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Snapchat's Time Machine AR lens creepily shows what you'll look like old

Snapchat's new photo filter lets you watch yourself age with just a swipe.

Katie Teague Writer II
Katie is a writer covering all things how-to at CNET, with a focus on Social Security and notable events. When she's not writing, she enjoys playing in golf scrambles, practicing yoga and spending time on the lake.
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snapchat-filter

Watch yourself age with this new Snapchat filter.

Katie Conner/CNET

So far this year, we've been introduced to popular photo filters like Snapchat's gender-swapping filter and the FaceApp challenge that makes you look super young or gives you wrinkles you're not ready to see. Now Snapchat has come out with Time Machine, a new filter that lets you swipe left and right to watch yourself age from a child to an adult, and finally to an older and grayer version of yourself.

Unlike the FaceApp challenge I tried, I don't see as many wrinkles as I "age" with this new Snapchat filter -- but I did get white hair, a wider face and saggy skin (ugh!). Somewhere in the middle of the aging timeline seems to be the best look for me.

Snapchat released the new filter earlier this week, so if you don't see it yet, you may need to update the app. Here's how to use it.

Katie Conner/CNET

1. Open the Snapchat app on your phone.

2. The camera screen should be the first to open, but if not, tap the bottom circle to launch the camera.

3. Select the smiley face icon.

4. Make sure the camera is facing you by tapping the rectangular arrows in the top right corner.

5. Multiple filters will appear, but the Time Machine filter will be one of the first options, so select that one. It's purple has a baby face and an older face in the icon. 

6. Use the slider at the bottom of the screen to change the appearance of your age. 

7. You can either snap one picture or you can record yourself as you go through an entire life cycle.

Watch this: Turn your iPhone photos into works of art

Now you can send your age timeline to all of your friends and family (and see if you'll look more like Mom or Dad in the future). You can also save your photo or video by pressing the arrow in the lower-left corner to save it to your photo album. Then you can upload it to Facebook or Instagram.

Want more filters to try out on yourself? Check out how to do the gender-face-swap and how to do the FaceApp challenge to make yourself look older.

Originally published earlier this week.