Instagram just rolled out its new app - Layout - to make it easier for you to create collages. While we were trying to understand what purpose could this separate app serve other than merely creating very basic collages, we played around with it for a while and here's what we think of the latest offering from the popular photo-editing and sharing service.
User interface/design
The app uses images in your phone to help you create collages. Once you open the app, it asks you to allow access to your phone library. It is here that the otherwise neat interface begins to appear cluttered. The upper half of the screen is taken up by the collage layout option while the lower half contains Photobooth and the photo gallery.
Visually it is quite confusing because you can't distinguish between the layout type which keeps on changing based on the number of images you choose.
Features
You can insert up to a maximum of nine images for any collage (that's not much). The only feature that could be given slight attention is the images section which automatically sorts images into three sections - All, Faces, and Recents. The Faces tab sorts all your images with faces in it. Once you are done choosing the images and layout, it creates a collage and lets you adjust the image size and position within that layout.
The Photobooth option allows you to capture an image using the phone's front camera with an additional feature to click up to a total of four shots at one go.
While there is an option to adjust the size and position of the images within the collage, there is no option to edit those images within the app. Coming from a photo-editing app like Instagram, Layout dashed my hopes and made me love the all-inclusive Fotor app even more.
Other features
I am trying hard to find out if there is any other feature in Layout. You can flip or mirror the images in the collage. Oh, wait! there is also this obvious option of uploading the collage on Instagram or Facebook.
Verdict
Honestly, I see no point of letting this app exist even in the app stores because it serves no purpose other than letting you create collages - a feature which even many default mobile camera apps allow these days. It doesn't even allow for image editing. Makes me wonder why Instagram bothered to even create this.
Rating: 1.5/5
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