It was only a few months ago that icons for phone and video calling were found inside the Instagram app for Android, fueling speculation that such capabilities would soon make an appearance on the Facebook-owned service. While Instagram remained tightlipped on the development, it foreshadowed the rollout of video calling at the beginning of May.
As part of the latest update to Instagram on iOS and Android announced by Instagram, video chat capability will become available to everyone, enabling users to partake in video calls with up to four parties. You won't be forced to surrender your entire screen to the video call though as there is also the ability to shrink the call to the corner and browse your feed, post a story, or send photos and messages to others via Instagram Direct.
That's not the only new feature making its appearance in the latest update. There are now "topic channels" available at the topic of the Explore section of the app, including a "For You" channel which contains an assortment of posts aligned with your interests. A number of new camera effects also make their debut in the app designed by Ariana Grande, Buzzfeed, Liza Koshy, Baby Ariel and the NBA. Each effect will become visible if you follow the corresponding accounts but Instagram has said that "If you aren’t a follower but you see an effect that you love, you can tap to try it on and add it to your camera".
The update, if not already downloaded to your iOS or Android device, should become available from today.
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