Snapchat built its media empire on being an app that allows users to send photos and videos that disappear after a few seconds, but now the company has given users the choice to ditch that for an “infinite” option.
An update to the app Tuesday brought a series of changes including a redesigned toolbar, an “infinite” option on the timer, a loop option for videos and a “magic eraser” feature. The additions come right as competition with Instagram and the app’s “stories” feature is heating up.
Read: How To Make A Custom Snapchat Filter
The redesigned and reorganized toolbar:
The update reorganized the toolbar in the app. Now when you take a photo you’ll notice the editing options are along the right side of your screen vertically displayed. The top button is the “T” and still is the button you use to add text to your snap. Below that is the pen icon where you’ll find the option to draw on your snap and quickly find emojis. After that is the stickers icon, which is where you’ll find your stickers and Bitmoji if you have one. Below that is a little scissors tool for creating a sticker out of something you took a photo of and for using the new “magic eraser.” And lastly you have the timer.
The new toolbar is along the right side of the screen.
How to send an infinite Snap:
Setting a Snap to appear infinitely works the same way as setting a snap to appear for anywhere from 1 second to 10 seconds. The difference is where you’ll find the option to set the time for the Snap. The new update rearranged the toolbar to fit more tools and make it easier to use with one hand. Now you’ll find the clock that represents the time a Snapchat is set for along the right side of your screen once you take the Snap. When you send a photo with infinite time, represented by the symbol for infinity and the words “no limit,” whoever receives it won’t have access to it forever. Once the recipient opens it, it will remain available until clicking out. Once the recipient clicks out of the photo, it will disappear as usual.
There is now an infinite time option on Snapchat.
You can also use the timer to set options on videos now either to “play once” or “loop.” If you choose loop, you’ll essentially get a looping video, a lot like Instagram’s Boomerang feature. However, the Snapchat looped videos have sound and can be longer than a Boomerang usually is. To change whether your video will play as a loop or just once, select the clock icon and you’ll see the options appear to the left.
Snapchat now lets users set videos to play on a loop or only once.
How to use the “magic eraser” on Snapchat:
The final big update Snapchat added to the app was the “magic eraser” tool. If you’ve ever used Photoshop, this tool will seem like an automated healing brush or band-aid tool. You can access it by selecting the scissors icon and then the icon with stars on it. To use this tool, swipe over the area on your Snap you want to “erase.” The app will then replace whatever is in the photo where you swiped and with the colors in the photo directly next to where you swiped. If used extremely delicately it can completely remove buildings or people from your photo. One Snapchat user posted a photo to Twitter in which the eraser tool was used to remove the Empire State Building from the Manhattan skyline.
In a statement about the updates Snapchat said they “allow us to continue evolving the Snapchat service and provide a foundation for introducing even more creative tools for making fun Snaps!”