Instagram Stories can finally reach into the past. On Tuesday, November 7, Instagram expanded Stories to allow users to add photos that are more than 24 hours old. The new feature comes after Instagram also began testing a new feature earlier this week that would allow users to view bookmarked photos on a desktop browser.
Since Stories are designed to be a glimpse into your day, Instagram has traditionally only allowed users to upload photos that were taken within the previous 24 hours. That kept Stories in the here and now, but it also kept users from sharing a #FlashbackFriday or #ThrowbackThursday inside of the Snapchat-cloned format.
With the latest change to Stories, users can upload photos or videos that are more than 24 hours old — but there’s a catch. When the shot is more than 24 hours old, Instagram will automatically add a date sticker so viewers can easily identify an older image. Instagram says, however, that users can remove the sticker, along with resizing and rotating to make the date stamp fit better with the image.
The official Stories update comes after the social media platform began testing the ability to view saved posts on a desktop browser earlier this week. Instagram’s desktop version is notoriously less featured than the mobile app in an effort to keep the instant nature of the platform intact, though Instagram is slowly bringing more features to desktop viewers.
While the new feature is only a test, some users will be able to navigate to their profile on a desktop computer and find a “saved” tab next to a posts tab featuring the usual list of shared images. Like saved posts on mobile, only the user who saved the image can see those saved shots.
Instagram launched the ability to bookmark a post last year, allowing users to revisit a favorite image. The platform later expanded the feature with more Pinterest-like organization options with saved photos organized into albums for easier access later on. The tool allows Instagrammers to remember that dish they wanted to try or that place they wanted to add to their travel bucket list without downloading someone else’s image.
