In future Android versions and updates, Google Duo will replace Hangouts as a mandatory pre-installed app. Google Duo is a video calling App and it was announced some time back along with a Messaging app called Google Allo.
“We are announcing that Google Duo will replace Hangouts within the suite of core GMS apps, and Hangouts will become GMS Optional for telephony products. This change will take effect on December 1, 2016,” Google said in a statement.
However, this doesn’t mean Google is killing Hangouts. The app will be always available to download from Play Store.
Google released Google Duo back in August and received a lot of positive response. We also had much time spending with the app and you can check our review here.
Though Google has no such plan for Allo, in future we won’t be surprised if it becomes an integral part of Android devices and could don the role of default messaging app in Android devices. If it happens, it will be a big boost for Google Allo which is up against some established players like WhatsApp.