Google Messages gains another popular Gemini feature with latest Pixel Drop

Bringing special features to Pixel phones is one way Google ensures they have an upper hand over other Android devices, and it achieves this through Pixel Drops released every few months. With the September Pixel Drop, Google introduced an extensive Material 3 Expressive overhaul for various apps on Pixel phones. Now, with another Pixel Drop arriving, there is a heightened focus on enhancing conversations.

The November Pixel Drop brings several new features to Google Messages. In addition to AI-powered scam protection and priority notifications for your closest friends and family members, Google is introducing a new “Remix” functionality to Messages, powered by Nano Banana.

As we noted in a teardown of the Google Messages app last week, Remix allows you to select images from your gallery and transform them with Nano Banana before sending them in a chat. When you choose an image to upload, a banana-shaped button will appear over it, allowing you to refashion it, either using a suggested prompt or entering your own in the text box.

With the rollout, users will be able to edit virtually any image with Remix and send it to other users, regardless of which device they use. However, if the conversation involves two or more Pixel users, each one of them can edit any received image by long-pressing it. Besides one-on-one chats, the Remix feature is also available in group chats.

Remix in Google Messages is available to all users with a Pixel 6 or newer device. Notably, Google will upload your images to the cloud to process and edit with Gemini, so you must refrain from sharing anything private or sensitive.

Google notes that Remix for Google Messages will initially be available in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, and New Zealand. Furthermore, it uses RCS (Rich Communications Services) to send images, which is expected since RCS is the default protocol for sending messages over the internet. You will also be able to send remixed images over MMS, but please note that you may experience lower quality and incur higher charges from your carrier.