It would not be a hyperbole if we say that Snapchat has brought a revolution in the world of mobile messaging apps. Before the inception of Snapchat, no one even dreamt of such a unique way to communicate with friends. The concept that Snapchat brings that is self-destructing images and videos makes it completely different from regular messaging and social networking apps. And this is the reason that since its year of inception i.e. 2011 Snapshot is now one of the most popular app with more than 180 million daily active users. Also, as per reports, the fan following is not limited to teenagers, people of every age are using Snapchat to connect and share their emotions with their loved ones.
So, if you are the one that is new to Snapchat or finding it difficult to know that how does Snapchat work (which is quite obvious as it regularly upgrades itself with new features) then this article will guide you through. So, no matter whether you are a technically a sound person or a novice user this article will help you in using Snapchat like a real champ.
What is Snapchat?
Yes, beginning with a simple question, what is Snapchat? Snapchat, as we all know, is an app developed by Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown for connecting friends. The app is available for both Android as well as iOS users with a principal concept that anything you send via Snapchat then whether it is a text, image or video it will automatically vanish after a short span of time. This unique concept makes more and more users attracted towards it as they were fearless about their texts, images or videos they share with each other about being stored or saved.
Snapchat began its journey as an app that is primarily focused on sharing photos on person to person basis. But with the passage of time now the app is modified a lot and it can now be used for various other stuff, such as creating avatars, broadcasting photos and videos as a story, video chatting and much more. Talking about the recently added features such as Memories that now allow Snapchat users to save all their weirdo snaps on their device along with saving on servers of Snapchat, and filters along with AR lenses that you can add to your snaps.
All these and many more latest features are still putting Snapchat ahead in the race of messaging and social networking apps. Now before moving ahead let’s first understand all those jargons that are associated to Snapchat as without understanding them it is really tough to get an insight of how does Snapchat works.
Common Terms Associated with Snapchat:
Snap: Any video or photo that you click or receive on the app is referred as a snap. A video snap has a life of mere 10 seconds unless you broadcast them as a story that increases their lifespan to 24 hours. Also, any unopened snap will be automatically deleted after 30 days.
Snapcode: Snapcode makes it really easy to connect with friends as a person that wishes to add with you a friend has to scan your snapcode with his phone’s camera. The code can be found in profile screen that can be accessed by tapping the Snapchat icon.
Story: A streak of all your snaps that you wish to share with your friends. Unlike your video snap, a story is available to all your friend for 24 hours after which it will automatically become inaccessible for them.
Score: This provides an indication that much active you are on Snapchat. As per Snapchat, the score is a combination of the total number of snaps sent/received, stories shared and some other factors.
Snapstreak: If you and your friend are sending snaps to each other within a time frame of 24 hours for more than a day that you both are on a streak. The longer you both keep on sharing streak the longer that streak will be maintained. You can find a fire emoji in front of your friend’s name along with the count indicating the days you were maintaining the streak.
Filter: If you wish to add some spark to your snaps use filters. To add a filter to your snap just swipe left or right after taking a snap and choose the filter that suits the best. You can choose a filter from the many available filters like color, weather, current time etc. And what more you can add more than one filter to a snap.
Lenses: If you feel that filters are unable to provide the spark that intended, then you must choose lenses. Lenses powered by augmented reality provide a scintillating effect to your snaps. To use lenses just long press on your image on the mobile screen in camera view. Now various lenses will appear in a row.
Chat: Chat, as the name specifies helps you to send a text message to your friends on Snapchat. To start the chat just swipe from left to right and select the friend with whom you wish to start the conversation.
Snapcash: Snapchat in collaboration with Square Cash allows its users to send money to their friends right from the app. Snapcash can be accessed in the chat section.
Memories: This latest integration to Snapchat app allows its users to save the snaps in their local storage i.e. on the memory of their device. Just after taking a snap you will find an option to save it as Memories i.e. on the internal storage of your device.
Snap Map: Snap Map features allows the users to share their locations with friends. Also, you can locate the current location of your friend on Snap Map. To use Snap Map just pinch your fingers (zooming in) on the camera screen, and this will open Snap Map. If it’s the first time then you have to allow Snapchat to access the location services of your device. Also, please note that it is completely the discretion of the user to share his location on Snap map or not.
Also Read: How To Screenshot On Snapchat Without Them Knowing
How Does Snapchat Work:
Setting up of Snapchat account is really easy. All you need to do is to download the app from Play Store or App Store and create an account by providing your basic credentials like name and phone number. Now coming on how to get started with Snapchat, we would like to tell you that Snapchat is considered as an app that regularly updates its features. Therefore, in this article, we will discuss the working of its some general features.
Taking a Snap:
This is one of the easiest things that you can do with Snapchat. All you need to do is, open the app and tap on the capture button to take a snap. If we wish to record a video then hold the capture button to capture a video of 10 seconds long. But wait Snapchat is not all about taking the snaps, after taking the snap give it a new look with various available Snapchat filters that can add time, location, weather info or change the color of your snap.
Moreover, if you are a creative person that wish to give his snaps a complete makeover then just long press on your image on the device screen and use Snapchat lenses. These lenses powered by augmented reality have the power to completely change your snaps. Now once after taking a snap, it’s all up to that whether you wish to share this snap with a single friend or broadcast it as a story. Also, now with the latest addition of Memories, you can now even save all these snaps to the internal storage of your device.
Search Other Snapchat Users:
Life is nothing without friends, and same is Snapchat. You can search for all your friends that are on Snapchat by tapping on Search located at the top left corner of the camera screen. Now start typing that you wish to find or cruise through the suggestions put by Snapchat. You can also search for the event and concert including your friends.
Chat with Friends:
Snapchat is not all about sending self-destructing snaps, you can also chat with your friend or with a group. You can access Chat screen via two methods, one by tapping on chat icon located at the bottom left corner of camera view and other is by swiping from left to right.
Once you are in chat screen select tap on your friend’s name and start chatting with him. Moreover, along with sending the texts to your friend in chat you can send them the stories, memories, snap, stickers or even cash. You can also place an audio or video call via Chat section. Features like Snapcode, Snapstreak can be located in the Chat section by long pressing on your friend’s name. And the best part of chats is that they automatically get deleted once you and the other person leave the chat.
Share your Stories:
Stories in Snapchat are the best way to express oneself as they have a lifespan of 24 hours. To access Stories, swipe from right to left in the camera screen or tap on the Stories icon in the bottom right corner. Here you will find all the stories that are shared by your friends, with recent stories on the top followed by already viewed stories at the last. To add your own story, take your snap and then either tap on Story icon or tap on the Send To arrow. The first-time users have to confirm by tapping on Add.
Discover Stories of Outside World:
If you wish to keep yourself updated with all the stuff that is happening all around the world then switch to Discover screen, that can be accessed by swiping right to left on the camera screen.
Although the user has not much of the control of the feed that is served by Snapchat still he can always subscribe to the feed that interests him. Also, you can share the stories from the Discover screen with your friends.
Save All Your Snaps Locally:
You can save all your snaps locally on your device in Memories. Also, you can access all the media stored on your device via Memories.
You can access Memories by tapping on the cards icon just below the capture button. Now here you can find all your saved snaps and local media of your device. You can perform various operation on Memories like sharing searching etc.
Your Profile:
The Profile section in Snapchat allows you access your Account and its settings. To access profile screen, tap on the ghost or Bitmoji icon at the top left corner of the screen. Using the Profile screen, you can add friends, create and share stories.
You can also get the Snapcode, Snapstreak, trophies, and other settings right on your Profile screen. So, whether you have to change your Bitmoji character or username or password it’s the profile screen that you have to visit.
Get or Share your Location Over Snap Map:
You can get the exact location of your friend on Snapchat or can share yours on Snap Map. To get started just pinch in or zoom in on the camera screen. If it’s the first time then Snapchat will ask you for the access to location services on your device.
Once granted any of your friends can locate you and get the current location of yours on Snap Map. However please note that to update your location you must open Snapchat. Now, anytime you do not wish to share your current location with everyone then you can choose the specific people with whom you to wish your location. Also, if you do not wish to share your location with anyone then use Ghost Mode.
That’s it guys! Hope now you have a clear insight that how Snapchat works. Snapchat frequently changes its features and settings therefore to be a pro on Snapchat you should need to continue using the app and obviously subscribe our blog as it will keep you updated with all latest trending technology from all over the world.