Key Takeaways
- Google Messages is testing a new WhatsApp-like UI for media sharing, merging camera and gallery into one.
- A new preview screen in Google Messages will allow you to add captions to a photo before sharing.
- The new UI also adds a new HD option to make sharing images in original quality easier.
Google keeps testing and making small changes to Google Messages. In just the last few weeks, it has begun testing or rolling out the ability to like messages via a double-tap gesture, view the timestamps of all texts with a single swipe, and more. Now, the company is testing a new WhatsApp-like UI for media sharing, which merges the camera viewfinder and the gallery into one. It also introduces an option to share images in original quality.
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Currently, when you tap the gallery icon in a Google Messages conversation, the keyboard is replaced with a mini camera viewfinder along with the recent images from your library. There’s also a Folders option, which brings up the media picker UI. One advantage of this implementation is that you can directly take a photo from the mini camera viewfinder while still being able to view your recent pictures.
9to5Google has now spotted Google testing a more WhatsApp-like image sharing interface in Google Messages. Tapping the gallery icon brings up a fullscreen camera viewfinder, with the last three images from your gallery visible at the bottom. One advantage of this UI is that you can quickly switch to video mode, which requires a couple of taps in the current interface.
There’s also a new preview screen that allows you to add a caption to a picture before sharing it. More importantly, it has an HD+ button on the top-right, which allows you to select the media quality.
As previously reported, you can send the picture in an optimized format for faster delivery and reduced mobile data usage or in its original quality at full resolution. This implementation is similar to WhatsApp, which also allows you to change the image quality before sending it.
Image Source: 9toGoogle
The change could make HD image sharing easier through Google Messages
Putting an HD toggle in the image preview screen makes a lot more sense, as you can then individually decide if you want to send a picture in its full quality or not. Currently, Google Messages only has a universal ‘Send photos faster’ setting. Google will seemingly phase out this option once the revamped image sharing UI rolls out.
Google is testing the new media sharing UI as a part of the latest Google Messages beta (20241118_03_RC00). However, it is a limited test and might not show up for everyone.