Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Instagram Unveils Hyperlapse, a Stand-Alone App for Time-Lapse Videos

Instagram launched its second stand-alone app since joining Facebook.

Instagram

Instagram unveiled Hyperlapse on Tuesday, a new stand-alone app for filming time-lapse videos on your smartphone. It’s the second stand-alone app to come from Instagram since Facebook bought the service for $1 billion back in 2012. (Instagram unveiled a one-touch messaging app called Bolt to select countries — but not the U.S. — a few weeks back.)

With Hyperlapse, users can record up to 45 minutes of video through the app and then speed that video up as much as 12 times the initial speed.

Unlike Instagram or Facebook, Hyperlapse does not require users to create a username or password. Once a video is rendered at the speed you like, you can simply save it to your camera roll and save it or share it however you prefer.

Of course, Instagram hopes you share it to your Instagram or Facebook account, but it’s not required. Users can choose to log in to Hyperlapse with their Instagram account if they’d like one-touch sharing to their Instagram account, but again, this is not a requirement.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said earlier this year that the company would be releasing a number of stand-alone apps in 2014, so these types of new products aren’t a total surprise. Previous stand-alone apps like Slingshot (similar to Snapchat) and Paper, a news reader app, were created by a teams of employees within Facebook known as Facebook Creative Labs.

Hyperlapse, however, was not a Creative Labs project, according to a spokesperson. Instead, it was built by the Instagram team. It wasn’t rolled into the existing Instagram app so that users would have more freedom to create and save longer videos, according to this spokesperson. Instagram videos are limited to 15 seconds, but Hyperlapse supports videos nearly four minutes in length.

It may soon have competition, though. Apple’s upcoming iOS 8 operating system includes a built-in time lapse mode for the camera, meaning users will be able to capture the same type of videos without the need for another app. You won’t be able to share to Facebook or Instagram with one touch, but (supposedly) that’s not Instagram’s intention with Hyperlapse anyway.

Hyperlapse is only available for iOS. The team is not working on an Android version yet, as Android doesn’t have the appropriate camera technology needed, according to a spokesperson. The app is available in the App Store here.

Correction: Hyperlapse is Instagram’s second standalone app release since joining Facebook. The first paragraph has been corrected to reflect this. Update: Includes section on iOS 8 and upcoming time lapse technology.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

More in Technology

Technology
The case for AI realismThe case for AI realism
Technology

AI isn’t going to be the end of the world — no matter what this documentary sometimes argues.

By Shayna Korol
Politics
OpenAI’s oddly socialist, wildly hypocritical new economic agendaOpenAI’s oddly socialist, wildly hypocritical new economic agenda
Politics

The AI company released a set of highly progressive policy ideas. There’s just one small problem.

By Eric Levitz
Future Perfect
Human bodies aren’t ready to travel to Mars. Space medicine can help.Human bodies aren’t ready to travel to Mars. Space medicine can help.
Future Perfect

Protecting astronauts in space — and maybe even Mars — will help transform health on Earth.

By Shayna Korol
Podcasts
The importance of space toilets, explainedThe importance of space toilets, explained
Podcast
Podcasts

Houston, we have a plumbing problem.

By Peter Balonon-Rosen and Sean Rameswaram
Technology
What happened when they installed ChatGPT on a nuclear supercomputerWhat happened when they installed ChatGPT on a nuclear supercomputer
Technology

How they’re using AI at the lab that created the atom bomb.

By Joshua Keating
Future Perfect
Humanity’s return to the moon is a deeply religious missionHumanity’s return to the moon is a deeply religious mission
Future Perfect

Space barons like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk don’t seem religious. But their quest to colonize outer space is.

By Sigal Samuel