Snapchat has unveiled two key new features to its service that could greatly improve upon its already substantial user base.
The Snapchat team revealed via a Snapchat message to its users that both text messaging and FaceTime-esque video calls are available on the app.
The text messaging in particular is a feature that many have been requesting for a while, and it will certainly push WhatsApp’s nose out of joint. Now users can select a friend’s name in their Snapchat inbox to open up a chat window, where they can send messages back and forth with no photos required.
You can also start a video call with friends by tapping a blue button in the chat screen, with this feature working much in the same way as the iPhone’s FaceTime. This will certainly fill a whole in the market for Android users, who have thus far sorely been missing out on a feature akin to FaceTime that boasts the same level of popularity.
Weirdly, users need to keep their thumbs pressed on the screen to stay on the video call, as you do with viewing photos on the app. You can also drag your thumb up to the upper half of the screen to switch from the front-facing camera to the back-facing camera, which we imagine will result in a lot of calls being dropped due to users accidentally lifting their thumbs from off of the screen.
Despite this, these two new features now transform Snapchat from something of a throwaway yet incredibly popular app to something much more useful. To access the new features, simply upgrade Snapchat on either the App or Google Play store.
The video revealing the new features can be watched below.
