Just recently downloaded VERO — I like the concept and different functions it offers like recommending movies/TV shows and lack of ads which I hope they never change. However, the layout needs to more be immersive and formatting needs to change. Get rid of the borders on posts in the feed when you’re scrolling so that they go to the edge of the screen. I like the ability to click on a photo/video to have it full screen or landscape with black borders to get a cinematic effect, but not having the post as large as the feed will allow kind of takes away from the experience. Also, reduce sizes of the content in the other borders like the very top menu and the size of the border that has the name of the poster. It doesn’t need to be that big and sacrifices space that could be going toward the actual photo/video/etc. Same goes for the comments text sizing and spacing — too much valuable space being wasted. Would also like end to end encryption for chats.

VERO is both an app and a community. As an app it solves so many of the problems with most other social platforms by giving its users full control over what they wish to see. You can post photographs, videos, links to movies, places, songs, and books, or a link to anything you wish. Users can then filter exactly what they wish to see and whom they wish to see. There is no algorithm predicting what you might wish to see. I especially love how well the app showcases the images so that you can see every image as the creator intended (I also love using the desktop app so that I can see a large view in my computer and really take in the whole experience of the image). There are no distracting ads. None. As a community— VERO truly shines. It has been a long time since I was part of a truly thriving community of creators eager to share and experience their work and the work of those they admire. I find myself looking forward to opening the app so that I can enjoy the work of the many talented photographers I follow and share my appreciation and take part in a dialog. When the Internet first began finding its way into the homes of many people on this planet, there was a feeling it would connect us. The VERO app facilitates that promise and the community manifests it.

Updated review: took a couple months off of Vero, came back and very impressed by how quickly the team worked to resolve a lot of issues. So far, Ive been loving the real interactions, recommendations from others, and just the true feeling of collaboration and community. I’ve dropped all other social media platforms because I’m sick of the bots, fake commenters, people who follow and quickly unfollow for my followers— so weird, btw, and just complete disconnect or overly competitive. With Vero, I haven’t had such experiences. There’s a few thirsty self-made male/female models that play the IG games, but nothing too excessive. I’ve been preaching about this app to all my friends and coworkers so much that they think I work for Vero- hire me! LolOld review Feb 2018: I’m trying to give this app a shot but since downloading it, I’ve been receiving nothing but “Internal service error” messages. I was on the app for only 10mins and it drained my battery from 90% to 60%. I’ll try to utilize the app a few more times before giving up since simple searching or displaying everything in the dashboard area takes forever or never loads. Hopefully this app will get it together because it’s a great concept just a faulty system.

I’ve resentfully used Instagram for the past few years because there were no suitable alternatives, but have always been unhappy with the data mining, inherent privacy encroachment, etc present in their business model with such a heavy emphasis on advertisement. The platform has only gotten worse the past few years as the algorithm has prioritized showing you content from people you don’t even follow. Vero on the other hand is a beautifully designed app where the power is returned to the user. You’re not a product, the app is the product. Your work is shown to all of your followers chronologically, and at full-resolution, and it has a genuine community of creators who are passionate about their art and sharing. There’s so much promise here as the app is still in its infancy, but it’s safe to say not only is it a suitable alternative for Instagram, but in many ways, it is better than Instagram. I’m excited to see what new features are coming and how the platform matures as people continue to join.