Instagram For Windows Phone Lands Today (But It's Half-Baked)

Instagram for Windows Phone arrives today, landing in the Windows Phone Store complete with Live Tile support. However, the much-anticipated app is lacking a few features compared to its iOS and Android cousins, most notably that video support isn't present at release. Whereas the existing apps for other platforms allow short video clips to be recorded and shared, Windows Phone users will need to wait for a future update to get that functionality.

Sharing photos is done initially via the Camera Roll; pressing the camera button in the app opens up the existing images you've taken. However, there's also a second button to take photos directly, though we'd imagine Nokia Lumia users will probably want to stick to the extra features in their Nokia Camera app.

It's also impossible to tag images, at least in this first version. However, unlike Android and iOS users of Instagram, those on Windows Phone will get to see previews of the latest content those they follow are sharing directly from the homescreen, embedded into the app's Live Tile.

The missing features will come in time. "We wanted to make Instagram available to people with Windows Phones as quickly as possible, so we focused on creating an awesome experience with Instagram's core features" the company said today. "We're not finished, and our team will continue developing the Windows Phone app to keep releasing features and bringing you the best Instagram possible."

Finally getting Instagram onto the platform is a coup for Microsoft, which had been pushing for the expansion of what many consider a must-have app for many months. One perceived tipping point is believed to be the increasing camera focus of Nokia's Lumia range, and in fact the new app was first officially detailed at Nokia's Lumia 1520 event last month.

Instagram for Windows Phone will arrive in the Windows Phone Store at around 2pm ET, where it will be a free download.