New Twitter profiles to be rolled out completely by December 12

Twitter rolled out its new profile design with a Facebook like cover photo feature a few months ago, eliciting mixed responses from users. The micro-blogging website is going to make this feature available to everyone by December 12, as announced on its official blog.

The change in design on Twitter included a header picture, quite like a cover photo on a Facebook profile. The headers are visible when you view profiles on Twitter’s website, mobile web and apps for Android and iOS.

Celebrities are having a field day with the new Twitter profile changes

The header was an optional feature till now, with users choosing to keep just their display pictures on their profiles. Starting December 12, though, even if users choose not to add a custom image to their header, a default grey background will appear on their profile. This move, says Product Manager Sachin Agarwal in the blog, is to “make your profile a little more ‘you’, [a little] less generic."

The header images measuring 1252x626 will act like a cover image for your profile, making ‘your profile more uniquely yours'. It’s interesting to note though that most Twitter users make use of third party apps to post Tweets. These third party apps like Hootsuite and Twicca will not have headers visible. The new change is almost exclusive to Twitter’s website and home-grown apps. In a bid to be more customisable, Twitter now lets you upload up to three pictures on your profile – display picture, header and background picture.

By constantly changing and improving on the user experience, Twitter seems to be running neck and neck with Facebook to keep its users hooked. Facebook owned Instagram has joined the foray too, with timeline-like web profiles. The photo editing app has turned social in a unique way and has finally introduced a web profile where users can view all the Instagram photos in one place.

Instagram started to roll out these profiles from November. On a computer, a user’s web profile features a selection of recently shared photographs just above the profile photo and bio, giving others a snapshot of the photos one shares on Instagram.

Twitter seems to be locked in a long drawn battle with Instagram ever since arch-rivals Facebook bought the company out. In the latest twist to the saga, Instagram has completely disabled support to Twitter. Previously, using the cards functions, photos shared on Twitter via Instagram would pop up on expanding a tweet. Thanks to the disabling of support, only links directing users to Instagram now show up in a Tweet.

This move by has been adopted by Instagram to make users view the images on their dedicated website and not on Twitter. Instagram Chief Executive Kevin Systrom mentioned at the Le Web conference in Paris that Instagram’s relationship with Twitter is undergoing a change, but the service will remain integrated with Twitter in some form or the other. "Really it's about where do you go to consume that image, to interact with that image. We want that to be on Instagram," said Systrom expanding upon his ongoing enmity with Twitter said at the conference. "What we realised over time is we really needed to have an awesome Web presence."