Google Messages adds custom chat themes, probes group chat splitting bug

The custom theme feature, announced in a Google Messages Community post, lets users choose preset wallpapers from categories such as Animals, Landscapes, and Space, or upload images from their own gallery. Message bubble colors can be automatically adjusted to match the background, or users can set their own color palette. To apply a theme, open a conversation, tap the recipient or group name at the top, or use the three-dot menu, then select Chat theme. A preview is available before applying, and there is a Reset to default option. Themes are private to the user and are not shared with other participants, so changing a group chat background will not affect what others see. The feature requires RCS to be enabled. Android Authority had spotted the feature in testing back in May. The setup is similar to WhatsApp's chat themes, which were rolled out last year.

Separately, Google has confirmed it is investigating an issue in which group chats split into separate threads with the same participants. Affected users may end up with multiple versions of the same conversation, sometimes losing the continuity of their chat history. In response to an affected user on Reddit, Google said its team is actively looking into the problem and asked users to submit feedback through the Messages app using the hashtag #splittingthreads. Android Authority reports that similar reports have been made involving individual RCS chats, but Google has not yet confirmed whether they are linked to the group-chat bug. This follows a recently acknowledged RCS connection bug that Google is still working to resolve with carrier partners.