Instagram has been on a path from its origins in 2010 as a photo sharing platform towards becoming a video-focused app in 2022 – however, its latest update might be a step too far as its received widespread backlash from users.

The new update which features photos and videos in a new TikTok style format that takes up your entire screen and forces you to swipe between individual posts has been slowly rolled out to users since the beginning of May.

On 3rd May, Head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri posted a video announcing the app was moving “to a place where video is a bigger part of the home experience, where content is more immersive – it takes up more of the screen”.

What that means in reality is a new full-screen feed where posts appear in a larger 9:16 ratio, the same as you see on TikTok.

Instagram has consistently updated the direction of the app to stay on top of trends and make sure they aren’t overtaken by competitors. In 2013, Instagram first introduced videos to the app as they competed against Vine. In 2016, Instagram launched Stories following the success of Snapchat Stories.

The new direction taken by the app in 2022 to promote a full-size feed and push Reels appears to be the next step the app is taking to fight off its latest competition – TikTok.

What you need to know-

Square photos are OUT. Portrait (1080X1350px) is now the size of the new layout feed.