Snapchat update makes Android look bad, iPhone look good

There's a Snapchat update for Android devices this week, and it's supposed to revolutionize the way Android users Snap. Snapchat said "To Android. Love, Snapchat" on Twitter today, adding, "Enjoy the new, faster Snapchat, rebuilt just for Android." But they've not really fixed a whole lot of anything.

If you have a Google Pixel 2 or newer, or a Samsung Galaxy S10, you MIGHT be in luck. You MIGHT get an integration of the Snapchat photo/video-capture engine and the manufacturer-made camera API. That'd mean you're actually taking photos with your real camera.

For everyone else, it would seem, there's still a bit of nonsense going on. It would appear that Android users are STILL relegated to capturing images of the camera's viewfinder. Instead of capturing photos with the camera, Snapchat only sees through your camera's lens, giving you the image it sees on your screen.

That might not seem so bad, if you're always in high-lighting, clear, ideal photo-capturing conditions. But if you're not like the TINY fraction of people that live inside a photography studio, you're pretty much out of luck. You'll be getting only the bare minimum for photo quality.

Oh but the app is faster now. And Snapchat's put up the cash to get Twitter to add a little ghost/Android icon when you use the hashtag #SnapForAndroid, so that's cool too. But it remains pretty clear that Android is not a priority over in the land of yellow backgrounds and disappearing media.