Facebook overhauls Messenger, gives Instagram ability to host 6-people video chats

Facebook has updated two of its most popular apps – Messenger and Instagram – and added some new features to both. The bigger update comes to Facebook Messenger which is now less cluttered thanks to three main tabs that segregate Messenger’s main functions. Instagram, on the other hand, has a small little update that increases the number of people that can video chat through DMs on the platform.

Messenger 4

Let’s start with Messenger. The app is now less cluttered and simply sorts information into three main tabs – Chats, People and Discover. Chats houses all your individual and group chats, People lists your contacts that you might want to message and Discover where you can connect with businesses, play Instant Games, book your next vacation, follow the news and more.

It is also easier to share pictures through Messenger as it now features a prominent camera button on the top right corner. A new feature called Colour Gradients lets users personalise conversations and assign multiple colors to chat bubbles. You can see the colors change from red to blue, for example, as you scroll up and down a conversation. Facebook says that the Colour Gradients can be changed any time to reflect your mood or topic of conversation.

The social network says that it conducted a Messenger study in which 7 out of 10 (71%) people said that simplicity is the top priority for them in a messaging app. However, Facebook feels that the changed interface may take people time to get used to, hence it is being rolled out in phases. Messenger 4 will gradually roll out globally over the coming weeks.

Instagram Video Chat update

Long story short, Instagram users can now video chat with six people at the same time in DMs. Instagram rolled out video chats on the platform in June this year and the feature is available in Direct Messages inbox. Users can scroll through their Insta feed while video chatting thanks to the PiP (Picture-in-Picture) mode. To use the new group calling feature, follow these steps:

1. Tap in the top right of Feed.

2. Tap a username or group name to open the conversation. You can also start a new conversation by tapping in the top right and selecting people you want to video chat with.

3. Tap in the top right. The person or group you call will receive a notification that you're video calling them.

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