Joe Maring / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google Messages v20260320 beta contains code to restore support for Ultra HDR, which was removed during a 2025 redesign.
- The updated feature shows Ultra HDR brightness directly on chat thumbnails, instead of just on the full image preview.
- A new “Copy” option is also being tested for voice message transcripts, allowing users to easily save text to their clipboard.
Google Messages added Ultra HDR support for images in RCS chats in 2023. This feature allows users to send and receive Ultra HDR images with a preserved gain map, and Google Messages displays illuminated images on the image preview screen. This feature was quietly removed in 2025, but it seems Google now wants to bring back the ability to send and receive Ultra HDR images, as the feature has been spotted once again.
Even in 2023, when the feature was rolled out, no one initially realized that users could send and receive Ultra HDR images. This was mainly because users had to tap the image to see the Ultra HDR effect, while the thumbnail in the chat appeared (incorrectly) as a standard image.
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In Google Messages v20260320 beta, we spotted code that not only restores support for Ultra HDR images, but also adds the Ultra HDR effect to the thumbnail preview, supporting the feature correctly this time.
AssembleDebug / Android Authority
In the image above, both phones are running the same beta version of Google Messages v20260320. The first phone does not have the Ultra HDR code enabled, so it shows a normal thumbnail. The second phone has the Ultra HDR code enabled and a brighter thumbnail can be clearly seen, indicating that Google Messages is now displaying the image as Ultra HDR within the conversation screen. Naturally, the brightness of Ultra HDR also carries over to the main image preview.
It remains to be seen if Google will implement this fixed feature, as sudden brightness changes on the talk screen caused by Ultra HDR images could be very distracting and annoying. Apps that support Ultra HDR often give users the option to opt out of the feature, so Google could explore that. Some phones, like Google Pixels, also let you control Ultra HDR brightness and even turn it off completely, but not all phones support this, so Google should consider keeping the feature optional in the app.
Google Messages could also let you copy voicemail transcripts
In the same version of the Google Messages application, we detected a code that allows you to copy voice message transcripts. Here’s what the feature looks like in action currently:
When this feature is rolled out, users will see a new “Copy” option when they long-press the voice message transcript. As the name implies, “Copy” copies the transcript to your clipboard and you can paste it into any standard text field. The screenshot above is darker than usual due to technical issues on our end – users should have the usual experience when the feature rolls out.
⚠️ A APK Teardown It helps predict features that may come to a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, such planned features may not make it to a public release.
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