RCS Universal Profile 3.1 Lets You Send Clearer Voice Notes, Finally

On your Galaxy phone, you can take advantage of RCS messaging through either Google Messages or Samsung Messages. And now, the GSMA, which oversees the RCS standard, has announced that things are only going to get better from here.

RCS gets a big boost with Universal Profile 3.1, including clearer voice notes

In a blog post, the GSMA announced RCS Universal Profile 3.1, which brings several upgrades aimed at improving audio quality and making RCS more reliable, especially in areas with spotty network coverage. One of the most notable changes in Universal Profile 3.1 is full support for the xHE-AAC audio codec. While the previous version of RCS allowed users to receive audio messages encoded in this format, the new profile adds support for sending them as well.

This means voice notes, sound clips, and other audio content sent over RCS will now sound clearer and more natural on both ends. The xHE-AAC codec is known for its efficient compression, delivering high-quality audio even at lower bitrates.

Another important improvement is how RCS apps connect to the network. Previously, they had to stay constantly connected to the RCS service, which could drain battery and cause problems when switching between mobile data and Wi-Fi. With the new update, RCS apps can now stay inactive and use push notifications to wake up when a new message arrives.

Along with these core upgrades, Universal Profile 3.1 also brings better file transfer security, more effective spam reporting, and support for deep links that can open conversations directly. These updates build on the end-to-end encryption introduced in Universal Profile 3.0, moving RCS another step closer to becoming a modern, full-featured messaging platform.

We can expect these changes to roll out in the coming weeks. It likely won’t take long, especially since Google Messages has been adding new features at a fast pace lately.