Instagram for Windows can now be downloaded from the Windows Phone Store.
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| Screenshots from Instagram Windows Phone Store page |
The Windows page of Instagram currently says "beta", so it means that we are still to experience the full and official version of the said app. When? That is unknown. But it's already there and ready for download. And what's that one thing you need to know about the new iteration of Instagram? It is currently not enabled to upload videos unlike Android and iOS versions' which are enabled. To me that is something very important to have nowadays since this kind of service is becoming more popular around the world, you know, words are not enough to express yourself online, picture's worth a thousand words but video delivers the story differently. However, do not worry as an Instagram spokesperson said to The Verge, ""We're not finished, and our team will continue developing the Windows Phone app to keep releasing features and bringing you the best Instagram possible,".
Just in case it's not clear yet, this Instagram I am talking about here only supports Windows Phone 8 (and up) OS running devices, legacy users are not included and that's so sad to hear. Since the people behind the globally successful Instagram wanted the app be available to "Windows Phone users as quickly as possible" as per its blog post, some features or major feature has to be left out at the moment. Once out of beta stage, we expect a smooth users experience as what the iOS and Android users are currently enjoying around the world. Instagram and Microsoft said, as per reports around the web, users won't be able to take photos within or from the app but many tech blogs and websites are saying that they are actually able to take photos first before sharing it. They said that if you click the camera icon within the app, they are routed to the default camera app of Windows device, then once done taking pictures they are taken back to the Instagram app and are able to select filters before they can share the photo. I don't have a Windows phone myself so I can't really try it for now and describe to you how that particular thing works, but if you have tried it yourself feel free to use the comments section below to share it with us.
Like what I have mentioned above, the video sharing feature is currently not included in the beta version of the app. Actually this is a new feature that Instagram launched and it was just in June of this year. This video sharing feature on Instagram, was launched to compete with Twitter's Vine app, but Kevin Systrom, Instagram CEO, said they started working on the feature in 2010 which was way before the Vine was released. But video for Instagram has a lot of features that are not similar to the Vine's. You can read my post about the feature here for more information.
