Snapchat now has its own ‘dual-camera’ feature similar to BeReal

Dual-camera recording is the current hotness on video-sharing apps. Now, the often-copied Snapchat has added its own Dual Recording feature to the app.

Snapchat first showed off the new feature at its Partner Summit event in April this year. It’s the first part of the suite of tools that Snapchat calls “Director Mode.”

The update is live on iOS, with Snap saying Dual Camera will come to Android a few months from now. It allows iPhone users to use both the selfie and rear cameras simultaneously, with several different layouts for the two camera feeds.

READ MORE: TikTok Now is another blatant copy of the BeReal app

Snapchat’s announcement video (below) shows a picture-in-picture mode, two split screen options (side-by-side and top-to-bottom), and a cutout mode that uses the second camera to put a virtual green screen behind you.

Users can also use Snapchat’s signature augmented reality (AR) filters, but only after they’ve recorded the clip.

This would be the first time a dual-camera feature worked with video. Earlier apps, like Frontback and BeReal, used pictures instead when capturing from both the front and back cameras.

That photo-first approach is also something Instagram is working on. Their IG Candids feature challenges users to take a dual-camera selfie once per day, with no setup, no filters, and no preparation.

That’s an interesting counterpart to the carefully staged and presented images you usually see on Instagram.

Social media apps like Snapchat have to change to stay relevant. Dual camera feeds might be today’s phase, but it could be another feature in the future.

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