Your Wear OS smartwatch could soon get a major messaging upgrade

New code unearthed in the latest Google Messages app update has revealed Google could be planning to bring Rich Communication Services (RCS) messaging to Wear OS smartwatches in the not-too-distant future.

While many of the best smartwatches on the market run Google's Wear OS software, the wearable operating system still has some key limitations. Notably, messaging via Google Messages is restricted to texts routed to your smartwatch from your Android phone. Ditch your phone for a run or leave it behind, and you can't send or receive messages.

That could soon be about to change. Android Authority reports that an APK teardown of the new Google Messages beta "has added some flags that indicate standalone RCS is coming to Wear OS smartwatches." Specifically, lines of code seem to include references to Wear OS and standalone messaging support.

AA reports "it is reasonably straightforward to conclude that standalone RCS ...