Snap Camera, which could be used as a virtual webcam in any video chat client, rose to fame during the pandemic when it was used to inject humour into Zoom video conferences. — Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa
BERLIN: Snap Camera, Snapchat's webcam software which let anyone morph into an animal, burning skull or just a weirder version of themselves during video chat, is enjoying its last few days of fun this January.
The social media company has announced that it's discontinuing Snap Camera on January 25, phasing out the face filter software for Windows and Mac.
The program, which could be used as a virtual webcam in any video chat client, rose to fame during the pandemic when it was used to inject humour into Zoom video conferences. Social media was also filled with stories of employees unable to turn off their joke filters in serious work contexts.
If you were a fan of Snapchat's fun face lenses and think your colleagues won't recognize you without your fake moustache, green alien face or demon-in-sunglasses filter, then your only choice is to switch to Snapchat video calls, or start using Zoom's "Avatar" animal filters.
If you want to keep using the lenses from Snap Camera on your desktop computer, you'll only be able to do so for video calls using Snapchat for Web in future. The same filters, called Lenses on Snapchat, are also available for smartphone video chats.
After January 25, you won't be able to download the Snap Camera software from Snapchat and it won't work on computers where it is installed any longer either. Snapchat has provided tips on how to Snap Camera online. – dpa
