Due to the spread of the plague, Facebook was required to close its offices in Tel Aviv – and Michelle Lourie, product manager at the company’s research and development center, found herself working for a cooperative kibbutz – far from the global start-up capital, Tel Aviv. Apart from the challenges posed by working from home, as well as dealing with three small children, a problem with connecting to the network was added – when the Internet in the kibbutz was weak and unstable. This was a great start to her new project.
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Over the past year, Michelle’s team in Tel Aviv and the New York team have built Instagram Lite – a lightweight version of Instagram, developed for Android devices, designed to provide people with a quality Instagram experience in all network conditions, using a minimum of data. The team, which included engineers, designers and researchers, developed the new version from end to end. In the Corona era, the platform is a lifeline for many people, who want to create creative content, get inspired and stay in touch with those close to them – whether through a picture of the kids or even a video of a puppy going online.
For millions of people, the rapid access to the Internet, for entertainment or ongoing communication purposes, is no small matter. Only 63% of the world’s population has a network connection – by comparison, in North America about 90% of people are connected to the Internet. Even among the people who are connected to the network, many do not have advanced mobile devices, a stable Internet network or affordable data packages, which allow them to consume content on Instagram in a quality and satisfactory manner. “People want to connect and get inspired by those around them – no matter where they are,” says Lori. “It’s hard to do that with an outdated cell phone, a shaky connection and limited storage.”
© Courtesy of Instagram
“Our teams build the lite versions of our apps for people with poor network connectivity or limited data packages – because our premise is not to leave anyone behind,” adds Tzach Hadar, Lite Interface Product Management Director and one of the leaders in the Facebook R&D Center. In Tel Aviv, one of the company’s largest strategic hubs outside the US, “We wanted the Instagram usage experience to remain fast, quality and reliable, regardless of the device or network they use.”
Along with the other challenges involved in remote work, work on the light version was significantly affected by the Corona crisis. Market researchers and development teams could not reach the target markets, such as India or Brazil, to test the product. They were required to be creative and decided that each team member would get an old phone with the lite version to understand for themselves how the app works. They also used emulators that simulated a slow connection to the network (except for Michelle who already suffered from this problem during her stay in the kibbutz). “Our team conducted effective virtual research, designed to understand what users really need,” said Gal Zellermeier, development director of Instagram Lite in Tel Aviv.
The lite version developed by the team weighs only two megabytes – compared to the full version which takes up 30 megabytes. Despite this, the version retains the key elements that are important to Instagram users – similar to Facebook Lite, a product also developed in the company’s offices in Tel Aviv, the developers disassembled a large part of the app code installed in the phone and transferred it to the cloud.
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The team focused on features used by people who are in isolated and remote places, such as video and messaging. While the team wanted to maintain Instagram’s innovative design, it needed to be attentive to how the app works when the connection is poorer and slower. “The fast responsiveness is very important for anyone dealing with ongoing network issues,” Michelle described. “If you have to wait for Instagram to load, it’s not always clear if something went wrong or if the app just doesn’t work.”
To maintain performance on the platform, the team is required to give up data-rich design elements, such as AR filters. Despite this, they retained features that allow for creativity while using less data, such as GIFs and stickers. Even the icons have been adapted for new users in the digital world – for example, the team realized that the trash can icon would not be clear enough, and changed it to X to sharpen it used for deletion.
The new product was tested among a small group of users, and immediately new needs arose that must be included in the new light version. For example, surfers expressed a need for “Dark mode” – a dark mode that will replace the light background of the platform. “For people who live in common and crowded areas it is important to surf more privately and not bother those around them,” Michelle explained.
With the launch of the app, the teams began to receive feedback from around the world, from people who expressed their appreciation a lot for the new product – far beyond comments about “Dark mode”, trash can or GIFs. “I live in Venezuela and it is not easy to use a new phone,” said one user. “I have Samsung with old apps that do not work well. Now, thanks to the lite version of Instagram, a window to a better world has opened for me.”
© Courtesy of Instagram
As of today, people in more than 170 countries around the world, including Israel, will be able to download Instagram Lite on the Google Play Store, on any device and on any network. The app will be launched worldwide soon.