Zuckerberg releases 'Twitter killer': how Meta's Threads app works

Meta has launched its new social network Threads. Some argue that she will become a "murderer" of Twitter. Kari Paul tested the social network a few minutes after its launch. What is it, the publication said The Guardian. Next - from the first person.

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The Guardian tested the new social network just minutes after its highly publicized launch. It will create serious problems for Twitter, which is owned by Elon Musk.

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The debut featured an easy to use, intuitive user interface that seamlessly integrates with Instagram.

I started by searching for Threads in the App Store, scrolled through a few small apps unfortunately also named Threads, and clicked on Threads by Meta. The app asked me to connect my Instagram account to sign up, and I had to switch from my personal page to my professional page. And voila - I became a Threads user.

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Threads can only be accessed by integrating an existing Instagram username to sign up - meaning if you don't have an account, you don't have one to log into Threads either.

How the social network works

Threads offers an eerily Twitter-like microblogging experience.

When opened, the Like, Repost, Reply, or Quote buttons for the thread are displayed, as well as counters showing the number of likes and replies to the post. Posts are limited to 500 characters, exceeding their Twitter threshold of 280. They can include links, photos, and videos up to five minutes long.

The feed is slick and easy to read, although it's mostly filled with posts from accounts I haven't followed yet - perhaps this problem will resolve itself when there are more people.

Unlike Twitter, Threads does not appear to use hashtags and does not have a feature that allows users to search for specific text or phrases. They can share a maximum of 10 photos per post - the same limit exists on Instagram (as opposed to the limit of four on Twitter).

The app is available on the App Store for Apple and Google Play for Android in over 100 countries including the UK, Australia, Canada and Japan.

Some followers raised the potential culture clash between Instagram and a service like Twitter. Say, how will our curated, photo-based life conflict with the freewheeling, meme-overloaded, and often unbalanced world of Twitter? While it's strange, unfamiliar - and quite fun.

So Threads is better than Twitter

Threads from Meta is really similar to using Twitter. The functions - likes, retweets, subscriptions - are almost identical to its predecessor. After Musk acquired Twitter, the service became clunkier and less user-friendly. Threads in this regard is a breath of fresh air, allowing you to smoothly see and interact with content.

This is the user experience that Meta is betting on and openly states that the chaos on Twitter has made room for a new product in the market. In an interview with The Verge, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri said the company believes Twitter's recent "unpredictability" has created a need for a new platform.

“Obviously Twitter was a pioneer in this space,” Mosseri noted. “But with everything going on, we thought there was an opportunity to create something open - something that would be good for the community that already uses Instagram.”

“I've worked extensively on privacy issues surrounding Meta, the company's shameless copying of competitors' apps, and the growing unchecked power of technology. It hurts to admit, but I enjoyed using Threads. I already use WhatsApp and Instagram on a daily basis, and I have a mostly dormant but still existing Facebook account. Do I really want to share my data with one of the biggest tech companies in the world?” he asked.

Should we be concerned about the growing power of Meta

Like many Meta-run products, Threads offers a disturbing experience of almost too good integration into existing products. Creating an account gives you the option to follow an existing circle from Instagram. Your followers will likely receive a notification that you've created an account and posted, encouraging them to do the same.

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And then there are long-standing privacy issues. Experts have raised a number of concerns about Threads as the tech giant seeks to bring even more users into its universe. Threads may collect a wide range of personal information, including health, finances, contacts, browsing and search history, location and purchase data, and "sensitive information" according to the App Store data privacy disclosure.

Due to these issues, Threads is not yet available in the European Union, which has strict data privacy regulations. The company is working to roll out the app to more countries, but cites regulatory uncertainty over its decision to delay the European launch.

Meta highlighted measures in the new app to keep users safe, including adhering to Instagram's community guidelines and providing tools to control who can mention or reply to users.

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