With Snapchat, you can capture and share photos and videos with some or all of your Snapchat friends, and you can share for a limited time or for all time.

Pros

In the moment: Snapchat keeps you and your friends in the moment by hosting unopened snaps for only 24 hours. Once a snap is opened, you have 10 seconds to view it before it disappears.

Funny faces: One of our favorite Snapchat features is the funny interactive overlays called Lenses that you can superimpose over your face. To use it, turn your camera to selfie mode and tap your face. Once the app scans your face, 17 difference overlay options will appear, from cartoony add-ons like a dog nose and ears to others that distort your facial features or turn you into a monster. The final option enables you to superimpose faces from your camera roll onto your own. The new Face Paint Lens lets you draw all over your face. Bring a friend into the photo for twice the laughs.

Memories: If you'd like to preserve your snaps, tap the Save to Memories button at the bottom of your snaps or stories. To keep these photos and videos private, lock them with a passcode.

Bitmoji: You can now send Bitmoji, or personalized emoji, in chat or affixed to snaps. Download the Bitmoji app, create your Bitmoji, and then go to Snapchat Settings to link accounts. If a friend has also linked their Bitmoji, you'll see special Friendmoji stickers when you chat with them or reply to their snap.

Many modes of communication: With Snapchat you can communicate with your friends via chat, phone, or video calling. You can also customize any of these with overlaid text, stickers, or drawings.

News discovery: Tap the Discover tab to gain access to myriad media blogs and vlogs, from BuzzFeed to Vice to Mashable and more.

SEE: The Best Mobile Apps for Watching Video

Cons

Not always secure: Snapchatters can always screen-capture or photograph your snaps, so be careful not to send anything too private over the service. If someone does screenshot your snap, Snapchat will alert you.

Unintuitive interface: Snapchat is one of the most complicated apps for beginners to navigate. Figuring out how to go forward and backward, close screens, and access certain features is unnecessarily challenging.

Bottom Line

Snapchat for iOS has grown from a simple app for sharing disappearing photos and video to a full-service communication platform.

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