iPhone owners.”
“Overall,” says the CIPR, “Android switchers, who account for 10-15% of iPhone buyers in a given quarter, tend to buy older and therefore less expensive models. In the 12 months ending December 2023, 29% of Android switches bought the legacy SE, 12 or 13 models, with the 13 including the base and mini models. By comparison, 21% of iPhone upgrade owners bought one of these models.”
There are several conclusions that can be drawn from this research – relevant price points and demographics being the obvious ones. But the research may also suggest that more premium Android devices, particularly from Samsung, have relatively similar features and performance to their iPhone counterparts, thus keeping more of their users.
Samsung Galaxy AI for MWC 2024
There’s also something to be said for brand loyalty on the Android front, especially Samsung—the closest equivalent to Apple and the iPhone in terms of approach. We saw this in the wall-to-wall Galaxy AI brand that dominated Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last week.
The CIPR report confirms this: “A large percentage of Android changes come from less expensive Android phones, of which there are many. Older iPhones may be a better fit for their smartphone budgets. Additionally, Android switchers exploring the iOS universe may not feel the need to get the latest and greatest iPhone with the latest features.”
The CIPR has in the past mentionted on the specific demographics of the Android-to-iPhone switch, finding that “customers who switched from an Android phone to an iPhone fall in the middle of the age distribution. 28% are 35-44 years old, compared to 20% of repeat iPhone buyers… Android owners tend to be younger than iPhone owners. This is despite societal pressures for younger smartphone owners to enter Apple’s walled garden.”
That last point is particularly relevant given the current focus on iMessage and its lock-in to younger US consumers for whom the iPhone is the dominant handset, aided by the social distinction between those famous blue and green bubbles.
Move from Android to iOS
For those who choose to make the switch, it couldn’t be easier – there has been one application for this. It’s as simple as running the app with both devices close to each other, like transferring from one Android or iPhone device to a newer model of the same.
This year will be a watershed year for the relative merits of Android and iPhone, and it’s all about artificial intelligence. Excitement for Apple’s iOS 18 continues to build, with the (so far vague) promise that it could be the biggest upgrade to their operating system yet. And that’s because this is Apple stepping onto the productive AI ice for the first time. Meanwhile, Google is pushing ahead with Gemini updates—despite some awkward setbacks along the way, and Samsung is making its own Galaxy.
The advantage for Apple and its iPhone will be the clean approach. Android will always struggle with the two masters syndrome — Android on the one hand and the OEM device with its separate ecosystem on the other. Apple doesn’t have that issue. And the complexity of the Android AI landscape is expected to be further complicated by the leading Chinese OEMs jumping into the AI fray.
And perhaps this last point is the most important of all. With the next generation of AI-enabled devices expected this year (if not already available), performance differentiation will be key. Chinese Android manufacturers – Xiaomi, Honor, Huawei – will promise more money for devices and this could make a difference in terms of AI processing on the device.
Overall, 2024 will be a year of change in the smartphone world.
