What you need to know
- Google Messages has updated the outgoing text sound across stable and beta versions of the app.
- The audio appears much quieter than the previous sound, and resembles something from a video game.
- Google was also recently spotted testing a new design for sent messages.
Google Messages is constantly going through changes as Google strives to make the app a true iMessage alternative for Android users. Many of the recent changes are much more prominent, but users have noticed a rather subtle change to their outgoing texts.
When sending a message on Google Messages, the app would provide a rather loud auditory confirmation that the message is in the process of being sent. The original sound featured two ascending "bloops," although users have noticed that the sound has now changed. It's now a much quieter and shorter sound with two descending chimes.
My colleague Nicholas Sutrich describes the sound as a "pew pew," saying it resembles something out of Space Invaders. The sound does have a video game-esque quality to it, and it's much subtler than the previous sound. I personally think it sounds like old-school Mario stomping on an enemy.
It appears some users noticed the sound within the past couple of weeks, although it appears more users are getting the updated sound. Nicholas and I are on the beta, but other Android Central staff have noticed the new sound on the stable version of the app.
This isn't the first change Google has made regarding outgoing messages. The company was recently spotted testing a new look for sent messages, which switched out the text-based read receipt with a series of checks. One check for a sent message, two checks if the message was delivered, and filled-in checks if it was read. It also indicates who read the message in group chats, although the test doesn't appear to be very widespread.
