The TV killed the radio star. Right? That's how that goes, I think. The TV is still seeing plenty of success, but I would bet that you've heard more times than you can count that TV is dying. Cable cutters and the like, all leading to one main culprit: the Internet. If you love TV, how does it feel to know you're constantly, apparently inevitably staring at the death of your content distributor?
Anyway, the point is that we move forward. Just like the TV killed the radio star, and the Internet is killing the TV, we are caught in a river forward. It's a river that cannot be stopped. Slowed, maybe, but never stopped. We are always on the course to discover something new, and if it's good enough, replace it with what's come before.
Newspapers. Physical books. Pens and pads of paper. Whatever the "old school" medium, it's constantly on the cusp of being displaced and replaced with something else. Something digital, in this day and age. We're all looking for that next flashy thing, or the service that better incorporates into our lives with the devices we already own.
Photographs are old, too, and have probably lasted the longest against the strides of the future. Of course, it helps that we've integrated photos into the present so well. In fact, many people buy their devices with a camera, simply because they want to make taking photos easier.
But is video killing the photo . . . Star?
That seems to be the case, if you're reading the tea leaves. Or paying any attention to many social streams. Or read the news. I still see a lot of photos on my Twitter feed, for example, but while that number may not necessarily be diminishing, it's certainly looking to be trumped by video.
Short video clips are quickly gaining popularity, most of which can be "blamed" or "celebrated" due to the likes of the application called Vine. That particular app lets you take quick videos, splice them together into one clip, and then share them with everyone you know, or don't know. Vine's popularity only increased after it launched on Android, a few months after its debut on iOS.
Now, the photo sharing app Instagram seems to be missing out on all the fun, and wants to take some of the attention back. According to a recent report, Instagram is looking to add short video support to their application here soon. That same report suggests Facebook, who owns Instagram, will announce the new feature as soon as June 20. So, not too much longer to wait if you're a fan of Instagram, but have been itching to throw in some short videos in there, too.
Are videos replacing photos? It may not be that extreme. As I hinted at above, I think there's a sweet spot that both can coexist, especially if services like Instagram offer both options. But, with manufacturers even getting on the quick video game, like HTC and their Zoe feature baked into the One, it's interesting to see how videos could indeed become the new standard.
How do you grab those life moments? Are you someone who's turned to shortened videos, just to get every single moment possible? Or are you a traditionalist, and will stick with the standard still photo for as long as you can? Let me know!
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