I wonder what you guys think about Bluesky, Threads, Mastodon, Truth Social, and other apps trying to take on the social media apps we have to use, whether we like it or not.
Threads came in when there was some Twitter (X) trouble and got a fantastic start. It has since stalled and pretty much has the same number of downloads as it did in that explosive first week. It’s even seen a drop in daily usage.
It appears the wait for a Twitter-killer will have to continue. Bluesky is trying its hardest but is nowhere nearer to slaying the dragon. For now, it’s just an escape for those who don’t like the free speech shenanigans that have been both useful for balanced conversations on X and have also brought some really awful takes.
I have to be honest, some of the posts I see on X are just hateful, ignorant, racist, misandrist, misogynistic, etc. However, I don’t mind them as long as I’m allowed to spew my own stupidity. I don’t want anyone deciding what’s unacceptable and what’s not.
Let Community Notes refute any stupid takes for all to see. That way, the purveyor won’t be able to say they censored my takes because I’m spitting the truth. No, my G, we all saw your stupid idea and how it was brutally crashed.
Anyway, enough of my love-hate relationship with X. I was trying to say that the likes of Bluesky and Mastodon haven’t really slain the dragon because of network effects. We all have X and will put up with it because getting everyone to jump ship is a tall order.
I remember when WhatsApp started taking over. I wasn’t thrilled because there were apps I liked better. It wasn’t Telegram; I enjoyed myself some Viber and Nimbuzz, but alas, it wasn’t to be. The masses chose WhatsApp, and there was nothing we could do about it.
Which brings us to yet another app trying to go after Instagram.
Pinksky, a photo-centric social networking app built on the Bluesky platform, has launched its Android version. This app offers an Instagram-like experience, allowing users to share and discover photos within the Bluesky network. Pinksky aims to provide a more visual and user-friendly interface for engaging with the decentralized social network.
At this point, all the faults of Instagram are well-documented. Could another app do whatever Instagram does better? Of course. Will we all ditch Instagram for it? Unlikely.
This makes it hard for me to even get excited about any social media app. We are well-spoken for, and I just don’t see anything shaking it up. I would love to be proven wrong, but my fingers will remain uncrossed.
So, if you were waiting for that Bluesky-powered Instagram competitor, now is your chance to play around with Pinksky. Goog luck getting Zimbos to download a new app.
