iOS 18, which came out in September, brought many new features, but from a texting perspective, the biggest addition may have been support for RCS messaging. Once updated to the new iPhone software, Apple phones can send high-quality photos and videos, display typing indicators, and include read receipts, among other features previously unavailable for texting from iPhone to Android

However, the mobile phone can also be used to send text messages from iPhone to Android.

However, it's not a perfect connection. This week, Samsung issued a press release (spotted by Android Authority) explaining how the South Korean company worked with Google to “promote adoption” of RCS-enhanced messaging. And if you get past the marketing-speak, you'll get an interesting perspective on how both companies worked to make RCS a universal standard, and what RCS does.

That same post also highlights something we already knew about iPhone to Android connections - they are not as secure as Android to Android texts

“All members of the chat must have RCS enabled Android users need Google Messages, iPhone users need iOS 18 or later. Encryption is only available for Android-to-Android communications.”

RCS chats from Pixel 9 to Galaxy S24 are encrypted, but chats with iPhone owners, for example, lose that security. Similarly, encrypted iMessage is used when iPhone users exchange messages with other iPhones.

For a more detailed explanation of why encryption is important, see our guide on what is end-to-end encryption.

Google has been promoting RCS for several years, and its version is built on top of the RCS Universal Profile. However, Google has implemented encryption in Google Messages.

GSMA, the organization that manages RCS, announced in September that it was working on implementing end-to-end encryption in the Universal Profile. However, there is no indication of when it will actually be released. The announcement noted that encryption between IOS and Android is lacking.

After all, this is no different than how messages between Android and iOS were previously sent. If you are looking for a more secure chat option, take a look at some of the best encrypted messaging apps.