Facebook has today started rolling out Apple’s Live Photo functionality to its mobile app. Live Photos were announced at Apple’s September iPhone 6s/6s Plus launch, with Facebook named as one of the companies promising future support.
Live Photos are touted by Apple as the logical iteration of static photos. Live Photos capture 1.5 seconds of motion and sound either side of the photo, and are part of the default camera setup for the latest iPhones.
Not everyone will be able to see Live Photos to begin with, as Facebook will gradually roll this feature out over the coming months. Users with devices as old as the iPhone 4S will be able to see Live Photos via Facebook, while only the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus are currently able to capture them. Facebook has only announced support in its iOS app, and hasn"t mentioned plans for other platforms at this time.
Uploading Live Photos follows the same process as uploading a standard photo. However, before uploading the photo, a Live Photo will display a ‘Live’ button on the image. Tapping this button will upload the Live version of this photo, otherwise the still photo will be used.
Live Photos will appear as static images in the Facebook feed, with a series of circles in the bottom corner. When a photo appears with the Live Photo icon, it can be held down and the photo will play out.
Live Photos haven’t seen major support in apps thus far, with Tumblr being the only other major app to support the feature. However, now with Facebook’s backing, we may see further apps adopting the technology.
Source: TechCrunch via MacRumors