Instagram / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
ZDNET's takeaways
Instagram is unveiling several new features.
Its new Snapchat-style map lets you see where your friends are.
There's also a new way to see content your friends are interacting with.
Meta has unveiled a number of changes to Instagram, all aimed at helping you better connect with your friends and their favorite content. A new location-sharing map is on the way, along with new ways to find content.
A Snapchat-style friend map
Maybe the most useful feature is one taken directly from Snapchat (whose upcoming AR glasses are looking special): Instagram Map. This feature shares the last location you used the app with people you choose (followers you follow back, close friends, selected friends, or no one). You have to opt in and share your location with Instagram for your friends to see your location, and you can turn this off at any time, Meta says. You can also open the map at the top of your DMs list to see content from your friends.
If you're a parent of a teen account, you can control their location sharing. You'll get a notification if your teen starts sharing their location, and you can decide whether your teen has access to location sharing on the map and who your teen shares their location with.
Also: How to protect your privacy from Facebook - and what doesn't work
... continue reading