How to Use Instagram Co-Watch
Written by Tijana - Reviewed by Ivana Social Media / Instagram
Instagram has been updating a lot of features lately related to the pandemic - Donation Stickers, Stay Home stickers, and now Instagram has launched one of the newest updates - Instagram Co-Watch.
The idea behind Co-Watch is for users to stay connected while they practice social distancing.
Covid-19 took its toll on people’s mental health, the inability to spend quality time with friends and family has lasted for so long, and the only way of staying in touch with your friends is on a video chat.
Therefore, Instagram announced Co-Watch or Watch Together - a feature offering you to watch posts, videos, IGTV, and Reels, but not Instagram Stories.
Do you like a Reel so much that you want to have it on your phone or computer? Learn how you can download Instagram Reels from iPhone, Android, Mac or Windows.
How do I use Instagram Co-Watch?
There are two steps you need to take to be able to use this feature: you need to have liked the photo/video you want to share with friends, and the photo/video needs to be from either a public profile (shared publicly), or followed by all users who will be watching the post.
How to use it:
- On your phone, open the Instagram app.
- Open your Inbox by clicking on the icon in the upper right corner.
- In the Inbox section, click on the Camera icon in the upper right corner. In the Search field, type in the name or username of the person you want to make a video call with. Up to 6 people can join this video call.
- After clicking ‘Start’, the video call will begin. To watch together, you’ll need to click on the ‘Media’ icon, in the bottom right corner.
- This will lead you to your liked posts, from here you can navigate to the post of the photo/video you want to share with your friends.
- You can change the post you’re sharing at any time, you don’t need to cancel the call and start again to keep watching new posts. Also, another user can start sharing at any time, so you can take turns in sharing memes and funny videos.
If after step 4, you click on TV Shows & Movies under ‘Media’, you will be able to watch a list of interesting episodes together with your friends, some of them starring Avani, Post Malone, and Cardi B.
However, when shared in a group chat, users can watch together photos and videos, but not IGTV posts.
Check out how to use the 'Collabs' feature on Instagram that allows users to create collaborative feed posts and reels.
Even though the new feature has some limits that might be disappointing, the general idea is amazing. Being stuck at home, but also being able to binge-watch cute animals with a friend instead of alone will sure help users to feel less alone while isolating.
