RCS 4.0 promises native video calls between iPhone and Android, right from your text thread

Texting between iPhone and Android has long felt like communicating through a tin can and string. Now the mobile industry says it’s ready to fix one of the biggest gaps: starting a native video call directly from a message thread, no links, no app-hopping, no “download this first.”

The upgrade comes via RCS 4.0, the latest version of Rich Communication Services, a modern replacement for old-school SMS/MMS. The timing matters: Apple began supporting RCS on iPhones with iOS 18 in September 2024, after regulatory pressure in Europe pushed the company to open up parts of its messaging ecosystem. With Apple now in the mix, every RCS update has the potential to hit the mainstream fast, if Apple, Google, carriers, and app makers actually ship it.

Native video calls from a text thread, up to 32 people

The headline feature in RCS 4.0 is MIVC, short for “Messaging-Initiated Video Calls.” The idea is simple: you’re texting someone, you tap a button, and the conversation turns into a video call without leaving the messaging app.

RCS 4.0 also aims beyond one-on-one chats. MIVC supports group video calls with up to 32 participants, squarely in the territory that’s fueled the rise of third-party apps like WhatsApp, FaceTime, Zoom, and Google Meet for families, friend groups, and quick team huddles.

If it works as advertised across platforms, it could reduce the friction that still defines iPhone-Android communication: even when RCS is enabled, people often jump to another app the moment they need video, group coordination, or reliable media sharing.

The catch is the same one RCS has always had: a feature can exist in the standard and still take months, or longer, to show up on the phones people actually use. Messaging apps must implement it, operating systems must support it, and carriers can still complicate rollouts.

Finally, basic formatting: bold, italics, and strikethrough

RCS 4.0 also brings something that sounds minor until you don’t have it: text formatting. Users should be able to sendbold,italic, andstrikethroughtext, features that have been standard in iMessage and WhatsApp for years.

In real life, formatting is less about flair than clarity. It’s how you highlight “8 p.m.,” emphasize “bring bread,” or cross out a plan without sending a messy follow-up paragraph. In mixed iPhone-Android group chats, it can make coordination cleaner and reduce misunderstandings.

Because this is part of a shared standard (the GSMA’s “Universal Profile 4.0”), the goal is consistent rendering across devices, so messages don’t feel “downgraded” the moment they cross the iPhone/Android divide.

But consistency depends on implementation. RCS has a history of features arriving unevenly across apps and platforms, and iPhone users still lack some iMessage conveniences in cross-platform threads, like robust message editing and certain reply behaviors.

Better photo and video sharing, less “pixel soup”

The most practical improvement may be media quality. RCS 4.0 is designed to help phones detect what formats the other device supports and send media accordingly, instead of blindly compressing or delivering files that look terrible on arrival.

RCS on iPhone already improved the basics compared with SMS/MMS, higher-quality media, read receipts, and typing indicators. But quality can still drop depending on device capabilities, app versions, and network conditions.

The promise of Universal Profile 4.0 is smarter adaptation: if the recipient supports a certain codec or format, the sender can deliver the best compatible version. In a family group chat, say, a newer iPhone, a midrange Android, and someone on spotty service, that could mean fewer moments where the “weakest link” drags everyone down.

Still, no standard can override bad coverage, carrier limitations, or app-level compression choices. RCS 4.0 can provide better tools, but the end result depends on the entire chain.

Apple, Google, and the GSMA: big promises, slow rollouts

RCS standards are managed by the GSMA, the global telecom industry group. But in the real world, two companies matter most: Google (which drives RCS adoption through Google Messages and Android) and Apple (which controls iOS and iMessage).

Apple’s RCS support in iOS 18 turned RCS from an Android-centric upgrade into a true cross-platform story. But history suggests caution: previous RCS profiles have been announced with major features, like native end-to-end encryption, only to spend long stretches in testing or partial deployment.

There’s also strategy. Apple adopted RCS relatively late and has kept iMessage’s “premium” feel intact, yes, the green bubbles remain. Even if RCS 4.0 supports new capabilities, Apple isn’t obligated to flip every switch immediately unless it sees a competitive reason or faces more regulatory pressure.

For consumers, the real question isn’t whether RCS 4.0 exists. It’s when your phone, and the other person’s phone, will actually get the same features at the same time.

The security piece: end-to-end encryption finally shows up in iPhone testing

For all the talk about video calls and formatting, the most important upgrade is security. The biggest missing piece for RCS on iPhone has been end-to-end encryption (E2EE), which scrambles messages so only the intended devices can read them.

On Android, Google Messages already offers E2EE in certain RCS chats (typically Android-to-Android). And iMessage is end-to-end encrypted by default between iPhones. But iPhone-to-Android RCS chats have largely lacked that protection, an uncomfortable gap when messages routinely include addresses, private photos, travel details, and sensitive personal information.

Now Apple is testing E2EE for RCS on iPhone in the iOS 26.4 beta. That’s not a vague promise, it’s something beta users can try, with the usual warnings about pre-release software.

If Apple rolls it out broadly, it would remove one of the biggest reasons privacy-minded users hesitate to treat RCS as a true SMS replacement. But until encryption is stable, widely deployed, and easy for everyday users to understand, cross-platform messaging will still feel like a two-tier system, modern and secure in some chats, compromised in others.