Google Messages will let your photo app handle quick edits

Google Messages is preparing a way to edit photos and videos without leaving a chat. The twist is that Google is not building its own editor. Messages will pass the job to the gallery app you already use, according to a report from Android Authority.

What changed

Until now, quick fixes to a picture often meant leaving the chat, opening another app and coming back. The new approach aims to cut that out. When you want to crop a photo or trim a video, Messages will send it to your default gallery app. That is the app your phone opens by default when you view pictures.

• Google is not adding its own photo and video editor to Messages.
• The edit is handed to your default gallery app.
• The feature is still being prepared.

Who it affects

This matters most if you have a favorite gallery app and like its tools. You may be able to fix a picture with an editor you already know, instead of learning a new one built into your messaging app. People who never change their default gallery app should simply get whichever editor came with their phone.

What is not known yet

There is no public release date. The report describes a feature in preparation, and features in that stage can change or never launch. The material does not say which gallery apps will work, what edits will be offered, or whether every phone will get it at once.

What happens next

Watch for an update to Google Messages that confirms the feature. Until Google announces it, nothing changes in how the app works today.