Google to remove SMS support in Hangouts on May 22

Google sure has a lot of communication apps which at times makes its a bit difficult to discern which to use for which type of communication. With companies moving towards integrating different features in one app, Google seems to be moving in the opposite direction. Now the company is removing SMS support from their multipurpose app Hangouts effective from May 22.

In the past year, Google has been working on specifying particular features for apps. The company announced Allo the chatting app and Duo, the video calling app last year. With so many apps its is confusing for users which to use for which purpose.

Google has started mailing G Suite admins mentioning them about the possible changes that are headed to Hangouts. Users using the app will start getting the message that SMS support will be removed from the app starting March 27.

Last year, we announced several improvements to the most popular features of Google Hangouts, such as the new video meetings experience and better group chat messaging. As part of that ongoing effort, we will be removing carrier SMS text messaging from Hangouts on Android after May 22, 2017.

So, if you are using the Hangouts app for SMS, start thinking about which app you will be switching to now.