Snapchat is quietly rolling out a brand new “Footsteps” function to all iOS customers this week, the corporate confirmed to TechCrunch on Monday. The brand new function, which was beforehand solely accessible to Snapchat+ subscribers, makes use of Snap Map to allow you to see how a lot of the world you’ve explored and monitor the place you’ve traveled to.
The primary time you employ Footsteps, your first steps can be based mostly on Snaps in your Recollections, which implies that your previous journeys nonetheless depend. After that, Snapchat received’t use any extra Recollections so as to add to your Footsteps, and can as a substitute monitor your travels utilizing location information.
Snapchat can solely populate your Footsteps in the event you don’t have Ghost Mode on, which is a setting that forestalls Snapchat from displaying your location to your folks.
The brand new function comes as Snapchat continues to compete with Instagram and TikTok. By constructing out its Snap Map product, the corporate is strengthening one in every of its key variations from its opponents, each of which don’t supply an identical function (that may change, as Instagram has confirmed it’s growing a “Pals Map” function).
With this new function, Snap Map will inform you what number of international locations you may have traveled to, and the way a lot of an space you may have explored. As an example, the app would possibly show that you’ve got explored 30.4% of your metropolis. Or, in the event you traveled to a brand new nation over the summer time, the app would possibly inform you that you simply explored 5% of Paris.
These percentages are based mostly on the completely different locations the place you took and saved Snaps. It’s price noting that the odds will solely be correct in the event you’re an avid consumer of the app and infrequently save Snaps as a result of they’re based mostly in your saved Recollections.
Going ahead, the Map will use location information to point out you precise Footsteps on the Map based mostly on the place you journey to.
Your Footsteps are solely seen to you, and you may flip the function off or clear your Footsteps information by going into your Profile and tapping the “Settings” button. Subsequent, it is advisable scroll all the way down to the “Account Actions” part and faucet “Map.” Then, toggle off “Save new Footsteps as my location updates on the map” to show off Footsteps. To clear your Footsteps information, faucet “Clear Footsteps Historical past.”
The function is considerably much like Google Maps’ “Timeline” function that tracks journeys you’ve taken and locations you’ve been based mostly in your Location Historical past.
Snapchat sees the brand new function as a solution to monitor your travels and in addition share your adventures with your folks with a customized sticker that showcases your travels.
A spokesperson for the corporate advised TechCrunch that the corporate plans to roll out the function to Android customers quickly.
