Snapchat looses its streak
Toreros might be familiar with the red dot that pops up on the iPhone application store, indicating that it is a time to update the apps on their phone. This notification can be seen more as a nuisance than a friendly reminder.
Last week, some University of San Diego students updated to the new Snapchat, causing their ‘snapping’ habits to change. Tech companies pride themselves on being ahead of the curve and giving consumers innovative features. But this time, Snapchat might have made a mistake.
The update included a major redesign for the social media platform. According to Snapchat, the goal was to make it easier to stay in touch with friends, discover new content, and use the app in general. Instead of seeing friends’ stories when a user swipes right, users are greeted with paid advertisements and content. When users swipe left, friends’ temporary stories are intermixed with direct messages from other friends.
Junior Michael Kneifel has been an avid user of Snapchat over the years for its creative nature.
“It allows me to express parts of my life without sharing that information with everybody like on Instagram or Facebook,” Kneifel said. “For me, Snapchat is more of a select avenue in that I only add people who I personally know, so I feel more comfortable posting something that’s a little more out there, so to say.”
For someone who was very familiar with the layout of the app, Kneifel did not like the changes of the new update.
“My experiences with the new Snapchat have been awful,” Kneifel said. “It is a struggle to navigate through particular stories now because I struggle with change like this. I wouldn’t say that I use it any less, I just hate it. Maybe in time my usage will change if Snapchat doesn’t.”
Kneifel commented on one of the most significant changes made by the Snapchat update and how it is not relevant to him.
“For someone who doesn’t use the news aspect of Snapchat, I really hate how emphasized that is now,” Kneifel said. “It feels like they are selling their soul to advertising, because it was great the way it was. So why change other than money reasons? That’s the only logical reason.”
Junior Kate Peterson mainly uses Snapchat to connect with friends in a fun way and share snapshot moments.
“The update hasn’t made me use the app less; it has just changed the way I use it,” Peterson said. “I’ve found myself going on the app but not looking at everyone’s stories as much due to the layout of the new system. It’s too confusing and hard to maneuver.”
Peterson noted that the change was too much, too quickly, and that Snapchat should have eased users into the transition.
“I’m not sure why they even felt the need to make such a drastic change in the first place,” Peterson said. “I was so confused on how to use it when I first saw it. Blending who you send snaps to and the story part of it seems so odd to me.”
On the contrary, professor Bradley Bond enjoys the new features of the update, especially what the new chat page looks like.
“I don’t mind that the friends’ personal snaps are now on the same list as the friends’ snap stories,” Bond said. “I think it makes it more fluid in terms of checking up with friends. You can view snaps sent to you and snaps from stories in one space.”
The new Snapchat update has changed the Snapchat habits of junior Emily Patterson only minimally.
“I use the updated Snapchat app about as much as I did pre-update,” Patterson said. “However, I’ve noticed that I spend a lot less time tapping through people’s stories. I also tend to open Instagram now before I open Snapchat, but other than that it’s pretty much the same.”
Patterson mentioned that not everything about the update is bad.
“I think people are overlooking some of the other new features that Snapchat brought,” Patterson said. “I really like all of the new fonts you can use on your stories. It allows for more creativity.”
While some people contend that Snapchat only had advertisers in mind while designing the update — Patterson begs to differ.
“The update might have been a result of the popularity seen with Instagram stories and the gradual shift of social media users from Snapchat to Instagram,” Patterson. “I think they also had users in mind with the aspect of the update that sorted out the celebrity and influencer stories from the people you actually know.”
Some Toreros might not like change — especially when it comes to social media alterations like the Snapchat update. While Snapchat’s intentions were probably for the best, their message was lost in translation as Toreros started updating their app. If only there were a filter to best express Toreros’ feedback for the update.