New Instagram

Instagram updates always send people into a panic. Change the position of literally anything and you’ll get entire threads about the app’s death spiral. So when version 3.2.0 came out with a brand new interface, I figured we were in for the usual meltdown. Wasn’t terrible though.

The camera button was huge, centered at the bottom. A massive target so even the spaciest Instagram user couldn’t miss it. They’d added new filters, including one called Willow that’s black and white. Which nobody ever uses, but okay.

Everything else got shuffled around. Foursquare was all over now. You could tag where you were, except you’d be too busy arranging the sushi and the beer to let anyone actually eat. Photos got automatically saved to your library whether you wanted it or not.

Of course it was mostly just iOS. Android users were basically second-rate—bad cameras, bad luck, unworthy of Instagram’s precious filters. That was the message anyway.

Free to download. Topless photos were still banned. We tested that.