Instagram Lite unveiled in 170 countries

Social media giant Facebook on Wednesday announced that it will be rolling out a new “lite” version of Instagram in more than 170 countries in an effort to allow people with poor internet connectivity to access the app.

The new Instagram Lite will be available for Android users and provide many of the app’s current features in a way that requires less data, according to Facebook.

“Our teams build these lightweight versions of our apps for people with low connectivity or limited data plans because our basic premise is to leave no one behind,” Tzach Hadar, director of product management at Facebook Tel Aviv, one of the largest strategic engineering hubs for Facebook globally, said. “We wanted the Instagram experience to remain fast, high-quality and reliable, irrespective of the device, platform and network people are on.”

While features such as video filters are not part of the app due to data needs, Instagram Lite still includes dark mode, video and messaging features. The app also only requires 2 megabytes (MB) of space, compared to 30 MB that the Instagram app uses.

“It uses a lot less data so if you have a small data package you are not going to run out when you use the service. But the aim is for us to give the same breadth of experience you get on Instagram,” Hadar told Reuters.

India and parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America, which have older internet infrastructure, are among the places that will now have access to the Instagram Lite app, Reuters noted.

“These are the markets where there is the greatest need,” Hadar told the news outlet.

Facebook rolled out a similar lite version of the Facebook app in 2015.