Google introduced a major overhaul for its Messages app back in 2022, which included the new icon that is still in use today. The update also introduced the YouTube Picture-In-Picture (PiP) feature to the app. However, just a couple of years later, the latest Google Messages Android beta app indicates the removal of the YouTube PiP feature.
The YouTube PiP feature in Google Messages allowed users to see the preview of the thumbnail and play videos in a floating PiP window by tapping on the video link. This would negate the need to leave the Messages app and be pulled away from your active conversation, enabling chat and watch, simultaneously.
Unfortunately, for those who used this feature, the latest Google Messages Android beta highlights that all the codes and text strings, that enabled the YouTube PiP feature on Google Messages have now been removed. Reports also suggest that the YouTube player no longer works, and thumbnails appear broken even in the latest stable version of the Google Messages app.
This would not only disappoint those who are currently using Google Messages on their phones but also Samsung Galaxy users in the US. Recently, it was reported that Samsung Messages would no longer be the default messaging app on Galaxy devices in the US, and would be replaced with Google Messages.
Samsung explained that it decided to replace its messaging app with Google Messages to accelerate the adoption of Rich Communication Services (RCS) and offer a common and unified messaging platform for the Android mobile ecosystem. Unlike Samsung Messages, which relies on mobile carriers for RCS, Google Messages supports RCS regardless of carrier, making it a more appealing option for some users.
Let us know in the comments below if you can still use YouTube PiP in Google Messages or not.
Source: Android Authority