Threads, perceived to be the biggest challenger to Twitter, from Meta acquired 100 million users with in hours of going live across 100 countries on Thursday riding on the large base of existing Instagram users.
Since there’s a lot of buzz and excitement around the new app, let’s take a look at its features and understand how it’s different from twitter.
Threads app interface is similar to other social media apps. Once you have logged in through Instagram you have the option to follow the all the accounts that you follow on Insta. You also have the option to selectively follow the accounts that you follow in your Insta account. You can post messages upto 500 characters and include GIFs, pictures and videos upto five minutes duration.
Getting started on Threads:
Well you have to download the app from either of the play stores- android and apple, but unlike Twitter you can log in using your Instagram profile. You also have the option to create user profile by filling in details such as bio and adding a profile picture manually. It also offers the option to make your profile public or private. Also, you can make your Instagram profile private and at the same time make your Threads profile public.
Character limit on Threads
While twitter has a 280 characters limit on messages for a non verified user, all threads users, without any distinction,can send upto 500 characters messages.
Web version
While Twitter has a web version, threads does not have one as of now. It’s available only as an app.
Share options
All posts on Threads can be shared on Instagram as stories or posts. They can be shared on Twitter as well. Users can also share these with their contacts through WhatsApp & Airdrop.
DM options
As of now Threads does not have the option to DM to other users unlike Twitter.
Account deletion
Unlike Twitter where you can easily delete your account, you can delete your Threads account only when you delete your Instagram account. However, you can deactivate your Threads account anytime.
Verified Badge
While Twitter users are required to pay $8 to get the verified badge accompanied with an increased character limit for the messages, Threads users with a verified Instagram account get to retain their blue badges on the app.
Other key selling points for Threads
a) While Meta has retained the content rules of the Instagram for Threads, it has made the new app ad free as of now.
b) It is built on same ActivityPub social networking protocol as Mastodon and other decentralised social media apps use. This would allow people to build their following on Threads and at a later point in time to use the app to interact with a larger audience beyond the Instagram.
From the looks of it, the array of unique features of both the apps is just the start of the grand quest for social media dominance between Musk and Zuckerberg!
