Snapchat, the self-destructing photo and video sharing app, has a patent that lets people using it take a photo and then immediately record a 10-second video.
The patent is called “Single mode visual media capture.”
TechCrunch points out that, "this might seem like a trivial difference, but waste a couple seconds to switch to video or to wait for your camera app to load and the moment you were hoping to capture could be over."
For comparison, Instagram, Facebook's Snapchat clone Poke, and a ton of other photo/video apps all make you tap a button or slide a knob to switch from the camera feature to a video, wasting valuable time.
Snapchat is hoping that speed will help it stand out from a ton of other apps that also help users share photo and video.
The self-destructing photo video app is continuing to grow, fast. More than 150 million photos are shared through the service each day. One could also argue that the company has been able to shake its past reputation of just being a sexting app.
Last month, the company's CEO, Evan Spiegel, told AllThingsD, "[Snapchat is] less about ‘I’m cool, I look really good,’ and it’s a lot more about communicating where you are, what you’re doing, how you feel. It’s more about chatting and messaging than putting yourself on display.”
Earlier this month it was reported that Snapchat is in the process of raising $100 million, which would value the company at roughly $1 billion.
SEE ALSO: It's Unbelievable That Snapchat Doesn't Have This Feature Yet
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