Snapchat makes it easier to chat and use Lenses with friends

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Image: Mashable

By Victoria Ho2015-11-20 06:50:11 UTC

Snapchat's latest update has made it a lot easier for people to engage with friends while watching their stories, and brings the "Lenses" feature to the rear camera.

The update, released Thursday for iOS and Android, puts a little "chat" prompt at the bottom of the screen if you're watching a friend's story.

Swipe up on the screen, and the keyboard appears so you can type a short text message to your friend. This will be sent to them directly, along with the snap you were watching for context.

Image: Mashable composite

The feature makes it a lot easier to engage one-on-one with a friend, akin to leaving a comment on someone's Instagram post.

(If the person isn't following you back, you don't see the prompt to chat, so this has the added effect of allowing you to track who has unfollowed you.)

"Lenses" were first introduced in September, and allowed people to overlay animations on their faces in selfie mode.

With this update, Snapchat has extended Lenses to the rear camera. Activate the Lenses while filming someone by holding a finger over their face. If the app recognizes a face, you'll see a grid displayed over it, and an array of Lenses at the bottom to swipe over.

Snapchat has also added small timestamps to the right of your list of stories to watch, indicating how recently a story was last updated. It's a small feature, but it beats guessing how old a story is by eyeballing the shrinking pie chart graphic on each one.

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Topics: Apps and Software, Mobile, Social Media
Source: Snapchat makes it easier to chat and use Lenses with friends