iMessage Reactions Will No Longer Annoy Android Users Thanks to Emoji Change

Monday November 22, 2021 1:44 pm PST by Juli Clover

Last Friday, code suggested Google would soon roll out an update for Google Messages that would display iMessage Reactions from iPhone users as emoji on Android devices, and now that update has started rolling out.

android imessage reactions

Screenshots from 9to5Google reader Jvolkman

According to 9to5Google, some Android users are beginning to see iMessage reactions in Google Messages as emoji that are linked to the relevant conversation.

Google Messages appears to be interpreting iMessage reactions just like reactions sent through the RCS protocol used for Google Messages rather than providing them in a text format.

Prior to the Google Messages update, if an iPhone user added a reaction like a heart or thumbs up to a message in the Messages app, it would look odd on an Android device while showing up appropriately on an iPhone. Adding a heart icon to a message showed a little heart on iPhone, for example, but on Android, it would show up as [Person] "Loved" and then the text of the original message.

The text-based system could lead to awkwardness, especially with Android users unaware of iMessage reactions. It also cluttered up the chat thread by unnecessarily repeating texts.

As shown in the screenshots above, the reaction messages are linked to the chat bubble, and they also use icons pulled from the ‌RCS‌ system. As 9to5Google points out, the little heart for "loving" an image on iPhone is replaced with a heart eyes emoji on Android, and the laugh iMessage Reaction is translated into a laughing face emoji.

Android devices will also display a "translated from iPhone" icon so that Google Messages users understand where the reaction is coming from.

Tags: Android, Google, iMessage, Messages

Popular Stories

Google Photos Wardrobe Feature Comes to iOS

Thursday September 24, 2026 1:33 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Google today said its digital wardrobe option is available in the Google Photos iOS app in the U.S., India, and Brazil. Google first announced the feature back in April, but it was limited to Android users until now. The wardrobe option uses AI to pull images of clothing from the Google Photos library, organizing them into a digital closet. Users can put items together to create outfits ...

• 24 comments

Google's SynthID AI Detector is Now Available to Everyone

Wednesday October 7, 2026 4:42 pm PDT by Juli Clover

Google today said it is making its SynthID Detector available to everyone for identifying content created using AI. SynthID Detector first rolled out to members of the media last year, and it is now available worldwide in English. SynthID Detector is a website that lets users upload a photo, video, or audio file to determine whether it has a SynthID watermark that identifies it as...

• 45 comments

DoorDash Unveils AI Food Ordering Through Apple's Messages App

Wednesday September 30, 2026 7:24 am PDT by Hartley Charlton

DoorDash is inviting U.S. customers to join a waitlist for an AI assistant that can take food orders through Apple's Messages app (via Bloomberg). The phone number used in the conversation connects the request to a customer's DoorDash account. The assistant can use previous purchases and preferences to help put together an order, then use a saved payment method at checkout. Customers can...

• 97 comments

Top Rated Comments

oncoutinho

64 months ago

Would be nice if iPhone users too could not have to see the "so and so liked [message content]" on non-iMessage threads.

Score: 38 Votes (Like | Disagree)

TinyMito

64 months ago

Would be nice if iPhone users too could not have to see the "so and so liked [message content]" on non-iMessage threads.

Liked "Would be nice if iPhone users too could not have to see the "so and so liked [message content]" on non-iMessage threads."

Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)

halfway2anywhere

64 months ago

Now if only 2 year old Android phones were able to get updates.

With android, you don't need an entire OS update to get the most recent messages app.

Score: 26 Votes (Like | Disagree)

unashamedgeek

64 months ago

I'd like to see this happen in iMessage when in a group thread of mixed users. It'd be great to not see all the someone liked a comment or photo messages.

Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)