Instagram reportedly testing mute button, slow-mo recording and more

Instagram might be gearing up to launch a bunch of new features, it seems. A Twitter user @wongmjane posted few pictures of the various tests Instagram has conducted. Wong is a computer science student who looked through the app's code.

Instagram to The Verge it didn't "have anything to share on this right now," regarding the said tests. While the features are yet to be rolled out, it's at least fun to imagine that the platform is working on improving the experience of the users with some new features. Let's see what test Wong has found out:

Instagram is testing Story "Reactions". It works kinda like the existing Facebook Stories Reaction pic.twitter.com/z2tAg8BcP2

— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) 27 April 2018

Reaction to Stories
It appears that users will be able to react on Instagram stories in real time using emojis seen in the picture. It will similar to how you use stickers in iMessage.

NEW Instagram is testing a 'Slow-Mo' feature for Stories

h/t @wongmjane pic.twitter.com/Pmr6RyETbt

— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) 27 April 2018

Slow-mo recording mode
Slow-mo video mode is one of the very useful features for vloggers, so the new feature would be a welcome change for users who don't want to rely on their phone's built-in slow-mo mode, or for users who don't have slow-mo feature on their phones.

NEW: Instagram is finally working on a mute button for profiles!

h/t @wongmjane pic.twitter.com/TLB4ON3AQ6

— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) 27 April 2018

Mute button
This feature would be similar to Twitter's mute button which silences specific people from your feed but doesn't unfollow them. You can still go to their profile and check for updates if you wish.

NEW? Instagram Stories Archive - Calendar view

h/t @wongmjane pic.twitter.com/D8AoD7UWhJ

— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) 27 April 2018

Stories' calender archive moderate
Instagram archive show users a grid of their old stories. It's not easy to navigate and the new calender view will definitely make it easy.

Earlier, there were also reports that the platform is working to redesign the Explore tab that would enable users to browse through the pictures easily.

The new layout will organize and group pictures and videos based on the category such as photography, people, or sports. The genres are shown in a carousel layout placed on top of the screen, allowing users to cycle through them and easily and tap on the ones they would like to see more of.

How to save Instagram photos without taking screenshots - GIZBOT

Below the carousel is what appears to be a list of related hashtags. The content in every category will depend on the number of hashtags used in the image or video. But according to the report, some of the content gets grouped even when there aren't any hashtags, which also means that Instagram must be using some sort of image recognition similar to what we've seen on Google Photos. TechPP also states that the new Explore tab appeared after installing version 42.0.0.8.95 from APK Mirror.