Snaps

Congratulations to Kyle B Richardson, the winner of our very last Phone Snap Challenge! Thanks to all who submitted their silly funny face photos for this week's challenge, as well as all previous Phone Snap challenges. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end, and i ...more

The latest sponsored augmented reality experience on Snapchat from a movie studio might be its scariest — and perhaps most popular — yet. The Sponsored Lens, purchased by Warner Bros. to promote the new The Nun horror movie, uses background segmentation to provide a mostly da ...more

Snapchat's newest feature will allow you to see where your friends are posting from around the world. Called Snap Map, this easy-to-use update gives users the ability to view your friends' stories and locations on a map. Snap Map works by recording your location when you open ...more

Hello, my fellow cell phonographers! In today’s day and age, cell phone photography is growing rapidly with the advancement of smartphones and the constant stream of new multi-featured camera phone and photo editing apps. Although nothing beats shooting photographs with my al ...more

For the release of John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, Snapchat and Lionsgate aren't just creating AR experiences to promote the movie, they are giving fans the opportunity to create and share their own AR experiences. On Friday, the promotional partners launched the "Art of W ...more

Want to learn how to build a laser tripwire and alarm out of snap circuits? I'll show you how to build both circuits— the laser tripwire circuit and the alarm circuit. Video: . The alarm is a very simple two-transistor oscillator that is switched on by the relay in the laser t ...more

Usually, flying into unknown territory would mean riding into the "danger zone", but Paramount and Snapchat are taking the trip anyway with one of Summer 2020's most anticipated movie sequels. On Monday, Snapchat published a trailer reaction Lens, the first of its kind for th ...more

Under the rocket's red glare and the bombs bursting in air, the Statue of Liberty is swaying in celebration this Fourth of July thanks to Snapchat. On Thursday, Snapchat launched a new augmented reality experience to commemorate Independence Day for those at or in the vicinit ...more

Before you start snapping away and submitting your photos, please take some time to read the official rules below! No purchase necessary to enter or win; a purchase does not improve your chance of winning; void where prohibited by law. ELIGIBILITY: Only legal residents of t ...more

I was today years old when I first heard of Bhad Bhabie, but I'm told she is apparently a rapper with a rags-to-riches story. So, of course, she should get her own reality show. And Snap is pulling out the big guns to promote her Snap Original show, Bringing up Bhabie, with a ...more

Congratulations to Bryan Rowland for his entry, "Childhood", which has been chosen as the winner for this week's Phone Snap Silhouette Challenge! Thanks to all who submitted their impressive silhouette shots. Our next Phone Snap challenge is ready to go and we're always psych ...more

Peeling garlic is one kitchen task that every cook, from the newbie to the experienced, is always trying to make easier. Methods vary, from shaking heads of garlic inside a container to using the microwave to help peels slide right off. I love all these techniques, which work ...more

Since starting as a simple messenger with self-destructing pictures, Snapchat has grown into a full-fledged social media platform. As features were added, new permissions were requested, and we're all probably guilty of just tapping "OK" to try out the latest and greatest. But ...more

If the name Leroy Jenkins elicits a reaction from you, then you are old enough to remember the iconic title World of Warcraft from its heydey (whether or not you actually played the massively multiplayer online role-playing game). To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the game ...more

While Snapchat is no stranger to location-based AR scavenger hunts, the app's new world-facing game adds some environmental understanding to the mix. This week, Snapchat launched a new Snappables game dubbed Scavenger Hunt. However, while most Snappables games use the front-f ...more

Snapchat has been known to jazz it up for big events. They went deep on the Grammys, taking you behind the scenes — and adding a James Corden lens to boot. So when Snapchat had a super cool filter up their sleeve for Super Bowl LII, we weren't exactly shocked. Snapchat's Supe ...more

Snapchat is one of the best ways for people to communicate with pictures, but it has a ton of other features baked into it. From the Memories feature to My Story, there are many ways to save save and share snaps among friends. Sometimes though, you want to add a little more pi ...more

As summer is upon us, new musical Snapchat lenses are as well. This week has entries from Maroon 5, Simon and Garfunkel, and Snow Tha Product with entertaining visuals to match. As kids start to leave school for the summer, expect the lens scene to be kicked up a notch with an ...more

Snapchat has broken new ground in its augmented reality advertising efforts, as BMW has opted to show off its new X2 model in AR with the Augmented Trial Lens. Users who opt in to the experience via ads running between user or publisher stories (or scan the corresponding Snap ...more

Late last year, Snapchat introduced Cameos, deep fake-ish stickers animated from your own selfies. Now, Cameos have evolved as a sticker option to use in photos and videos captured with the app's camera. If you're interested in adding your animated doppelganger to your Snaps, ...more

On Thursday, Snap released three new templates for its Lens Studio that will give creators access to augmented reality capabilities previously only available to Snap's own design team. With the new Segmentation template, Lens Studio users can design Lenses that change the use ...more

Want to learn how to build a robot out of Snap Circuits? I'll show you how to combine Snap Circuits parts from three different sets (the Snap Circuits rover, Snap Circuits Micro, and the Snap Circuits motion detector) to make a simple programmable motion activated robot. For a ...more

In the wild world of Snapchat lenses, this week was an especially good one for cool effects. Lens-crafters (really hoping I can get that name to stick) have gotten a lot better at making non-gimmicky lenses that allow you to interact with them in new and unique ways. New to t ...more

Iowa firefighter Pete Lilja has modded the software of a Canon powershot to record images of Earth, from as high as 85,000 feet! Lilja's hack requires the following: 1 basic point-and-shoot consumer camera attach camera to a GPS transmitter (+ a phone number just in case the ...more

A silhouette is an outline of a person or an object, usually dark or having little detail, against a brighter, more well-lit background. For this week's Phone Snap Challenge, we've asked you to capture your own silhouette photo with your cell phone for a chance to win a SuperH ...more

Congratulations to Eline Art for "Puddle Reflection", the winning photo for this past week's Phone Snap Challenge! Thanks to all who submitted their wonderful reflection shots. This upcoming week: get your funny faces ready for a chance to win a Food Face Dinner Plate. Scrol ...more

This week, in addition to the double exposure weekly challenge, we have a promotion specifically for iPhone users. The International iPhoneography Exhibition has asked for Phone Snap's best iPhone shots to enter for a chance to win a spot in the exhibition which will be taking ...more

In an effort to help its advertising partners close sales with its sponsored augmented reality camera effects, Snapchat has launched a set of e-commerce tools designed to encourage users to buy products directly in the app. Shoppable AR is an enhanced Lens that offers adverti ...more

It looks like Snap's foray into augmented reality billboards last year was successful, as the company has returned with two more outdoor advertisements for its Snap Originals series. Now through Sept. 24, Los Angeles residents and visitors will have the opportunity to interac ...more

He might be an O.G. rapper, but Snoop Dogg has officially entered the cutting-edge of technology via a hidden feature included with his newest music release. The artist's latest album, called I Wanna Thank Me, is his 20th since starting with Death Row Records so many years ag ...more

Pitting cherries is really annoying. There's no neat way to do it with a knife and, though they make a tool that does it, not everyone has space in their kitchen for a gadget that does so little. But fresh cherries are so delicious when they're in season... it's almost worth t ...more

The city of London is getting a holiday gift this season, but it's not the kind you unwrap, since it's completely delivered in augmented reality. Snapchat has created an augmented reality version of the famed Big Ben tower clock building that enables Westminster residents and ...more

This week, we're beginning to see the wide ranging impacts of some of the early iterations of augmented reality hardware and software. For example, we now know how many Microsoft HoloLens devices have been sold. We're also seeing the impact of AR on revenue at Snapchat. And s ...more

With summer in full swing, these Snapchat lenses are as hot as ever. With people celebrating the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Snapchat contests that earn could earn you a free ride to Comic Con, and the everyday innovation that comes out of Lens Studio, there's something for ever ...more

Congratulations to Matt White for "self medicate", the winning photo for this past week's Phone Snap Self-Portrait Challenge! Thanks to all who submitted their wonderful self-portrait shots. We love being able to get a glimpse into your personal tastes and styles. This upcomi ...more

For Snapchat users wondering if that selfie is ready to send to their crush, independent Lens Studio creator Andrew Mendez created a handy tool called the Smile Rater. The lens is simple yet effective. A white bar floats over the user's head, showing a rating of one through 1 ...more

The emergence of Facebook's collaboration with Ray-Ban to launch Stories smartglasses has finally put an exclamation point on a new category of smartglasses: the pre-augmented reality wearable segment. And while the Facebook device isn't particularly groundbreaking in terms o ...more

Less than two months after launching its augmented reality platform for casual gaming and shared experiences, Snapchat is ready to make Snappables available to advertisers. The first sponsored Snappables will be available to users Thursday in Snapchat. Candy Crush makers King ...more

Now even muggles can see how they'd look chasing the Golden Snitch on a Nimbus 2000. That's because Snapchat is gifting Harry Potter fans with a 3D Bitmoji Lens that adorns their digital doppelgängers in the robes of the houses of Hogwarts. To cast this AR spell with your Sn ...more

The 15-year-old star of the 1980s-inspired hit series Stranger Things, Millie Bobby Brown, may have (spoiler alert) lost all her powers as the character "Eleven," but in the real world, she still has augmented reality in her arsenal. The young science fiction icon has release ...more

The concept of Metaverse, otherwise referred to as AR cloud, where a digital twin of the real world filled with virtual content anchored persistently for all to see, has been a sci-fi dream of futurists for years and an aim for most tech companies who are serious about AR. It ...more

Facebook is aware that Snapchat is killing the social media game amongst the youths, which makes sense, because in 2017, video is king in social media currency. Facebook has continually shown that Mark Zuckerberg and crew seem to think the best strategy to keep up is to simply ...more

Snapchat's Geofilters add a little flair to Snapchat, giving you the option to dress up your Snaps based on where you took them. They're so popular, in fact, that we even showed you how to pull Geofilters from locations outside of where you are. Now, Snapchat is letting busin ...more

Despicable Me 3 is coming to theaters this summer, and it seems that Minions are everywhere. Literally. You can't even escape them on social media because they've taken over Snapchat with the release of three augmented reality lenses. That's right, this new AR feature means th ...more

With the third season of Netflix's hit series Stranger Things set to debut July 4, it's time to crank up the hype machine, this time, in augmented reality. For its latest promotion, Netflix has summoned the AR powers of Snapchat to bring "the upside down," the alternate dimen ...more

It looks like Snapchat is becoming the MTV of augmented reality. On Thursday, Ariana Grande, with her new album Sweetner, joined Drake and Nicki Minaj and other artists who are pushing new releases through Snapchat's Shoppable AR e-commerce platform. Available in the Snapcha ...more