Snapchat and Instagram are constantly vying for a larger slice of the time you spend on your phone. Unsurprisingly, they both announced some cool new features coming soon to their apps—but how do they compare?
Ever since Instagram integrated “stories” into their app, social media users have been suspicious that Instagram was trying to copy Snapchat and take advantage of the app’s popularity (which, you know, they were).
Snapchat has created four new features, according to Adweek, which were scheduled to show up on smart phones everywhere on Tuesday.
One of the most highly-anticipated updates is the ability to group chat with up to 16 people (does anyone really have that many friends?). An added feature of the group chat is that users can momentarily leave the group chat to send a message to one of the people participating and then quickly rejoin the whole group—very useful for gossiping about the other members with your BFF. All you have to do to start a new one-on-one conversation is tap on the person's name, according to USA Today.
Snapchat will also now be able to connect with the Shazam app, so you can figure out what song is playing near you while you craft your latest story. You'll also get the "scissors" feature, which allows you to cut out part of your snap and make it into a sticker that can be saved and reused, and a paintbrush. The paintbrush's function is still mysterious, as you can already draw on your snaps with the pen feature, but we'll know what it is soon enough.
Meanwhile, over at Instagram, developers have come up with a new feature that give users the ability to save posts and view them again later. This new feature launches for some users on Wednesday, and it's sure to strengthen your Insta-stalking powers immensely.
To save posts, all you have to do is tap a little bookmark icon under the post, which will be on the right side of the photo. Saved posts will be filed in a separate, completely private tab on your profile. No one else can see the posts you’ve saved, not even the people who posted those pictures. Never waste time scrolling through months of some hot guy's feed more than once just so you can show all your friends the best picture of him!
This new feature will be included in the newest app update, but as noted by Bustle, Instagram sometimes staggers updates, which means that some people may have to wait to start saving photos.
