Does Instagram show online when on video call

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(Pocket-lint) - Instagram offers a number of similiarities to other social media and chat platforms, including Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp. Features are constantly added, including options like "Show Activity Status".

If you use Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp - both owned by Facebook like Instagram - you'll know that they show when you're online and last active, or last seen in WhatsApp's case. Instagram does the same.

However, although the "Show Activity Status" option is enabled by default inside of Instagram's settings menu, you can toggle it off like you can on WhatsApp - something you can't do in Messenger.

Here's how to hide your activity status on Instagram, as well as how to tell if someone is online.

Those of you who don't want people to see when you're online in real-time do have the option to turn off Instagram's Show Activity Status feature, though, if you do, you won't be able to see anyone else's activity.

To change the visibility of your activity status:

1. Open Instagram.
2. Tap on the Profile icon in the top right corner.
3. Tap the three lines in the top right.
4. Tap on Settings.
5. Click on Privacy.
6. Tap Activity Status.
7. Tap the toggle next to Activity Status to turn off your activity status.

Note: Just like in Facebook Messenger, there's no option to disable read receipts on Instagram. Direct messages (DMs) always show as "seen" once recipients have opened them.

Who can see when you're active on Instagram?

Your followers can't see when you were most recently on Instagram. Only people you follow or have previously had direct conversations (DMs) with will see how many minutes or hours ago you were online.

This feature makes sense for Instagram users who rely on the service to chat with businesses or creative professionals and want to see whether they're online or even quickly respond.

How to tell if someone is online on Instagram

There are a few ways to see when someone's online or active:

1. You'll see a green dot near their username and photo in your Direct inbox.
2. You'll see a green dot near their username and photo elsewhere on Instagram.
3. In your direct inbox, you'll see their most recent activity status.

Note: Recent activity status will show as: Active 25m ago, Active yesterday, Seen, Typing, etc.

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(Pocket-lint) - Instagram offers video chat as one of its features through its direct messaging tool, Instagram Direct.

With video chat, you can call one person or a group in real time. It works with friends who are already on Instagram for iOS or Android and doesn't require a phone number. Here's how it works.

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1. Tap the message arrow icon in the top right of Feed.
2. Tap a username or group name to open the conversation.
3. You can also start a new conversation by tapping the pencil icon in the top right and selecting people.
4. Tap the video icon in the top right. The person or group you call will receive a notification.

So, to start a video chat, swipe into your Direct inbox and open any message thread. There will be a camera icon in the right corner - tap it. This will call your friend. If there's an active video chat in a group thread, the camera icon will turn blue. While in the video chat, you can minimise the video in order to browse Instagram, send messages in Direct, post a story, and more.

You can also video chat as long as you want. When you're done, tap the red phone icon at the bottom. Keep in mind that anyone you've accepted a direct message from can video chat with you. To prevent someone from video calling, you can block them or mute the conversation.

It's also possible to create a room that will allow you to video chat with other users across Facebook's platforms, including Facebook Messenger. To create a new video chat room, tap on the video icon in the top right of your Direct inbox and select the people you want to create a room with.

How to manage video chat notifications

If you'd like to control your video chat notifications, tap the three lines on profile and select 'Settings'. From here, select 'Notifications' and then 'Direct messages and calls'. Scroll down to video chats and select your preferences.

Want to know more?

Check out Instagram's blog post or help hub.

Best iPhone apps 2022: The ultimate guide By Maggie Tillman · 30 April 2022

These are the absolute best iPhone apps available right now, from productivity apps to apps for traveling, reading, listening to music, and more.

Writing by Maggie Tillman. Editing by Britta O'Boyle.

Instagram has introduced a couple of new features to fight the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic globally. Among the new features, the photo-sharing app has the new Media Sharing feature that allows you to surf the Instagram feed with your friends while online. Read on to know all about it.

Instagram Media Sharing feature

As announced via an Instagram blog post, the new Media Sharing feature will let you scroll through the Instagram posts with your friends and talk about it during a video call. This will help you stay close to their friends during the Coronavirus lockdown imposed almost everywhere.

The Co-Watching feature works in a simple way and you need to follow some simple steps:

• Open Instagram on your Android or iOS device
• Head to the Direct Message section in the top right corner
• Tap on the video chat icon in the desired chatbox
• Once the video call starts, you can click on the photo icon present in the bottom left corner during the video chat
• Following this, you can view saved, liked or suggested photos and videos with your friends during a video call

Other Instagram features

In addition to this, Instagram has introduced more new features as a contribution to fight Coronavirus pandemic. It will now show an educational message to people who look for Coronavirus-related information and will connect them to reliable sources such as WHO. Instagram Stories will soon get new Coronavirus Stickers to spread information on COVID-19.

The Facebook-owned photo-sharing app will stop showing COVID-19 accounts in recommendations, will remove information from the Explore section, and will downrank content that has been marked fake -- all this to avoid Coronavirus fake news. Furthermore, misleading ads will also be banned.

Additionally, Instagram will introduce donation stickers in more countries for people to help make donations to NGOs with ease and the new 'Stay at Home' sticker to promote social isolation.

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Has anyone noticed this?

I start video chatting someone the past month or so and I’ve noticed one time while we were video chatting, the activity status showed “Active XXm ago” from “Active now” .

I’m wondering if that’s what happens when you video chat or if the other person turned off their activity status at that moment.

A couple of other times I’ve noticed that the same person “typing” and replying to my messages right away but the activity status didn’t indicate “active now” but rather “active XXm ago”, while not video chatting. At first it was “active now” but after a few minutes it appear they weren’t active atm but they obviously were.

Could it be that this person constantly turns on/off their activity status or were they just video chatting someone else and the status when idle somehow?

Or is something else causing that?