14 DAY TRIAL // Snapchat’s Stories has been a widely popular feature on the social network, which is why Instagram and even Facebook’s Messenger provided their users with similar offerings. Now, Facebook has announced that it’s bringing a Stories feature to its users, among other things.
Facebook Stories will be displayed at the top of the News Feed and will consist of videos and pictures shared by friends. Stories will be shown for 24 hours, but won’t appear on the Timeline or in the News Feed, unless users post them there.
In order to add a story, users simply need to tap on the “Your Story” icon in the Stories bar at the top of the News Feed. Truth be told, Facebook’s Stories could bother some users, as it’s the first thing they see at the top of the News Feed, whether they want it or not.
Facebook’s Direct is very similar to another Snapchat feature
Facebook also added a new feature called, Direct. The tool allows users to share individual pictures or videos with friends, who can only see them once. Afterward, the image or video is deleted. Needless to say that Facebook’s Direct feature is similar to Snapchat’s tool that basically does the same thing and even has about the same UI.
Other than that, Facebook completely redesigned the camera and added multiple effects, like masks, frames and interactive effects. Filters that somewhat resemble Prisma’s offerings were also added, together with effects that promote upcoming feature movies, like Wonder Woman and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
Facebook also says that it will regularly add new creative effects in the camera over the coming months. The new features already started rolling out to Android and iOS Facebook users, just weeks after it updated its Messenger app with a similar feature.
“Our goal is for the camera to be a home to hundreds of dynamic and fun effects that give you new ways to connect with friends, family, and your community,” Facebook said in a post.
