Since Instagram never bothered to build a desktop Web interface, lots of third-party sites have stepped in to fill the void. They all offer ways to browse, like and comment on your Instagram feed from the desktop. For the most part, choosing one just comes down to which visual presentation you like best.
But Ink361, formerly known as Inkstagram, has built a few original features on top of Instagram. Today, it launched a map viewer, allowing users to browse a world map displaying geotagged Instagram photos.
“Ink361.com’s mission is to make discovering photo content easy,” says CEO Carel van Apeldoorn. The Map Viewer is a new way to discover Instagram photos that the core service doesn’t offer.
In September, the site added hashtag albums, enabling topical grouping of photos in a way that isn’t possible on Instagram alone. While Instagram uses hashtags to sort photos, Ink361 allows users to create their own albums and share them as links.
What’s Up With That Name?
I asked van Apeldoorn what the new name was about. “We help you to share your world in 360 degrees and add something extra to that,” he said. I noted that the old name – Inkstagram – was quite similar to Instagram itself, and I asked whether that had anything to do with the change. “The rebranding was not our idea, but based upon an offer we couldn’t refuse ;-),” was his response.
I asked van Apeldoorn directly whether Instagram asked Inkstagram to change its name. “We had a friendly conversation over this topic that resulted to the rebranding,” he said.
It’s all settled now, and Ink361 has a few features that make it stand out from the rest. Ink361 gets around 220,000 unique visitors per month and has 27,000 followers on Instagram.
Which Instagram Web viewers do you use? Let us know in the comments.
