News

Instagram Tests Vertical Profile Grids Instead Of Squares

A company spokesperson says the “limited test” is happening because the “vast majority” of Instagram uploads are vertically-oriented content.

Published

2 years ago

August 19, 2024

Nour Nasir

Instagram is testing a potentially major change to profile pages: making the squares in your profile grid vertical rectangles. Some users recently spotted the test, and there have been indications from at least 2022 that the company has toyed with a rectangular grid.

“The vast majority of what is uploaded to Instagram today is vertical,” Instagram chief Adam Mosseri explained in a Story on Friday, August 16, discussing the test. “It’s either 4 by 3 in a photo or 9 by 16 in a video, and cropping it down to square is pretty brutal”.

Mosseri revealed that “squares are from way back in the day when you could only upload square photos to Instagram,” a limitation the platform removed nearly a decade ago. Mosseri told users that the company knows that the changes may be annoying for those who have spent a great deal of effort and time “curating and making sure everything lines up” but says, “I would really like to do better by the content today”.

“We’re testing a vertical profile grid with a small number of people,” Instagram spokesperson Christine Pai said in a recent statement to journalists. “This is a limited test, and we’ll be listening to feedback from the community before rolling anything out further”.

So it looks as though perfectionists who have planned out their profile grids around squares might be a little annoyed when the entire site moves over to vertical rectangle content.

Also Read: How To Permanently Delete Your Instagram Account

Here’s the full transcript of Mosseri’s explanation:

“We’re actually testing a vertical grid, for those of you who haven’t seen it yet, for your profile, instead of squares. Now, squares are from way back in the day when you can only upload square photos to Instagram. I know this can be annoying for some of you who really spent a lot of time curating and making sure everything lines up, but I would really like to do better by the content today. The vast majority of what is uploaded to Instagram today is vertical. It’s either 4 by 3 in a photo or 9 by 16 in a video, and cropping it down to square is pretty brutal. So, I’m hoping we can figure out a way to manage this transition”.

News

Nano Banana 2 Arrives In MENA For Google Gemini Users

Google brings its latest image model to Gemini and Search, adding 4K output and tighter text control for regional users.

Published

2 months ago

February 27, 2026

Nour Nasir

Google

Google has opened access to Nano Banana 2 across the Middle East and North Africa, pushing its newest image model into everyday tools rather than keeping it inside the exclusive (and expensive) Pro tier.

The rollout spans the Google Gemini desktop and mobile apps, and extends to Google Search through Lens and AI Mode. Developers can also test it in preview via AI Studio and the Gemini API.

Nano Banana 2 runs on Gemini Flash, Google’s fast inference layer. The focus is speed, but also control. Users can export visuals from 512px up to 4K, adjusting aspect ratios for everything from vertical social posts to widescreen displays.

The model maintains character likeness across up to five figures and preserves fidelity for as many as 14 objects within a single workflow. This enables visual continuity across scenes, iterations, or edits — supporting projects like short films, storyboards, and multi-scene narratives. Text rendering has also been improved, delivering legible typography in mockups and greeting cards, with built-in translation and localization directly within images.

Also Read: RØDE Adds Direct iPhone Pairing To Wireless GO And Pro Mics

Under the hood, the system taps Gemini’s broader knowledge base and pulls in real-time information and imagery from web search to render specific subjects more accurately. Lighting and fine detail have been upgraded, without slowing output.

By embedding the model inside Gemini and Search, Google is normalizing advanced image generation for a mass audience. In MENA, where startups and marketing teams are leaning heavily on AI to scale content across languages and borders, that shift lands at a practical moment.

The move also folds creative tooling deeper into search itself, so that image generation is no longer a separate workflow. It now sits right next to the query box.