Friday 03 / May / 2024
Meta's Threads app took the Internet by storm practically the second after its launch announcement. With a vast number of sign-ups over a short period of time, Threads was acclaimed as a potentially solid competitor to Twitter. But now that users have had an adequate amount of time to spend with Threads, how do they feel about Meta's latest venture?
Here’s what our readers have to say:
‘I see it as a competition for Twitter and also a data mine for Facebook,’ Hatem Sadek, GP, explains, ‘what's more, it is connected to your Instagram, so if you want to delete it you also delete your Instagram. Personally I am not inclined to install the app’.
Safiya Ambusaidu, Media and Communications Specialist stated: ‘I think it’s hard to confirm that the success of Threads is sustainable. It’s very obvious that the launch was rushed to get benefit out of Twitter’s latest announcement of limited access to tweets.
Threads still lacks many features including a customized following page, access to liked threads and interactive image features ( e.g. zoom in/out). As a user, it’s very annoying to me to use a text-based platform as an image platform, which is basically how most people are using Threads. I thought I could finally communicate with my crowd on Instagram without images, but it seems to be that wasn’t the case.’
Ammar Mahfoodh Salim Al Naaimi, Communications Specialist and Author, shares his thoughts, explaining ‘Threads is a fun but buggy mess, and I enjoy playing around with it. I have a relatively old Android-system phone so the app crashes whenever I type too fast or @ someone, and it does have some real interface issues especially when I try to type in Arabic. However, that's legitimately part of the fun for me. It makes me feel like an early tech user, flying off into the future! My favorite part of Threads is seeing a different side of the people with whom I've already been interacting with on Instagram. Many of them used to only post stories and images in IG, so Threads gives me a way to more easily interact with them on a forum-esque background. Quite simply, Threads is deepening my connection to people I already know. Also, I just found out about the Threads-to-IG story integration. I LOVE THAT.
So, how does threads affect my social media use as a content creator?
As a writer, I am looking forward to creating stories which function best on threads. Perhaps they can pose questions at strategic points, like a ‘choose your own adventure novel,’ and pick up over time. Then once done, you throw the first line of the story on an IG story, integrating your story with photo and video material. It's all experimental at the moment.’
Bassem Zein, Media and Communications advisor at The StoryTeller and TECH writer at Al Safa news, shares: 'I've been actively monitoring the app for quite some time because usually I write an article every week on technology and innovation, honestly speaking I didn't want to promote it because it's just like another social media platform and I'm one of the people who talk about the dangers and its negative impact on society, humanity, children and so on. I know alot about it but I'm not using it and I'm not encouraging my children to use it. We have enough social media platforms, so I'm not going to really participate in growing the ego of Mr Zuckerberg or Elon Musk or so on.'
So, is the new App keeping it together, or should we cut this thread? Share your thoughts in the comments on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.
