You can now tell your stories better with new stickers and location filters

Instagram Stories has gotten an update - and it brings a new set of features; stickers for emojis, time, location and just about everything, as well as an ‘hands-free video recording’ feature that lets you record with one click.

To use the stickers, you should click the icon that shows up next to the text and drawing tools that appear after you have taken a picture or video. Tapping the smiley icon provides you with different stickers - options for weather, time and location. Just like Snapchat.

The major difference though is that Snapchat’s filters for location and time are fixed, on Instagram Stories, you can move them around the screen as much as you want.

Instagram makes it easy to put your own spin on the stickers; in addition to moving them around, you can re-size them, and choose from different styles to suit your mood.

To celebrate the festive season, you’ll get a new set of Christmas stickers for the next few weeks. Instagram also promises new stickers to usher in the new year.

The new hands-free feature also lets you record videos with a single touch, not the long press we have grown accustomed to. So, whether you are a musician playing an instrument, or someone who just wants to share her cooking, you can now do it with both hands-free.

And in the spirit of borrowing from Snapchat, Instagram stories now allows you save all your story from the last 24 hours as a single video. But the feature is only available for iOS users.

Also Read: You can now live stream videos that disappear

The new feature are available as part of the Instagram 10.3 update which can now be downloaded for Android on Google Play Store and for iOS in the Apple App store.

The iOS gets the exclusives, but the relationship between Snapchat and Instagram is a more interesting case in point.

Instagram’s CEO, Kevin Systrom practically admitted his product was a copy of Snapchat. Facebook did try to buy the company in xxxx, but since Mark turned his eyes from the yellow end, Instagram has used its wider market appeal and 600 million users to slowly remodel a more-user friendly, ad-ready version of Snapchat.

Since Instagram Stories launched, they have rebuilt all of Snapchat’s elements except for selfie masks. Facebook Messenger got that feature as an update earlier this week.

The imitation is undeniable, and I imagine Snapchat has to figure how to sidestep this because, originality aside, the Instagram Stories copy-cat project is paying off.