Why the Peach app is suddenly the hottest thing in social media
Move over, Snapchat. Watch out, WhatsApp. There's a new messaging app in town. Peach launched last week on iOS devices and it is causing quite a stir.
So, what is it exactly? Peach is billed as being a more private, individualized social media app, Users can post funny updates, share details about their days, and connect with friends. CNET reports some of its caché comes from the fact that it was launched by the creator of Vine, the hugely successful app for sharing short looping videos that was acquired by Twitter.
On Peach (which uses a -- you guessed it -- peach for its logo) users select who sees each of their updates, unlike Facebook, for instance, where users are broadcasting to all of their friends.
The big feature of the app is "magic words." You simply type in command phrases to generate different types of features for your messages. If you type "gif," then a search bar with a bunch of gif options instantly appears, and you can easily post a funny cat gif for your friends.
In addition, taking a page from the long-forgotten "poke" feature on Facebook, Peach lets you send fun things to friends, like a piece of (digital) cake. You can also draw your own pictures on the screen.
"People are having fun with it," said CNET's Bridget Carey.
"One of the things that also makes it appealing, I think, especially to younger people, is that there aren't instructions to this thing. There are some hidden, secret things you can add if you know the right keywords. So when you're sending something you have to hit 'H' for 'here' - here's my location. Or hit a 'D' for 'drawing.' It's the kind of thing where you feel like you're in the know if you know the code," she said.
Of course, given short social media attention spans, there is no guarantee that Peach will have any staying power. For those who want to give it a try, it's currently available for free on the iTunes App Store.
