Instagram rolls out Instants globally

Meta-owned Instagram began rolling out Instants on May 13, adding a disappearing-photo feature inside its main app and, in some countries, through a separate Instants app. Meta said the feature is designed for real-time photo sharing with Close Friends or mutual followers, and that images cannot be uploaded from a phone’s gallery. The company said photos disappear after they are opened and cannot be viewed after 24 hours. Outside guides published on May 14 also focused on how to hide the feature from inboxes after some users said they sent photos by mistake. ### Where does Instants show up inside Instagram? Instagram said users can open Instants by tapping a small photo stack in the bottom-right corner of the direct-message inbox. Meta also said the standalone Instants app opens directly to the camera and uses the same Instagram account, so photos shared through the separate app still reach the same contacts on Instagram. The May 13 Meta post said Instants is available globally inside Instagram, while the separate app is rolling out only in select countries on iOS and Android. (about.fb.com) Meta did not list those countries in the announcement. ### Who can receive an Instant? Meta said users choose between sending an Instant to Close Friends or to followers they follow back. The company described the second group as mutual followers in its announcement. (about.fb.com) TechCrunch reported on May 14 that the sharing toggle under the camera is set to “Friends” by default when some users first open the feature, unless they switch it to “Close Friends” before taking a picture. (about.fb.com) That report said the photo is sent as soon as the shutter button is tapped. Meta’s own post says users choose recipients before sharing, but does not describe a review screen after capture. ### What happens to the photo after you send it? Meta said Instants are meant to be captured in real time, with no uploads from the phone gallery and no editing beyond adding a caption. The company said recipients can react with emojis, reply, and send Instants back. Instagram said shared photos appear as a pile of images in friends’ inboxes, disappear once viewed, and cannot be viewed after 24 hours. (techcrunch.com) Meta also said friends cannot screenshot or record Instants, though it did not detail in the announcement how that restriction is enforced across devices. ### Can you take back a photo if you sent it by mistake? Meta said users can tap an Undo button to quickly take back an Instant before friends see it. (about.fb.com) The company also said a sender can delete an Instant from a private archive to unsend it for people who have not opened it yet. TechCrunch reported on May 14 that some users missed the Undo prompt after sending a photo and then looked for ways to disable the feature. (about.fb.com) ABC7 also described Instants as a feature that sends expiring photos and published a how-to explainer after the rollout. ### Is there a way to turn Instants off or hide it? Meta said users can temporarily stop receiving Instants by pressing on the pile in the inbox and swiping right, then restore it by swiping left later. (about.fb.com) The company presented that as a snooze control rather than a full shutdown. TechCrunch reported that users can hide Instants from the inbox through Instagram settings by going to Content Preferences and toggling “Hide Instants in Inbox.” That report said doing so removes the feature from the inbox and also hides Instants sent by other people. (techcrunch.com) Meta’s May 13 announcement did not mention that setting. ### What privacy and safety rules carry over? (about.fb.com) Meta said Instagram’s existing Block, Mute and Restrict controls apply to Instants, and said teen users get the feature through Instagram Teen Accounts and Family Center without separate setup. The company also said shared photos are saved in a private archive visible only to the sender for up to one year, and that archived photos can be turned into a Stories recap. (techcrunch.com) May 15 is the first full week of the rollout, and Meta’s announcement says the next visible expansion step is the separate Instants app reaching additional countries on iOS and Android. Users looking for controls can currently find them either in the inbox gesture Meta described or, according to TechCrunch, in Instagram’s Content Preferences settings. (about.fb.com)