Brace yourselves, Instagramers. Facebook is bringing Messenger inside Instagram DMs. The recent announcements shouldn’t be surprising after Mark Zuckerberg’s earlier plans of unifying applications under the Facebook umbrella, including WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and Facebook. So now you can chat with a Messenger user from Instragam and very soon you will have an option to cross-post across Instagram and Facebook.
Yes, Facebook has begun testing a way to cross-post across Instagram and Facebook recently.
Integrating Messenger and Instagram is part of Facebook’s bigger goal of unifying its apps.
To Instagram users, the advantage provided by this integration will be the ability to use the best Messenger features. Despite being owned by one company, Messenger offers more functionality than Instagram on messaging.
And thanks to this change, you no longer have difficulties remembering where to find a particular conversation thread. Open any app, and you will be able to access all chats from the other app. Facebook claims one out of three people has a hard time finding a specific conversation thread in the US.
“With this update, it will be even easier to stay connected without thinking about which app to use to reach your friends and family,” the company wrote in a blog post. Facebook began testing this functionality in August.
Facebook has done an excellent job telling users that they’re using the latest version with Messenger integration. The Instagram DM icon is now gone for good – at least for now – replaced with a Messenger icon logo.
New Instagram Features
In tandem with the integration announcement, Instagram also introduced several new features on the app.
Boomerang just got a unique hybrid variation dubbed Selfie stickers. You can now watch IGTV videos together with friends during a video call and send disappearing messages.
Disappearing messages are under a new setting called vanish mode; you can set messages to disappear after being seen automatically. Vanish mode is pretty similar to what WhatsApp has been testing.
WhatsApp has recently been spotted adding disappearing capability on media files after commencing testing the text versions months ago.
The latest version also brings chat colors, replies, animated message effects, forwarding, and updates to enhanced reporting and blocking.
Instagram is getting a host of new controls as well. You will choose who can message you, and control where you receive messages and calls.
Availability
The new features are available “in a few countries,” but the global Messenger and Instagram community should receive the same soon.
