Vine for iOS Gets Huge Update: Channels, ‘On the Rise’ and Revining Included

Vine is, for the lack of a better cliche, taking off. It’s growing exponentially faster than Instagram, with the latter updated recently to include similar Vine-like short-clip video sharing. That move was most likely defensive, as the concept behind Vine has blown up to start new forms of comedy, moment sharing, and art. All of this said, until yesterday, its app was in desperate need of attention; it needed features that we will likely see to be the cause for even more exponential growth.

Of the features released in yesterday’s Vine 1.3 update are Channels, which allow users to browse and submit posts to 15 new sections – from “Comedy,” to “Cats.” There’s also a new “On the Rise” section that will allow users to “discover new and interesting ‘Viners’ right from your Explore screen.” Apparently, a Viner is now a thing.

One of the most important features of this update will likely prove to be revining. Now, like many social networks such as Tumblr and Twitter, users can repost others videos to their own feeds–allowing users to show their friends what they think is a great Vine and opening up the opportunity for Vines to more easily go viral. This feature sets Vine apart from Facebook-owned Instagram, and makes Vine more like its parent–Twitter.

Lastly, there are new capture tools which allow users to “shoot with style” using new “focus, grid, and ghost tools.” And, as I personally have been waiting for, you can now protect your Vine account a la Instagram or Twitter, only allowing followers which you have approved to view and share your Vines. See the full changelog below.

This update to Vine is our biggest yet!

CHANNELS
Browse or submit your posts to 15 new channels — from Comedy, Art & Experimental, to Cats, and more

ON THE RISE
Discover new and interesting Viners right from your Explore screen

REVINING
Share your favorite posts with all your followers on Vine in one tap

NEW CAPTURE TOOLS
Shoot with style using the new focus, grid, and ghost tools

PROTECTED ACCOUNTS
Allow only people you approve to follow you and view your posts

Also in this update:

• Fixed an issue that caused the camera to focus unnecessarily while recording
• Improved cache control and less disk space usage
• Faster search for hashtags and people you mention frequently
• Crash fixes and other miscellaneous improvements

Thank you for using Vine! Please reach out to feedback@vineapp.com or @vineapp with any issues or suggestions. And look for more updates soon! It’s going to be a great summer.

Categories: iOS , Vine