Instagram will soon allow users to post 9:16 photos to their feed as part of a test the company plans to undertake “in a week or two.” The tidbit of news came out of Adam Mosseri’s weekly Q&A. “You can have tall videos, but you cannot have tall photos on Instagram,” the executive said. “So we thought maybe we should make sure that we treat both equally.”

While it’s already possible to share 9:16 photos through Instagram, you have to do so through the app’s Stories feature, meaning those images will disappear unless you save them as a Highlight. Currently, vertical photos you post to your feed will top out at 8:10 as long as you crop them correctly.

The timing of the test comes after Mosseri recently announced Instagram would walk back its unpopular full-screen interface. The company had been testing the redesign since mid-June, only to find that most people didn’t like it. “For the new feed designs, people are frustrated and the usage data isn’t great,” Mosseri told Platformer last week. Among the most vocal detractors of the redesign were photographers who found the new interface would overlay captions on top of their images, obscuring part of their work in the process. Instagram’s latest test would suggest the company still intends to move towards a more TikTok-like experience.

Instagram will soon allow users to post 9:16 photos to their feed as part of a test the company plans to undertake “in a week or two.” The tidbit of news came out of Adam Mosseri’s weekly Q&A. “You can have tall videos, but you cannot have tall photos on Instagram,” the executive said. “So we thought maybe we should make sure that we treat both equally.”While it’s already possible to share 9:16 photos through Instagram, you have to do so through the app’s Stories feature, meaning those images will disappear unless you save them as a Highlight. Currently, vertical photos you post to your feed will top out at 8:10 as long as you crop them correctly.It’s been a busy week at Instagram. I’m doing an AMA shortly – https://t.co/aM4JODvskg – like I do every Friday. Ask a question there and I’ll do my best to answer it.— Adam Mosseri (@mosseri) July 29, 2022The timing of the test comes after Mosseri recently announced Instagram would walk back its unpopular full-screen interface. The company had been testing the redesign since mid-June, only to find that most people didn’t like it. “For the new feed designs, people are frustrated and the usage data isn’t great,” Mosseri told Platformer last week. Among the most vocal detractors of the redesign were photographers who found the new interface would overlay captions on top of their images, obscuring part of their work in the process. Instagram’s latest test would suggest the company still intends to move towards a more TikTok-like experience.Read Moresite|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Igor BonifacicEngadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Five years after the Nintendo Switch’s release, Valve is finally adding Steam support for the console’s controllers. In an announcement spotted by PC Gamer, the company said the latest Steam beta adds Joy-Cons support. With the new software, it’s possible to use Joy-Cons either individually or as part of a matched pair for playing games.

If you want to try the feature out, you need to opt into the Steam beta. You can do that by navigating to Steam’s Settings menu and clicking “Change” under the “Beta participation” heading. Keep in mind you’ll either need a Bluetooth adapter or a motherboard with Bluetooth connectivity to use your Joy-Cons with Steam since it’s not possible to connect the controller to your PC through a cable like you would most gamepads.

Five years after the Nintendo Switch’s release, Valve is finally adding Steam support for the console’s controllers. In an announcement spotted by PC Gamer, the company said the latest Steam beta adds Joy-Cons support. With the new software, it’s possible to use Joy-Cons either individually or as part of a matched pair for playing games.If you want to try the feature out, you need to opt into the Steam beta. You can do that by navigating to Steam’s Settings menu and clicking “Change” under the “Beta participation” heading. Keep in mind you’ll either need a Bluetooth adapter or a motherboard with Bluetooth connectivity to use your Joy-Cons with Steam since it’s not possible to connect the controller to your PC through a cable like you would most gamepads.Read Moresite|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Igor BonifacicEngadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Fitbit is discontinuing support for PC and Mac syncing. On a support page spotted by 9to5Google, the company said it would remove the option for users to sync their trackers over its Connect app on October 13th, 2022. After that date, the only way to transfer your data off your Fitbit wearable will be through the Fitbit mobile app. While the shutdown is unlikely to affect many people, it does mean there will be one less way to transfer your favorite songs to your wearable for offline playback.

“On October 13, 2022, we’re removing the option to transfer playlists to your Fitbit watch through your computer,” the company says on a separate support page. “You can continue to play personal music stored on your watch and transfer music to your watch with the Deezer app and Pandora app.” 

In other words, if you use your Fitbit tracker or smartwatch for listening to music, you’ll need to depend on two music services that aren’t the most popular options out there. With the Pixel Watch set to offer deep Fitbit integration, that probably won’t be much of an issue with new Fitbit wearables, but it is something current users will have to consider.

Fitbit is discontinuing support for PC and Mac syncing. On a support page spotted by 9to5Google, the company said it would remove the option for users to sync their trackers over its Connect app on October 13th, 2022. After that date, the only way to transfer your data off your Fitbit wearable will be through the Fitbit mobile app. While the shutdown is unlikely to affect many people, it does mean there will be one less way to transfer your favorite songs to your wearable for offline playback.“On October 13, 2022, we’re removing the option to transfer playlists to your Fitbit watch through your computer,” the company says on a separate support page. “You can continue to play personal music stored on your watch and transfer music to your watch with the Deezer app and Pandora app.” In other words, if you use your Fitbit tracker or smartwatch for listening to music, you’ll need to depend on two music services that aren’t the most popular options out there. With the Pixel Watch set to offer deep Fitbit integration, that probably won’t be much of an issue with new Fitbit wearables, but it is something current users will have to consider.Read MoreSoftware, Technology & Electronics, site|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Igor BonifacicEngadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

A mere two days after accusing the company of fraud, Elon Musk has challenged Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal to a public debate about the percentage of bots on its platform. “Let him prove to the public that Twitter has <5% fake or spam daily users,” Musk said in a tweet spotted by Reuters.

The Tesla and SpaceX executive issued the challenge after responding to a thread in support of his legal case against the company. “If Twitter simply provides their method of sampling 100 accounts and how they’re confirmed to be real, the deal should proceed on original terms,” he said.

Musk then began polling his followers, asking them whether they believe fake accounts make up less than five percent of Twitter’s daily user base. The two options are “Yes” and “Lmaooo no.” With 66.6 percent of vote as of the writing of this article, the latter is ahead at the moment. Voting ends on Sunday.

The stunt is unlikely to prompt a response from Twitter. The company’s trial against Musk will start on October 17th and could finish in a matter of days. In the complaint it filed this week, Musk’s legal team said a Botometer analysis found a much higher number of fake accounts than the less than five percent claimed by Twitter. The company quickly shot back, calling Musk’s statements “factually inaccurate, legally insufficient and commercially irrelevant.”

A mere two days after accusing the company of fraud, Elon Musk has challenged Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal to a public debate about the percentage of bots on its platform. “Let him prove to the public that Twitter has <5% fake or spam daily users,” Musk said in a tweet spotted by Reuters.The Tesla and SpaceX executive issued the challenge after responding to a thread in support of his legal case against the company. “If Twitter simply provides their method of sampling 100 accounts and how they’re confirmed to be real, the deal should proceed on original terms,” he said.I hereby challenge @paraga to a public debate about the Twitter bot percentage. Let him prove to the public that Twitter has <5% fake or spam daily users!— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 6, 2022Musk then began polling his followers, asking them whether they believe fake accounts make up less than five percent of Twitter’s daily user base. The two options are “Yes” and “Lmaooo no.” With 66.6 percent of vote as of the writing of this article, the latter is ahead at the moment. Voting ends on Sunday.The stunt is unlikely to prompt a response from Twitter. The company’s trial against Musk will start on October 17th and could finish in a matter of days. In the complaint it filed this week, Musk’s legal team said a Botometer analysis found a much higher number of fake accounts than the less than five percent claimed by Twitter. The company quickly shot back, calling Musk’s statements “factually inaccurate, legally insufficient and commercially irrelevant.”Read Moresite|engadget, provider_name|Engadget, region|US, language|en-US, author_name|Igor BonifacicEngadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics