India Hines

Guess who is knocking on Vine’s door? Instagram added a new video feature to the app last week.

Vine was released earlier this year and rose in popularity on iPhone app download charts. It has been in the Top 10 ever since being released on Jan. 24 of this year. The chart also shows Vine downloads are now declining since Instagram’s new features were released. What will happen to Vine?

Stephanie Moore, assistant professor in Journalism and Mass Communication, thinks there is room for competition.

“It certainly brings competition, but I think there will be uses for both. In reality, Instagram already has around 130 million users so it will naturally have a stronger base,” Moore said. “However, we’ll have to see if Instagram users will like the video component. Video is a lot harder to make look perfect than a photo.”

Users are now able to record video for 15 seconds on Instagram, instead of six seconds on Vine.

“The longer recording time on Instagram is more appealing than six seconds,” said Teresa Smith, junior applied conflict management major.

There is also the choice of using Instagram’s famous filters on the video. Instagram also has an automatic image stabilization called cinema for users with shaky hands.

One of the other new features is the option to delete clips. You do not have to start over from the beginning if the user makes a mistake. However, Instagram did not follow in Vine’s footsteps with looping videos.

“Fifteen seconds would seem like forever. But there’s something about that Vine loop that’s addicting, especially considering our infatuation with animated Gifs,” Moore said.

Jasmine Perry, junior dance education major, feels that Vine will not continue since Instagram now has new features.

“Vine is not going to last because you have one app that does it all,” Perry said.

Instagram video recording was also made available for Android at the same time as iPhone, unlike Vine. Moore said she can appreciate the anticipation that builds having waited for Vine to be available on Android, but likes that Instagram included both iPhone and Android users at the same time.

“Personally I’m glad about this because I’m a Droid user, but it’s good they’ve catered to both audiences from the beginning,” Moore said. “Instagram is accessible to a larger user base, a fundamental component of social networking.”

Contact India Hines at [email protected].