Snapchat what the first and only app that let you exchange pictures with caption for a limited time. It was initially released on september 2011.
"The first real-time picture chatting app is now available on Android!
Snapchat is the fastest way to share a moment with friends.
You control how long your friends can view your message -
simply set the timer up to ten seconds and send.
They'll have that long to view your message and then it disappears forever.
We'll let you know if they take a screenshot!" Snapchat as described on the playstore.
Yesterday, Facebook announced Facebook poke a very similar app to snapchat.
“With the Poke app, you can poke or send a message, photo, or video to Facebook friends to share what you’re up to in a lightweight way. You can poke an individual friend or several at once. Each message expires after a specific time you’ve set, either 1, 3, 5 or 10 seconds. When time runs out, the message disappears from the app. “ Facebook announcement
So, to make it easier on you here's a simple comparision between these two apps:
Snapchat Facebook Poke
Text, Drawing over images, Photos, videos, 10 seconds video limits, screenshot alerts, countdown clock
Sharing time 1-10 seconds Sharing time : 1,3,5,10 seconds
No location service Location service
33 caracters/photo caption 120 Message caracter
Photos deleted from servers for ever after the countdown. Facebook terms of service
I know what you're thinking, Facebook poke is so much better. Well based on this comparison I can't blame you but there is something to be careful about : Facebook terms of service which implies that even that you're Facebook friends won't be able to see your pictures after the countdown, Facebook still keeps these photos in their servers. Additional remarks:
- Facebook Poke claims that it deletes the encryption keys two days after they’re read so they’re unreadable. Key backups are destroyed within 90 days, making a poke completely inaccessible but still no practical evidence and the app is still running under Facebook's terms of service.
- After 1 day of its launch, Facebook Poke is the #1 App in the Apple app store, followed by Google maps.