From stickers, nicknames to location sharing - these are Instagram's new features

Instagram has enhanced Direct Messages with three new features.

Instagram has enhanced Direct Messages with three new features.

Published Dec 3, 2024

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People often use Instagram DMs (Direct Messenger) to stay in touch and share updates with their friends.

Instagram has now introduced new features to help users connect with friends in your DMs, including new sticker packs, an updated DM sticker tray, nicknames for you and your friends, as well as location sharing to make hanging out much easier.

Here is a closer look at the new features:

New stickers

Instagram has introduced 17 new sticker packs and more than 300 new stickers to share in your DMs. Plus, users will also be able to favourite a sticker from their chats which will allow you to re-use stickers that were shared by your friends.

Nicknames

Users of the social media platform can now customise names across DMs by adding a nickname for themselves or for friends.

The nicknames will only appear in the DM chats of users and won’t change usernames anywhere else on Instagram.

You are always in control and can change your nickname at any time or you can decide who can change your nickname within a chat. The default setting is for people that you follow, but you can also change this so only you can update your nickname.

How to create a nickname:

1. Tap on the chat name at the top of your conversation.

2. Then, tap on Nicknames and the username of the person you want to add a nickname for in the chat.

Location sharing

Now in Instagram DMs, users can share their live location for up to one hour or pin a spot on the map to coordinate arrival times, activities or find each other in crowded spaces.

The live location feature can only be shared privately in DMs, either in an one-on-one chat or group chat and is off by default.

When sharing your location, only those in the specific chat can see the location and the location can not be forwarded to other chats.

There will also be an indicator at the top of the chat to ensure you do not forget that you are sharing your live location. You can stop sharing your location at any time. Always be mindful of your privacy and only share your location with people you know in real life.

Location sharing features are currently only available in select countries.

IOL Technology

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