Today, supposedly, marks the end of an era. The oft-imitated but never topped Google Talk is dead, and will officially be replaced by Hangouts. But amid the funeral being held for Google’s very good chat platform, there’s something people are missing: Hangouts is actually going to be a lot better, especially if you only use Gchat in your Gmail.
What new changes are coming? First of all, you’ll be able to firehose chat buddies with GIFs, which will ease the pain of transition for almost everyone. There are also other goodies coming, including built-in translation bots, formatting options, and, uh funny hats — although it may take some fiddling to get a few of these features to work. And yes, if you liked the old Gchat look, you can keep it. Just be sure to explain why you don’t handle change well with GIFs.
If you still use Google Talk instead of Hangouts on your phone, you’ll need to switch over to the Hangouts app starting tomorrow. If you’re done with Gchat after today, though, there are other options for you. Allo, Duo, Android Messages, and Google Voice are still here and ready to mend the hole in your bruised and battered heart.
(via Business Insider)