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A dedicated iPad app for Instagram can be expected later this year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports.
The development of the Instagram app for iPad is "full steam ahead," and barring any major hiccups, the app will release this year. Some Meta employees have already begun testing it on campus, the report adds.
Instagram debuted exclusively as an iOS app back in 2010 and was acquired by Meta (then Facebook) for $1 billion in 2012. Though Facebook has had an iPad app since 2011, the company hasn't managed to create one for Instagram.
The delay is majorly due to Meta's concerns around aspect ratio and image quality, Gurman says. Earlier, Instagram only had squarish images, and the company was unsure how they would appear on a large rectangular screen. Another concern was that, since most photos on the platform are taken with smartphones, the lower quality of some images would be more noticeable on an iPad than on a phone.
Instagram and smartphones have come a long way since these concerns first cropped up. The app now supports a wider range of aspect ratios, and smartphone cameras have improved significantly. "The dream of an iPad-optimized Instagram experience is finally close to becoming a reality," Gurman adds.
We first heard about the development of an Instagram app for iPad in April, when uncertainty around TikTok's future gathered momentum. Back then, The Information reported that Meta was working on a dedicated iPadOS app, but no potential release date was shared. That's changed now.
If the rumor holds up, Instagram will become the second major Meta app to launch on the iPad this year, following WhatsApp's debut last week. Threads is another app that's yet to receive a dedicated iPad app.