Sliding into DMs just got better with Instagram’s latest update

If you often use Instagram’s direct messaging (DMs) feature to connect with friends and family and share plenty of memes and reels, that experience might be about to improve significantly.

In a recent blog post, Instagram announced a slew of new features coming to DMs. One of the most significant additions is a new message translation feature, which means you can now instantly translate messages sent to you in a different language. To translate a message in your Instagram DMs, just hold down on it and tap the Translate option. The feature supports 99 languages and aims to help erase language barriers on the platform.

“People use Instagram DMs all over the world to stay connected with friends and family daily,” Instagram said in a blog post. “Today, we’re introducing message translations, new ways to share music, scheduled messages, pinned content and group chat QR codes to make it even easier to connect with people over DMs.”

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You can now schedule messages on Instagram

It’s also easier to share music, pin memes, and invite people to group chats

Meta

Alongside translation features, Instagram is rolling out a new option to schedule messages in its recent update. To schedule a DM, simply type the message and then long-press the send button. Users can set messages to be sent up to 29 days in advance. I can imagine using this feature to prepare a birthday message early or to send a funny meme to my friend at a specific time — because why not?

Speaking of memes, there’s also a new way to pin messages at the top of your Instagram DM chats. Just hold down a message and tap “Pin.” It will then be displayed at the top of the chat, making it easier for your individual DM or group chat to see. You can pin up to three messages at once, which means you can pin the top three memes of the week in your group chats now.

Meta

Instagram has simplified sharing music in DMs as well, allowing users to listen to clips without leaving the app. To send music in a chat, open the sticker tray, tap the Music icon, and select a track. It’s important to note that this feature is restricted to Instagram’s audio library and does not integrate with Apple Music or Spotify, and you can only send a 30-second clip.

Finally, Instagram is easing the process of inviting people to group chats by introducing QR code invites. You can now generate a QR code for your group chat to share with others for instant access. This will simplify inviting many people to a single chat, as they can just scan the QR code with their phone to join instead of being added manually.

Meta has been updating Instagram a lot recently. Just last week, it began testing a new dislike feature for comments. When the US TikTok ban was looming, the platform also extended the length of Reels to up to three minutes. In a more controversial move, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Threads, Facebook, and Instagram would be getting rid of third-party fact-checking in favor of a community notes system similar to X.

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