When Threads was first introduced by Meta, it quickly became the talk of the social media world, creating a sensation that captured everyone’s attention. Within a mere five days, the app garnered over 100 million users, causing a stir that didn’t sit well with Twitter.
In its ongoing effort to make the app even more valuable, Meta has been consistently integrating new features. The most recent update continues this trend, introducing yet another wave of enhancements to this contender against Twitter. Keep reading to discover the latest developments in Threads.
It seems like every few weeks, instead of holding everything for a major launch, the company is consistently introducing smaller updates, as their teams finalize new features and enhance the app’s performance. This week marks another round of incremental updates.
In a recent post on Threads, Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed that the app would be receiving three new features in the coming week.
While the first feature pertains to direct messages (DMs), it’s not quite the feature most users are eagerly anticipating, which is the native support for direct messaging within the Threads app. Adam Mosseri has assured us that messaging will be integrated into Threads in the future, but that’s not what’s in store for this particular week.
Instead of that, users will now have the capability to share a post directly to their Instagram DMs. So, if you come across something while browsing Threads that you want to share with a friend who happens to have an Instagram account, you can send the post through a direct message on Instagram, eliminating the need to text them separately.
This move aligns with Meta’s strategy to keep direct messaging within its suite of apps. Naturally, the company prefers users to DM Threads on Instagram rather than resorting to platforms like iMessage, Google Messages, or any other non-Meta application.
Alongside this update, the company is also introducing custom alternative text (alt-text) for photos and videos. This feature should have ideally been available from the app’s launch, as its absence likely posed challenges for users with accessibility requirements.
Nonetheless, it’s a positive step to witness Threads finally integrating this capability. One can hope that Meta will take inspiration from X (formerly known as Twitter) and permit users to set reminders for adding alt text each time they upload an image or video.
The following modifications are set to be implemented in the Threads app for both iOS and Android this week:
- Directly share a post with your Instagram DMs
- Custom alt-text for photos/videos
- Introduction of a new mention button for seamlessly referencing someone’s account in your Thread.”
This week will also bring several additional minor updates, including the option to view all the Threads you’ve liked in your profile, sort the accounts you follow, and a newly added mention button for effortless tagging of accounts while composing a post. Instagram’s CEO, Adam Mosseri, shared that the platform is also introducing support for rel=me links.
In the slightly over one-month span since its launch, Threads has been steadily incorporating numerous features. Among these additions post-launch is the introduction of a Following list, exclusively displaying posts from accounts you follow, translation capabilities, the option to subscribe and unfollow users, and the convenience of following users directly from their posts.
However, this is just the initial phase. The company has an array of promised features in the pipeline, including direct messaging, a desktop web app, and the ability to deactivate your Threads account while keeping your Instagram account intact. The timing of these forthcoming features remains to be seen, but considering the current pace of development, the wait doesn’t appear to be indefinite.
