Snap Inc. seems to be on a tear, and it’s betting on new camera tech to up the ante further still: The social media platform just imbued its Snapchat camera with a 3-D mode for even more immersive images.
The iOS app update, which rolls out on Tuesday, allows more depth and lets iPhone users snap and share photos that move as the viewer’s phone moves. Snap first dabbled with 3-D visuals in its latest smart glasses. Spectacles featured a second camera, which allows the device to sense depth.
The experience may feel familiar to Facebook users who’ve posted or seen 3-D images in their feeds. In Snapchat’s case, users also get special 3-D effects, filters and lenses, and they can save the images to their Photos app.
The iOS app update, which rolls out on Tuesday, allows more depth and lets iPhone users snap and share photos that move as the viewer’s phone moves. Snap first dabbled with 3-D visuals in its latest smart glasses. Spectacles featured a second camera, which allows the device to sense depth.
The experience may feel familiar to Facebook users who’ve posted or seen 3-D images in their feeds. In Snapchat’s case, users also get special 3-D effects, filters and lenses, and they can save the images to their Photos app.
While any mobile device can view the pics, only the most recent devices get the new camera mode, and only iPhones at that. By focusing on the iPhone X and newer phones, Snap effectively retired Apple’s older hardware — which is perhaps a natural move, as the latter continues to advance its camera technology.
And it looks like consumers are responding.
Based on iPhone 11 pre-orders since Sept. 13, interest in the three-camera, premium versions has edged