If you are not an active Snapchat user like me you may get surprised by some features you find in the app even if they were released a long time ago. A Snapchat Map Status feature released in May 2019 is one of the examples.
Many Snapchat features can be considered as secondary (Like Snapmap or Games for example) compared to the primary feature of capturing and browsing stories. Snapchat also doesn't tell to users about these secondary features proactively and this makes them some sort of "hidden".
What is Map Status?
This is simply a bitmoji icon which is shown to your friends on the Snapmap for a limited amount of time (4 hours). You can set it from the settings screen or from the Snapmap screen manually. It will show you a list of suggestions based on places around you. At the meantime, you can also pick one of generic bitmojis from the list which also have some context based on the time of the day or location. The "context" aspect is what makes this feature different from similar features in other apps. I think that bitmoji concept is actually a great idea in general and it is nice that you can always use them from your Gboard.
How to use Map Status?
Snapchat has a separate FAQ page for Map Status feature.
To set your Status:
Swipe down on the Camera screen to open the Map
- Tap ‘Status’ at the bottom
- Tap a location
- Tap a Bitmoji for your new Status and tap ‘Set Status’
After that, you will be able to see it on the Snapmap and it will be also shown to your friends with whom you have shared your location.
To me, the most interesting use case for this feature will be the time when you visit a certain place which is worth sharing. You can set your status post and start sharing Snaps from this place to your stories feed! Did you use this feature somewhere already? Drop us a comment 🔥
