Google is experimenting with a simple yet very useful change in group chats on Messages: the option to delete a custom group icon and go back to the default grid of participant avatars. The feature, spied in a recent beta build of the software, indicates the company is ironing out one of the app’s longest-running quirks, in which you were able to change a group picture but couldn’t clear it completely.
What’s New in the Beta Version of Google Messages
On the experimental interface, a group’s image in the details view can be tapped to open it full screen. The new action is “Remove group icon,” located behind the three‑dot overflow menu. A simple confirmation on the prompt brings back the classic four‑avatar mosaic, automatically drawn from member profile images or initials. Today, the stable app simply allows you to swap one image out for another — there’s no “reset to default” control.
The feature seems to be controlled by a server‑side flag in an open beta build, so it’s not even guaranteed that every tester will see it yet, much less whether the feature ships widely. Google often rolls out these switches in stages as a way to test behavior at scale before flipping some of them on for additional users/traffic.
Why This Small Tweak to Group Icons in Messages Matters
Reversibility is a fundamental user‑experience tenet. A group photo can seem so permanent in Messages today — a pain for messages that don’t require some branded identity and a nightmare on those groups where someone’s playful image aged poorly. The default grid — one that automatically shifts to reflect who’s here — often provides better context than any single picture, especially with large or rotating casts of characters.
There’s also a privacy angle. Certain workplaces and organizations shy away from custom imagery for uniformity and legality. Allowing admins or members to bring back the neutral default lowers resistance to keeping a light visual footprint. Competing platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram already allow group owners to clear or revert a photo, so this move brings Messages in line with what users are accustomed to.
Another Step in Google Messages’ Ongoing Polish and Control
The removal option dovetails with a larger cadence of quality‑of‑life improvements to Messages. Recent additions include sensitive‑content warnings that obscure suspected explicit images and a broader rollout of “Delete for everyone,” tools that increase safety and control without altering the app’s familiar feel from day to day.
These are the latest in a series of tweaks that follow Google’s ongoing drive to make Rich Communication Services (RCS) the default for texting on new handsets. Google has claimed RCS now reaches over a billion users globally, and the GSMA indicates that dozens of carriers and OEMs are backing it. As reach expands — and with other platforms indicating eventual RCS interoperability — ancillaries like sensible defaults and easy reversion matter more. They cut down on support tickets, prevent accidental misconfiguration, and make the app easier to pick up for new users coming from other chat apps.
All that said, the polish isn’t universal yet. Indeed, some users are still finding that RCS functionality isn’t always available when it should be — casting confidence aside as group chats begin combining SMS and RCS behavior. Lightweight improvements like a “remove icon” control aren’t network issues, but they do telegraph that Google is pushing as hard on reliability as it is on ease of use.
What to Anticipate as Google Rolls Out the Removal Option
With the feature currently hidden beneath a flag, there’s no telling when timelines will firm up. Google frequently pushes features to beta channels then flips them on with a server‑side switch or includes them in a stable update following testing. And if and when it arrives, you should find it by opening a group chat, tapping the header image to see it full screen, then tapping “Remove group icon” from the menu to go back to the default avatar grid.
For now, if your group is stuck with a photo you don’t want to have anymore, the only reliable solution is to exchange it for something innocuous. The upcoming nature of the reset option is a cleaner fix — and another indication that, in messaging at least, little things matter most.
