Facebook Unveils Its Own Photo App

Facebook is launching its own photo app—despite having just spent $1 billion to buy Instagram. The new program, called Facebook Camera, is separate from Facebook's main app. It's much quicker than browsing photos in the main app, and it offers full-bleed pictures that fill your iPhone screen, AllThingsDigital reports. It allows you to comment and "like" photos and, like Instagram, offers filters.

So what's the point of an app that's "essentially Instagram redux" when you've just bought Instagram? Well, developers were probably working on Facebook Camera before the social network planned to buy Instagram, writes Mike Isaac. What's more, the Instagram deal is still technically under FTC investigation. Perhaps Zuck and Co. had no choice but to buy Instagram: It "was taking over mobile photos, and Facebook couldn’t wait around and watch the company snap up every user while still working on perfecting the Facebook Camera app." For its part, Facebook says it expects "some healthy competition" between the apps, notes TechCrunch. Maybe Instagram will be "for the cool kids" and Facebook Camera for the "social networking masses"? Click for more on that theory at Daily Intel. (More Facebook stories.)