Google Messages gains two new features and one new problem

First, as spotted by Android Authority, RCS business messaging (RBM), or the business-to-consumer version of the Rich Communication Services messaging protocol, now supports PDF files.

While RCS largely solved the issues that plagued the traditional SMS protocol by making the messaging experience richer and more interactive, it didn’t let users send PDF files. This necessitated the use of email or other messaging apps to send PDF files, and added an extra step.

This hindered communication involving flight tickets, passes, and documents in the PDF format.

That has changed now, with Google enabling support for sending PDF files for RBM users. For now, the feature is only available in India, and the file size cannot exceed 100MiB.

Google Messages will show a preview of the first page when a PDF file is sent if it’s not password-protected. | Image Credit – Google

A preview image based on the first page of the file is shown when a PDF file is sent. Clicking on it opens the file in a PDF viewer. For password-protected files or other instances when previews aren’t available, a default icon or thumbnail image is displayed instead. 

…a 100 MiB size limit has been implemented for the total combined size of all media and PDF attachments within a single RBM message.

—Google, July 2025

Google is also fixing the truncation issue that plagues rich card carousels. This RBM feature allows businesses to combine media, text, and buttons in one message.Previously, in the full-screen view, texts or suggestions on a rich card carousel were sometimes cut off. To indicate that more content is available, a More button is now displayed on truncated carousel cards. It isn’t necessary to click on the button to view the message, as tapping anywhere in the text will expand the into a swipeable, full-screen view. This will ensure that users don’t miss out on crucial details.

Messages will no longer end abruptly. | Image Credit – Google

This feature is in beta right now, and a public rollout is expected by the end of the third quarter.

These two features will result in a better experience for users as they will neither have to go through the hassle of using another app to receive PDFs from a business nor have to worry about skipping over important parts of a message.

Google Messages is crashing

Google Messages is crashing after a new update but reinstalling it might help. | Image Credit – 9to5Google

As Google works to improve the messaging experience, a bug has made it to the app. The latest beta version, which was released yesterday, appears to be glitching, with Pixel and Samsung users complaining that it crashes within a few seconds of launch.

This only happens when the homepage or messages list is launched, leaving notifications and chat bubbles as the only way to carry on conversations.

While some users were able to fix the problem by navigating to App info and uninstalling updates from the three-dot menu, the only reliable recourse is reinstalling the update. Rest assured that this will not delete your message history.