Verizon decided to delay shutting down its beloved Message+ app last month, but the new kill-off date of December 9 is almost here. Verizon recommends that Android users switch over to Google Messages, the default texting app on Android phones. Google has published a post to address many of the assumptions consumers have about its app.

The Verizon Message+ app came pre-installed on the carrier's devices and has co-existed with Google's texting app since 2021. With Google and Apple embracing the Rich Communication Services (RCS) communication protocol for modernising SMS messaging, Verizon doesn't want to hold its customers back from enjoying the "best messaging experience." That's why it's going to fully discontinue the app.

Verizon users have opposed this decision. They complain that Google Messages lack many of the features offered by Verizon Message+, which isn't entirely true, as Google notes in a new post.

The company has highlighted all the features that Verizon Message+ users have come to rely on which are also available on Google Messages, including changing background and bubble colors, customizing notification sounds, muting conversations, enabling Dark Mode, making the font size bigger or smaller, and editing profile name and picture.