Google Messages' new media viewer is going live for some

Google Messages' new media viewer is going live for some The words 'Google Messages' against a blue and light green background

By Karandeep Singh Oberoi Published 5 hours ago Karandeep Singh Oberoi is a Durham College Journalism and Mass Media graduate who joined the Android Police team in April 2024, after serving as a full-time News Writer at Canadian publication MobileSyrup. Prior to joining Android Police, Oberoi worked on feature stories, reviews, evergreen articles, and focused on 'how-to' resources. Additionally, he informed readers about the latest deals and discounts with quick hit pieces and buyer's guides for all occasions. Oberoi lives in Toronto, Canada. When not working on a new story, he likes to hit the gym, play soccer (although he keeps calling it football for some reason🤔) and try out new restaurants in the Greater Toronto Area. Sign in to your Android Police account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

Soon after experimenting with how links appear in your messages, paired with a change to help you open shared media immediately after saving it, Google Messages now seems to be finalizing another media-based tweak.

For reference, said tweak was in testing earlier this year, and it seems to be rolling out now.

Related Google Messages will soon let you open shared media immediately after saving it

It's more useful than it sounds

Posts 3 By Karandeep Singh Oberoi Nov 25, 2025

Highlighted by the folks over at 9to5Google, the tweak is aimed at making Google Messages' in-chat media viewer less bare-bones and more modern, with the most immediate change being how an image appears once you tap on it within a conversation.

Currently, when you tap an image within a conversation, Google Messages opens a bare-bones preview on a black background. With what Google is rolling out now, you're greeted by a full-screen preview that gives the image rounded corners, complete with a blurred background derived from the photo itself. This is not a huge change that makes or breaks Google Messages, but it sure does give the app a more modern polish.

A screenshot highlighting Google Messages' new image preview UI.

Credit: 9to5Google

The same preview also highlights a Nano Banana Remix button, paired with emojis for quick reactions. At the top, you also see who shared the image and when, paired with options to download the image or delete it.

Cleaning up that clutter

A screenshot highlighting Google Messages grouping images sent in bulk.

Credit: 9to5Google

Elsewhere, Google Messages will now also start grouping together images sent in bulk at the same time. For reference, currently, images stack vertically, taking up a large amount of screen real estate. With what Google is rolling out, multiple images that are sent at once will now be displayed in a single, grouped UI.

The new image stack UI, and the media viewer are rolling out now.

Applications
Google Messages

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