With the second beta of iOS 27, Apple added support for replying to a specific message in an RCS conversation with an Android user.
You can now long press on a message to get to the option to reply, and it works the same way that it does with iMessage.
iOS 27 also displays tapback/reaction emoji to images and videos properly. In iOS 26, it would use a text descriptor, such as [x loved an image] instead of showing the emoji. In iOS 27, the emoji shows up on the image or video as it does in an iMessage conversation.
Apple added support for RCS in iOS 18, and has been improving it since then. iOS 26.5 added encryption for RCS messages sent between iPhone and Android users, and now more of the RCS features are being implemented.
For RCS reply threading to work properly, both the sender and the recipient need to have a smartphone and carrier that supports RCS.
iOS 27 is limited to developers currently, but it will be available to the public when Apple releases a public beta in July. The software will see an official launch in September.
Wednesday July 15, 2026 5:02 pm PDT by Juli Clover
Google and Epic Games this week withdrew their joint motion to modify an injunction requiring Google to support third-party app stores in Google Play. The two companies abandoned the request after it became clear the court was unlikely to allow it.
Google is now bound by a permanent injunction issued in October 2024 requiring it to allow alternative app stores on Android devices. In a court...
The European Commission today formally ordered Google to give third-party AI services the same access to Android device features that Gemini has. Europe's Digital Markets Act requires software makers like Apple and Google to grant equal interoperability to third-party apps and services, and the EC is enforcing it.
DMA interoperability rules are why Siri AI won't be available in the European...
iPhone owners are sticking with the platform at a higher rate than a year ago, with new research firm CIRP putting iPhone loyalty at 87% for the first quarter of 2026.
CIRP's latest quarterly survey found that just 12% of new iPhone buyers in the March quarter had come over from an Android phone, with the remaining 1% arriving from a feature phone, a different smartphone platform, or buying...
Apple's first foldable iPhone, with a book-style design featuring a ~5.5-inch outer display and a ~7.8-inch inner display with a minimal crease down the middle.
