Google Messages 5.2 beta adds handy reminders and fun Easter egg [Gallery]

Have you ever gotten a text message but didn’t quite feel like responding right away, then in the course of your day you end up forgetting that message altogether? It certainly happens to me more than I care to admit. The latest Google Messages beta, version 5.2, brings reminders so you don’t forget to message your loved ones back, along with a fun little easter egg.

Last night, the Google Messages web client updated to integrate the handy Duo calling button found in the Android app. Coinciding with that update, a new version of Messages beta rolled out to the Play Store.

With the update installed, new message notifications now have an additional option. Next to “Mark as read” and “Reply,” you’ll now find a third button suggesting “Remind 1 hr.” Tapping this option more or less snoozes the incoming message and reminds you to come back to it in an hour.

Digging into the main conversation list, you can set reminders for whole conversations or go into a conversation to set a reminder for one specific message. In either case, simply long-press what you want to be reminded of and tap the alarm clock icon.

Google Messages will then prompt you for what time you would like to be reminded of that message or conversation. You can choose between some reminder presets like “1 hour,” “Later today,” and some options for the next day, or choose your own more specific date and time.

Once that time rolls around, you’ll receive a separate reminder notification for that message/conversation that also lets you quickly snooze it for another hour. Opening that notification brings you to a slightly altered version of the Google Messages conversation view, with options to set another reminder, or say that you’re “Done” with the reminder.

Android app spelunker Jane Wong also discovered an Easter egg within the latest version of Google Messages. Tapping the word “Messages” at the top of your conversation list 10 times causes your conversations to wiggle around.

https://twitter.com/wongmjane/status/1187241934332391424

There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason behind the Easter egg other than to be whimsical. Sometimes you forget that Google can be a fun-loving company until you see things like a Pixel 4 packaged in a cereal box.

You can sign up for Beta updates to Google Messages either directly from the Play Store listing or on the web.