After a few years, and lots of consumer requests, Instagram has lastly launched a devoted iPad model of the app, constructed for the larger iPad display.

As you’ll be able to see on this instance, the brand new Instagram for iPad app is particularly formatted for the bigger display, enabling full IG performance on the gadget.
And it’s not only a ported model of the common IG app, Instagram has additionally added a spread of iPad-specific functionalities and processes, which it hopes will assist iPad customers maximize their use of the app within the larger format.
First off, the IG for iPad app opens to the Reels feed, just like TikTok.
As defined by Instagram:
“Instagram has at all times been the place the place folks join over creativity, and Reels has change into a major manner folks uncover and share entertaining content material. With Instagram for iPad, we’ve redesigned the expertise to mirror how folks use larger screens immediately – for lean again leisure. Now, whenever you open the app, you’ll drop into Reels, so you will get the entertaining content material you’re keen on on a much bigger display.”
So whereas all of the common functionalities of IG are additionally obtainable, together with Tales alongside the highest if the display, Reels would be the essential focus of the app.
Which is sensible. Increasingly folks are actually spending extra time watching Reels within the app. Certainly, final month, Meta reported that total video watch time on IG is up 20% year-over-year, whereas, in April, it additionally reported that Reels now make up 50% of all time spent on IG.
So most Instagram customers are spending an growing period of time watching Reels, and as such, it is sensible for Instagram to not less than experiment with opening to a Reels feed as a part of this new venture.
Instagram’s additionally added a brand new “Following” tab within the iPad app, providing you with extra methods to view content material.

Whereas it’s additionally constructed new customized UI flows for the bigger iPad display:
“We’ve made it simpler to atone for your messages and notifications with layouts that show each tabs. Once you watch reels, you’ll be able to broaden the feedback whereas the reel stays at full measurement, making it simple to atone for the very best reactions with out lacking a second.”

So, customized formatting for what’s basically a brand new model of IG, which ought to make the iPad crowd completely happy.
And it’ll be fascinating to see how opening to Reels is adopted by iPad customers, as a result of I think, at some stage, Instagram goes to change to this expertise for all variations of the app.
Instagram for iPad is rolling out globally on iPad fashions that assist iPadOS 15.1 and later. IG says that the brand new pill design may even be coming to Android gadgets quickly.