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| Instagram removes Boomerang and Hyperlapse apps |
A week after Instagram confirmed that the standalone IGTV app will be shutting down to better focus on plans like Reels, the company has now removed two outdated apps from its App Store.
These include the Hyperlapse video app, which was first launched in 2014, and the video app Boomerang, which was launched in 2015.
According to Apptopia, Hyperlapse and Boomerang were available on the App Store on the last day before they were taken down on March 1, 2022.
Boomerang is the more popular of the two. Apptopia data shows that Boomerang has 301 million downloads worldwide, while Hyperlapse has 23 million downloads.
Additionally, Apptopia noted that Boomerang was averaging 26,000 downloads per day when it was removed.
However, Boomerang benefits from the presence of the Apple App Store and Google Play. Although Hyperlapse is only available for iOS.
Instagram has not officially announced the removal via its blog. But some people have tweeted shutting down the app, including social media consultant Matt Navarra.
It is not surprising that these two applications are closed. Both were originally developed to give Instagram users new creative tools without filling up their main app. But the company's concerns are over.
Today's leading platform apps provide access to photo and video posts, stories, short reels of video content, live video and online shopping.
Instagram launched Hyperlapse and Boomerang
There's a lot going on on Instagram right now, and the company has changed its basic design, instead moving the compose button from the bottom center to a hard-to-reach spot in the top-right corner of the screen.
At the same time, the platform no longer needs a dedicated creative effects app as it has already integrated its suite of creative tools directly into the Instagram camera.
This happened in the same platform app a couple of years ago when the platform released new Boomerang effects like SloMo, Echo, and Duo. Now, if the platform wants users to get creative with the videos, it adds features to the Reels product.
As the company said when confirming the closure of IGTV, it wanted to make video in its main app as easy as possible.
Although Hyperlapse and Boomerang have been removed from the App Store, the layout app is still available.