People just love photographs. We love to collect them and show them off to friends and family. We also enjoy traveling and special gatherings because these give us an opportunity to snap photos. But we also have our own preferences when it comes to image treatment.
If you are one of those who love to take pictures and edit them but do not have the time, or you do not know how to take solid photos, then you can use Instagram. It is also a great app for people who love sepia or photos with vintage feel.
What Is Instagram?
Instagram is an application that has gained a lot of attention and fans in Apple, where it was first uploaded. It is a free iPhone and Android that lets you work on any photos with magic. It comes with a variety of filters and photo effects to give every image a beautiful treatment.
It is also a social community. That is why you are required to create your own account. As a network, your photos are instantly shared among your followers or friends the moment you upload them through Instagram. As mentioned, your profile can also be followed, and you also have the power to follow others. If there is one thing you need to remember when following other Instagram users, it is this: the application does not have any system that can verify an account unlike Twitter.
Hence, even if it says Chris Brown and it does have the photo of the singer as a profile picture, that does not mean you are dealing with the real guy. Instagram also lets you view photos of others, especially those that have been rated popular.
The original author of Instagram is Burbn Incorporated. It was released on October 20, 2010 as a freeware. In April 12, 2012, in a move that quite surprised many, Facebook purchased Instagram for a staggering amount of $1 billion, a combination of stocks and cash. That is a far cry from the $35 million paid by Yahoo to acquire Flickr, which already has a solid business model than Instagram.
The Differences
Nevertheless, Instagram has become such a huge hit that Android users dreamed of having one as well. Such prayer was answered when, on June 28, 2012, Instagram was officially added to the roster of Android apps, and it was instantly downloaded more than 400,000 times.
For an Android user who has never used any iOS device, he may not be able to tell the difference between Instagram in Apple App Store and the one in Google Play. But there are differences. They may not be extremely huge, but they may matter to you.
For example, in iOS’s Instagram you can actually add or test the filters or photo effects before you can capture the snapshot. Hence, even before you have the photo, you can already have an idea what it looks like and decide which effect would go along well with the subject. This isn’t the way an Android Instagram works. You can apply the filters ONLY when you have already taken the photo.
The Apple Instagram also has the tilt-shift technology, which helps create a dramatic and sometimes stunning miniature effect on any scene. This isn’t carried over in the Android version.
There’s also a difference in the access and treatment of profile. If you’re using Android, it’s much easier and faster for you to open your profile account. There are fewer taps involved. There’s still so much to be desired with regards to the iOS version.
Perhaps because of proprietary issues or perhaps it’s the first one to be created, the Apple Instagram doesn’t have a lot options for sharing.
Android, meanwhile, allows you to upload or share your photos not just within your Instagram network but also in your Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and Tumblr accounts. You can also do geotagging so it’s more convenient to search photos based on location. Maybe we can also expect Google Plus to be added on the list. After all, Android is Google.
The home screen may also be slightly different. While Apple Instagram uses buttons, Android Instagram has tabs. Interestingly the tab bar is found below when it’s common practice for Android apps to display tabs on top.
Final Notes
As you can see, the differences are many but aren’t that much of an issue. Even if you have not used any iOS device, you can have a general idea how Instagram works there by downloading one in your Android device.
If there’s one thing we’d like to tell you, though, it’s the fact that Instagram should never stop you from taking amazing photographs. It also doesn’t make you a prolific photographer either. It simply makes photo editing and sharing faster and more convenient—something that offers great help for extremely busy individuals.
Compatible: With iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android
- Free
