Instagram appears to be adopting the TikTok interface, something Twitter, too, has done in recent months. The most recent feature that Instagram, owned by Meta, is testing includes a virtual scroll on its platform for Stories. This feature is being tried out in Brazil and Turkey for now. This feature is also present on Instagram Reels.
At present, Instagram Stories are visible above the main page. They can only be horizontally scrolled through. The social media platform made an announcement last February of the development of a virtual-scrolling interface, and it has finally begun testing it
Insta’s vertical scroll will help users move across stories more conveniently. The present horizontal scroll only takes users to stories of one user.
As the feature is currently in the testing phase on Instagram, it is not clear when it will become a permanent feature across all countries. There is a chance that Instagram may even decide against introducing this feature after the results of the present testing are in.
Several Features Have Been Tested On Instagram In Recent Times
Insta has added several features recently. One of them is the choice of directly posting browser content. Other recent features include alternating between a dark and light mode. Both have been generally received favorably by users. But vertical scrolling could mean a radical upgrade.
Other TikTok features that have made it to Insta include the Reels option, which is videos up to a minute-long.
For users who have made a switch to larger phones, it will be more convenient to scroll vertically through a feed instead of the present horizontal way. Thus, this option to swipe vertically to navigate across user stories will make the platform more convenient to use. But its permanence can only be confirmed after it goes through the testing phase.
