Facebook’s iOS app as well as its photo-sharing platform Instagram are getting new features today that’s meant to make shutterbugs really happy.

For starters, the iOS version of the Facebook app is getting an automatic enhancement feature that will improve the quality of photos uploaded to the social network. According to a report by TechCrunch whose sources say the feature will have something like a slider so users can have a way to control the photo adjustments including clarity, lighting and shadows.

On the other hand, Instagram is also introducing new features today. Specifically, the app is adding five new filters to its existing list of predefined photo filters. These include Slumber, Crema, Ludwig, Aden and Perpetua.

Moreover, the IG app is also adding a “manage” button so users can rearrange the filters based on their preference. The preview section of the app is also tweaked a bit with a specific focus on speed by providing users with a blurred preview of their photo when the filter is applied. This should, in theory, allow people to see at a glance how their photo will appear after the filter effect has been applied.

The updated version of the IG app is now available both on Apple’s App Store and Android’s Google Play.

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According to a recent report by Bloomberg, popular ephemeral messenger Snapchat is now busy bulking up in terms of resources and funding that could help the company raise its value to a whopping $10 billion.

With this in mind, it’s undeniable that Snapchat is now the ephemeral app to beat. Just recently, Facebook unveiled a similar competitor app called Slingshot on iOS. And this week, another heavy weight in the social networking space is introducing its own app to compete with Snapchat.

Instagram has just made available its Bolt app to select iOS and Android users in Singapore, South Africa and New Zealand. The app claims to offer a no fuzz method of sharing photos with a user’s contacts coupled with Instagram’s filter-rich interface.

The app doesn’t require a Facebook or Instagram account, but users are required to sign up using their phone numbers in order to sync their contacts into the app.

For now, Instagram hasn’t mentioned when it plans to roll out the app outside the three countries mentioned above once they have figured out how to properly distribute the app without compromising on user experience.

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After Facebook’s failed attempt to acquire Snapchat, its recently acquired photo-sharing app is now introducing a new feature in the platform that has relatively the same function as Snapchat.

Launched in an event today in New York, Instagram Direct allows users to share photos taken from their smartphone as a post for their followers to see or as a direct message to select individuals.

Basically, Direct acts as an extended feature for Instagram and didn’t completely rewire how the app functions. In the company’s event in NYC, its CEO Kevin Systrom demoed how users can take photos using Instagram and send it to other people as a direct message and then subsequently receive text notifications in an ongoing conversation.

Images and videos shared through Direct can only be viewed by the recipient of the images and videos in contrast to those that are posted normally, which is visible to all followers of a certain user. Moreover, users will be able to send photos and videos up to 15 people and will know when a person has viewed, liked and participated in the conversation.

Users may also receive images and videos from people they don’t follow, but these images will initially appear as invites and a user has the option of accepting or ignoring the message.

Instagram Direct is now available on Android and iOS. 

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Instagram has proven itself as a force to be reckoned with when it comes to sharing images online. This is actually one of the reasons why Facebook has acquired the photo-sharing app last year for $1 billion. And the next logical step for Facebook is of course to take Instagram to the next level and keep its lead from its competitors as large as possible.

This is probably one of the reasons why Facebook attempted to acquire on-the-rise photo messaging app Snapchat around $3 Billion last week. Unfortunately, Snapchat turned the offer down caused the tech giant to take a different course of action.

Snapchat has lately gained a huge following especially to teens for its ability put an expiration time to photos shared by users on the network. And this apparent popularity among teen users is actually what Facebook is looking for as the social network’s reach in the said age segment has slowly decreased throughout time.

But since Snapchat is no longer an option, Facebook and Instagram have now been pushed to pursue other means to capture the teen market segment. And it appears that it’s now employing a “if you can’t buy them, beat them strategy”.

According to reports from GigaOM, the next version of the Instagram app will the added functionality of instant messaging. The feature is likely to be integrated in an upcoming feature in an update scheduled to be released before the end of the year. The new version of the app is also slated to have group chat.

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Yahoo might be joining the video-sharing battle with Facebook’s Instagram and Twitter’s Vine with its recent acquisition of Qwiki, an iOS app that takes photos, music and clips and turns them into short videos.

According to a report by AllThingsD, the deal is said to have cost somewhere between 40 and 50 million dollars. However, unlike other Yahoo acquisitions, Qwiki will reportedly stay in the App store and continue to be supported. Qwiki’s team will then be relocated into Yahoo’s New York City office which is just a few miles for the company’s current office.

Although the app is very similar to what other video-centric app does, its CEO and co-founder Doug Imbruce said in a statement last February that they want Qwiki to be known not as a video-sharing app but more of a story-telling app. But with Yahoo’s acquisition, will Qwiki still push for this vision or will it be Sunnyvale company’s answer to Vine and Instagram? What do you think?

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Video on Instagram might have temporarily stolen the limelight from Vine these past few weeks, but the Twitter-owned video sharing app is back with a vengeance as it launches its biggest update since its launch in January.

The update aims to bring functionality that further enhances the app in terms of its usability and ability to connect people with one another. In terms of usability, the update brings a set of camera tools including a camera grid, focus capability and ghost tools that help viners shoot videos easier.

Vine is also adding 15 new channels where viners can submit their posts to or browse from the Explore screen. Each of these channels has their own theme and Popular feed which is a great way to get discovered on the network. There’s also an “On the Rise” section where people can check out other viners who are gaining popularity in Vine.

The update will now also allow users to easily “re-vine” their videos with a single tap on a button. Last but definitely not the least, the Vine app will now have an option to allow users protect their posts. People who want a little privacy in their account can now choose to only share videos to the people they are connected to.

Unfortunately, the 6-second time limit for capturing videos is still in place and there are still no in-house editing options available for the app. The update is now available to iOS users with the Android update to follow shortly after.

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Instagram announced today a new feature called “Video on Instagram” at Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park in California. And as the name implies, the feature will focus on capturing and sharing videos the same way Instagram does with photos.

Unlike its closest competitor and current service to beat when it comes to video sharing – Vine, Video on Instagram lets people create 15-second videos to share on the service. Moreover, in true Instagram tradition, simple editing capabilities including 131 new filters specifically designed for video is thrown in the mix.

“What we did to photos, we just did to video” – Kevin Systrom.

According to Instagram’s Kevin Systrom, the decision to use 15-second videos instead of the usual six seconds was more of a creative choice and stresses that he is not necessarily saying that one is better than the other.

This new features is already available to all Instagram users on iOS and Android and will certainly disrupt the existing market for video capture and sharing services especially with Instagram’s large user base. According to its CEO Kevin Systrom, Instagram has approximately 130 million active monthly users, who have shared 16 billion photos to date.

In any case, it’s quite interesting how Video on Instagram would affect Vine’s performance and adoption. At present, Vine is ranked 14^th on Apple’s App store while Instagram sits at the 30^th spot. However, the reverse is true when it comes to Google Play with Instagram occupying the 6^th position for top free apps, while Vine is nowhere near the 100^th spot.

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