As is usually the case with apps, updates and changes are inevitable. Instagram is probably one of the most used apps in the world and this arguably applied even before the company was acquired by Facebook. Since then, it’s grown even bigger but with growth comes change and in 2016, Instagram made the first of its many major changes.

The new logo didn’t sit well at first but I suppose people eventually got used to it. You see, the company has constantly had to adapt to remain relevant, and a good example of this is the introduction of Instagram Stories. Instagram literally repackaged what made Snapchat so great and presented it as their own but hey, it was a huge success.

This week, Instagram is testing new layouts for its home screen that will see the introduction of dedication buttons for shopping and Reels. Instagram introduced the shopping feature a while back but this is the first time they’re really putting it in the spotlight like this. Given people’s buying habits these days, it makes sense I suppose.

Reels on the other hand is similar to what the company did with Snapchat. TikTok has made a killing with its video format and Instagram want’s a piece of that pie. It’s that simple. Will they be able to make TikTok as irrelevant as they did Snapchat though? That remains to be seen but Trump’s TikTok ban does no favours for the Chinese owned company.

The company shared three layout new designs that according to them “represent how people are using the app and giving extra love to creators, videos and shopping.” Testing has been done in India, Brazil, France and Germany and I guess they’re seeing momentum given that they’re now pushing out the update to the masses.

The problem here is that it makes the app look extremely bloated. One of the three varations sees all six shortcuts crammed at the bottom of your screen. For as long as Facebook has owned Instagram, it’s been pretty hands off with how the app is run but its recent obsession with consolidating all of its apps into one has seen the company make some unpopular decisions.

First it was the merging of Instagram DMs with Messenger, and now it’s bringing Facebooks notoriously bloated layout to the app as well. What do you guys think of the move? Let us know in the comments.