In order to widen its reach, Instagram has introduced a lighter version of its app, called Instagram Lite. The app showed up on Google Play Store on Thursday without any prior notice from the parent company, Facebook.
"The Instagram Lite app is small, allowing you to save space on your phone and download it quickly,” the description on Play Store reads.
The app, being the lighter version of Instagram will be a mere 573 Kb in size - that is 1/55th the size of the actual Instagram app, which stands at 32 Mb currently. The app will help users who don’t have access to advanced phones with sufficient space and fast internet speeds or affordable data plans.
The app looks exactly like the actual Instagram app, but lacks the feature of sharing videos and direct messages. It is kind of like what Instagram was in its early days.
The Instagram Lite appl lets users post photos with filters, watch and post stories and access the explore page.
This version of Instagram comes after tech journalists around the world kept asking Instagram if it would launch a lighter version of its app after it revamped its mobile site recently.
Instagram also recently announced its long video platform IGTV and achieved 1 billion monthly active users. This Lite version of its app is an attempt to extend that number even further.
According to Tech Crunch, the number off users is growing at a rate of 100 million people every four months, with most of them coming from developing countries.
Instagram's spokesperson also confirmed that the lite version of the app began testing in Mexico this week.
We tried to get access to the Instagram Lite app, but it has not rolled out for India yet. In India, the full version of Instagram and IGTV are available.
(With inputs from Tech Crunch)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)