It still uses the inbox on Instagram.
As Threads has expanded to more than 130 million users, one of the most significant “missing” features that users frequently complain about is the absence of the ability to connect with one another directly through messaging. On the other hand, users who are unable to send direct messages (DMs) may soon have the opportunity to send messages to other Threads users.
Meta has begun testing messaging services that are dependent on Instagram’s inbox but allow new messages to be launched from within the Threads app. The feature has started to become available for some users of Threads. These users have reported seeing a “message” button on top of the profiles of other users, which was formerly the location of the “mention” option. The update was verified by a spokeswoman for Meta, who stated that the company was “testing the ability to send a message from Threads to Instagram.”
It should be noted that Threads does not yet have its own inbox, and it is unclear whether or not it will ever have one. Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, has stated on many occasions that he does not intend to build a separate inbox for Threads. Instead, he would prefer to “make the Instagram inbox work” within the app itself. As an additional confirmation, a spokeswoman for Meta stated that “this is not a test of direct messages on Threads.”
Nevertheless, despite the fact that it is not a full-fledged direct message function, the capability to send a message from within the Threads app without having to transfer to Instagram should at least make the messaging experience within Threads a bit less cumbersome. However, in order for users to actually check or respond to those messages, they will still need to go to the Instagram app.
Despite the fact that this may still appear to be an utterly needless step, Mosseri has brought to light the fact that constructing two distinct configurations of the same inbox can soon become problematic. “If, in the end, we are unable to make the Instagram inbox work for Threads, we will be faced with a difficult choice between (1) mirroring the Instagram inbox in Threads and dealing with notification routing weirdness, or (2) building a completely separate Threads inbox and dealing with the fact that you will have two redundant message threads with each of your friends who have the same handles in two different apps,” he wrote in a post that was published in November. “Neither one appears to be very good.”