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Now everyone can ‘double tap to heart’ in Google Messages
- Google Messages is rolling out a new “double tap to heart” gesture for reacting to messages, similar to Instagram’s “like” feature.
- The feature is activated through a server-side update, so users need not update their Messages app to access it.
- Currently, the only reaction available is a heart emoji, and there is no option to customize or select other emojis, though this may change in the future.
Google Messages is making its Instagram-like “double tap to heart” gesture available more widely. First spotted in February in a beta state, the feature now seems to be rolling out to all Google Messages users.
9to5Google reports that the “Double tap to heart” gesture is arriving on Google Messages through a server-side update. That means you won’t need to install an app update to get the reaction working. Once the update is available on your Google Messages app, you can double-tap to react to chats instead of long-pressing a message to access the emoji reactions. This feature is similar to how you “like” posts on Instagram.
Unfortunately, the only reaction available right now is a heart emoji. You don’t have the ability to set any other emoji as your default reaction. The version of the feature Google tested months back allowed users to double-tap and then choose the emoji they wanted to react with. It’s possible Google will give users an option to switch emojis for the gesture in the future, but for now, you’re stuck with the red heart