Instagram launched its second standalone app, Hyperlapse, which enables users to capture time lapse videos.

Unlike traditional time lapse videos that depend on holding the camera still while filming, Hyperlapse includes inbuilt stabilisation technology for users to create moving handheld time lapses with a “cinematic look, quality and feel”.

Once in the camera view, users tap once to begin recording and once to stop, before selecting playback speeds of between 1x and 12x. When finished, users save the video to the camera roll from where it can be shared on Instagram.

Like Bolt, Instagram’s take on ephemeral messaging, Hyperlapse doesn’t require users to have an Instagram account. It is currently only available for iOS devices.

In a blog post, Instagram said its priority since launching four years ago has been to bring its community “simple yet powerful tools that let people capture moments and express their creativity”.

Instagram appears to be embarking on a policy of launching standalone products that complement its main app, similar to the approach being taken by its parent, Facebook.

It launched Bolt for iOS and Android in Singapore, South Africa and New Zealand at the end of May. The app enables users to click contacts once to capture and send images or videos — a capability touted as Bolt’s selling point.

The company said it chose the launch markets as they have the highest usage of Instagram, as well as deeply interconnected communities, high penetration of the Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS and English-speaking audiences.

The company plans to tweak the app using feedback in the initial markets before launching in the US.

In addition to its main app, Facebook now offers Messenger, Groups, Paper and Slingshot, and should soon have WhatsApp on its roster. The company recently removed messaging from its main app on a global basis, restricting the functionality to Messenger.