It seems like the good days of Google Hangouts for consumers are just numbered. According to a recent report from 9to5Google which is familiar with the product’s internal roadmap, Google Hangouts for consumers will be shutting down in 2020. The move is not so surprising for users given the app has not received any major update in terms of features and layouts for quite some time now. Google also removed the SMS functionality last year from it.
As Google is focusing more on Android Messages, a free texting app currently in development by the tech giant, Hangouts is going to be the scapegoat here. The android message is reportedly rolled out for the web, allowing users to send and receive text. The platform will support RCS (Rich Communication Services) messages for PC users in the future. Reports suggest that this feature will be made official somewhere around 2019 or right before the Hangouts shots down its services.
Launched as a replacement for Google’s previous messaging service Google Talk which is commonly referred as Gchat in 2015, Google Hangouts hasn’t really had quite a successful run in the sharp competing mobile app world where popular and most users preferred messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, Snapchat and Facebook Messenger are on the top run.
Given the tech giant’s abandonment to the app in term of development and its recent presumed eventual death, many have transitioned away from using it. But, Hangouts still remains a prominent chat option in Gmail on the web. Recently users review that the app is showing the signs of age, performance issues and noting bugs. The move seems sensible considering the significant number of chat apps under Google name, including Google Allo, Google Duo, and Android Message. Stay tuned to receive the official note from Google in near future.
