For all those Windows phone users, the day has come where you now have access to the official Instagram app! I know, it took a long time. You’ve waited patiently – or for some, impatiently. But now you can celebrate…

Well, sort of.

Yes, you now have access to the Instagram app on Windows phones. Instagram welcomed you to the family last week.

But you’re still not getting all of the latest features. As with many things mobile related, Instagram will roll out updates over the next number of months which will increasingly add features to the app on your devices.

For now, you don’t have the ability to record and share videos. This is probably the biggest feature you’ll notice you’re missing. Instagram promises you will have it as quickly as possible.

There is some confusion about the ability to take photos within the Instagram app itself. My understanding is that there is a button to activate the camera but that this will actually take you out of the app and into your camera function. You can then upload the image back into the Instagram app for editing and publishing. While the functionality is there, it’s not the same interface that Android and iOS users experience which allows photos to be taken directly through the app. This is expected to be updated for you in the future as well.

You are also missing the ability to tag others in your photos and to view maps from geo-tagged images.

But, even without these features, you still have Instagram! I know, it’s not ideal. And if you’ve been using third party apps for videos or other functions, you may want to continue using these until the Instagram updates catch up.

I know it’s frustrating to be behind. Believe me, as an Android user, I frequently complain about how iOS users get new Instagram features before me. I do know that Instagram does tend to send out frequent updates and they know how much you Windows phone users want this access. I honestly hope that you’ll have near to full functionality in the very near future.

In the meantime, do you use a Windows phone? What are your thoughts on the Instagram app? I’d love to hear you sound off in the comments below!