Not everyone has the latest flagship smartphone, and even those of us who sometimes run out of space or prefer to use fewer resource-consuming apps when possible. That’s where the Lite variants of heavy and bloated apps come in, like Instagram Lite. Facebook has been testing the big 2MB app in select markets for a long time and now has finally officially launched it in 170 countries around the world.
If Instagram Lite looks familiar to you, it’s because the app has been around for a long time. Facebook launched Instagram Lite in Mexico in 2018, only to discontinue the app in May 2020 with the goal of rewriting it from scratch. A visually identical new version then appeared for selected markets in September 2020, and it appears that Instagram is now happy enough with the experience to launch it more widely.
In its announcement, Instagram shared that it worked with an international team from New York and Tel Aviv to create the redesigned app. As the team was unable to go to testing and adjustment sites due to the pandemic, the company distributed older and weaker phones to its team and simulated weak and irregular connections to find out how to improve the experience. In the process, the application also gained a dark mode while purposely never receiving more complicated and data-intensive features, such as AR filters, in-app animations and transitions. However, Lite users can still enjoy GIFs and stickers.
Facebook did not specify which 170 countries are receiving the redesigned application, but we assume that the company has focused on those with slower internet speeds and more rural areas. We can confirm that Instagram Lite is not yet available in countries like the US, UK and Germany at the moment. In any case, Instagram wants to launch the experience “globally soon”, and you can always download APK Mirror directly to bypass regional restrictions.
