Instagram is turning 10 today and as a part of its anniversary celebration, the company is releasing a bunch of new features primarily meant to curb online bullying. Additionally, for a limited time, Instagram is also going to allow iPhone and Android users to customize its home screen app icon.
As a part of the update, Instagram will expand its “nudge” warnings to warn users whenever they try to post a mean comment. The warning message will also highlight that Instagram could end up disabling accounts of users who frequently violate its rules. The company will also try to shield the recipient from such hateful comments by automatically hiding them based on other similar comments that have been reported by Instagram users.
There’s a new Stories Map feature as well. This will be a private map that will show all the stories posted by you over the last three years. Users will have the option of sharing these stories or saving them to their highlights. It is interesting to see Instagram pulling up your old stories despite them being ephemeral in nature.
To support small businesses and creators, Instagram will now allow them to tag products in their IGTV content so users can directly purchase the products they are interested in. This feature will also make its way to Reels in the coming future.
Lastly, Instagram is also allowing iPhone and Android users to change the app icon to one of the many app icons that the company has used since its inception in 2010. The feature is sneaked in as an easter egg. To change the app icon, go to the Profile section in Instagram and tap on the three-menu button located on the top-right corner. From there, go to Settings and pull down the page. A new page will open with all the various Instagram app icons from the last decade. Select the icon you want to use and restart the app for the changes to take effect. In total, there are ten icons to choose from including the original Instagram icon.
Change your Instagram app icon 📸
Instagram turns 10 today, in honor of this event, an "Easter egg" appeared in the app – you can change the icon to the classic one or some other 🙌 pic.twitter.com/vZ91o3qDtL
— Ben Geskin (@BenGeskin) October 6, 2020
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Do you use Instagram on a regular basis? Do you think these anti-bullying features from the company will go a long way in improving the experience of using the platform? Drop a comment and let us know!
