The Next Web reports Instagram is testing new features including the ability to search for GIFs to add to your Instagram stories. The Next Web reveals that there are a number of new features Instagram appears to be testing including a close friends list to share with only a small group, an automatic archiving option for all of your stories, hashtag and emoji search functions, and the feature to follow hashtags to get top posts and stories on a particular trending topic.
“It looks like Instagram may finally join the GIF party and allow users to search for and add GIFs to their Stories or regular posts. We don’t have a lot of information about this — other than the test version being hideous — but it seems Instagram is tapping Giphy, like you do, to source GIFs in-app.” via
Keep in mind, all of these are just tests, so we may never see these features any time soon.
The new feature The Next Web revealed is pretty interesting. The screenshot shows a repost button that would appear next to the like, comment and send buttons. An official “regard” button will allow users to easily repost photos from friends and other followers. A feature that has been highly requested by Instagram users for several years and with several third-party apps offering this functionality. Ultimately, reshaping is a popular feature found on many social networks including Twitter and Facebook. For example, Facebook offers the ability for users to share a photo, video or any time of the content. Meanwhile, Twitter allows users to retweet.
It is not clear what the button in the screenshot means, while it is certainly likely that Instagram is testing how this new button will play out on the social network. If this does become a new feature, it will surely be a useful one and will surely drive those third-party applications out of business.